Report to State Board of Higher Education January 2016
President’s Column
Tisa Mason, Ed.D., CAE
TOP 10 List for 2015
The holidays and the coming
new year give us both pause
and impetus to reflect back
on what’s happened in the
year past. For Valley City State
University, it’s been quite a year,
and I thought I’d list some of the
highlights in a Top 10 list.
The list isn’t ordered, nor is it all-inclusive—so many
good things happen every day at VCSU—but I do think
it gets at some of the more important happenings in
2015. So here we go:
•In the 2015 session, the North Dakota Legislature
appropriated funds for a new heating plant and
permanent flood protection at VCSU. Planning
for the heat plant is in progress, and much work
has already been done on the flood walls that will
protect the campus. Thank you, legislators, for your
continued support!
• On May 6, the campus celebrated the SOAR
(Student Opportunities for Academic Research)
program with a gathering that brought together
nine VCSU students and the faculty members who
teamed with them to do research and creativity/
artistry projects through the year. From measuring
web visitor engagement to designing a 3D printing
curriculum to using sonar to scan for mussel beds
in rivers, the projects ran the breadth of VCSU’s
academic offerings and provided students with
a tremendous experience that will enhance their
careers and lives going forward.
• At spring commencement exercises on May 16—my
first at VCSU—we recognized 255 undergraduates
and 47 graduate students who earned a total of
302 degrees, the largest graduating class in VCSU
history!
• Fifteen VCSU faculty members participated in the
third annual Summer Teaching Academy on campus
May 19–21. With the theme “Engaged!,” the
academy brought faculty members together to focus
on ways to better engage students. This annual
event, organized by the Instructional Design Team,
helps keeps VCSU at the forefront of innovative
teaching.
• Groundbreaking was held for the Valley City Health,
Wellness and Physical Education Center on June
3. The collaborative project—with VCSU, Valley City
Parks and Recreation, and the Sheyenne Valley
Community Foundation all joining in—symbolizes
the wonderful town/gown relationship we enjoy; it
will provide a much-needed facility for the university
and the greater Valley City community. Construction
has continued since the groundbreaking, with
placement of the precast panels giving the building
its exterior shape; no doubt its impact will be as
large as its footprint.
• The 2014–15 VCSU women’s basketball team
was recognized in July as the No. 1 NAIA team in
the nation on the Women’s Basketball Coaches
Association Academic Top 25 Honor Rolls. The
team’s 3.692 collective GPA set a high standard for
what it means to be a Viking student-athlete.
• Fall enrollment at VCSU reached an all-time record
of 1,422 in 2015, surpassing the previous record
of 1,384 set in 2011. Given that the university
graduated an all-time record in the spring, our
ability to grow our enrollment speaks volumes about
the value of a VCSU education. Students and their
families make a choice to attend VCSU, and we’re
glad they do.
• Speaking of value, the VCSU Foundation has
allocated a record $1.252 million for scholarships
this academic year; the scholarships will be offered
to students attending the university in 2016–17.
Those scholarship dollars will go a long way toward
attracting and keeping students at VCSU.
• This fall, U.S. News and World Report named VCSU
the No. 1 public regional college in the Midwest for
2016. We’re very pleased to regain the honor, which
we held in 2012 and 2013. We were also named a
U.S. News “Best College” for the 18th consecutive
year—we’re proud of that measure of our
consistency and the continued national recognition.
• Last but certainly not least, we’ve enjoyed a year of
celebration of our 125th anniversary. Although we
started the fun at Homecoming 2014 and continued
through my inauguration, Homecoming 2015
and Founders Day on Oct. 13, 2015 (the 125th
anniversary of our first day of classes in 1890), it
feels like we’re still celebrating. Let’s hold on to that
feeling going into 2016 and trust that there will be
plenty to celebrate in our 126th year.
As I wrote in the December alumni magazine, our
shared 125th anniversary and inaugural theme,
“Making a Difference—Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow,”
set the perfect tone. It recognized those who shaped
us and where we’ve come from, where we’re at and
those who make us what we are now, and where we’re
going and those who will guide us in the future. Here’s
to VCSU at 125 in 2015—it’s been a great year to be a
Viking!
Staff Senate CoLUMN
Kaleen Peterson
VCSU Staff Senate members
are all busy welcoming our
students back to campus after
the holiday break. I’d like to
take this opportunity to briefly
introduce our senators this
year and their roles on campus.
Kelli Heath, the vice president
of Staff Senate, is the events coordinator at VCSU. She
plays a large role in organizing the logistics of campus
happenings and works closely with her colleagues in
the Facilities Services office.
Nicole Hanson, the secretary of Staff Senate, is the
payroll specialist. She keeps track of everyone on
campus from student workers to adjunct professors,
and also serves as an administrative assistant for
our vice president for business affairs and human
resources director.
Greg Vanney is the director of marketing and
communications. He handles media inquiries, VCSU
press releases, the Bulletin (our alumni magazine), and
much more.
Jeremy Wiebe, the assistant director of annual giving, is
an alumnus and a former VCSU baseball player.
Sarah Larsen, an admission counselor in Enrollment
Services, is a VCSU music alumna.
Adam Longmore is our head volleyball coach. He just
completed his second season at VCSU and is continuing
to build the program.
John O’Day is an assistant football coach and serves as
head resident of two VCSU residence halls.
Kevin Tulp, the groundskeeper for Facilities Services,
works hard to keep our campus beautiful.
Kevin Knight also works for Facilities Services as a
locksmith. He also does general maintenance and is
the go-to person for many projects.
I am an admission counselor in Enrollment Services
and have worked at VCSU for four years. This is my
second year as Staff Senate president, and I feel lucky
to be in this role another year as it seems to take that
long to figure things out! Working for my coworkers at
VCSU in this capacity has been eye-opening and has
provided good opportunities to make a difference.
At our most recent meeting, we analyzed the results
of the Employee Satisfaction Survey; we’ll use our
colleagues’ anonymous comments and suggestions to
provide feedback and actionable ideas to Cabinet to
improve anything we can at VCSU. We’re excited to see
what comes out of this second administration of the
campus survey, and we look forward to working with
campus leaders openly like we did in March 2015 after
the first Employee Satisfaction Survey.
As you can see, VCSU’s Staff Senate boasts a group of
staff members from all areas of campus. We strive to
represent staff as a whole while using the knowledge
we have from the experiences in our individual areas.
Everyone on Staff Senate is helpful, responsive, and
volunteering their time in this organization with a smile,
discussion, and great ideas for VCSU.
Faculty Senate CoLUMN
Anthony Dutton
One of the periodic duties on
campuses is publication of a
new catalog—a phrase that
brings to mind the yearly Sears
catalog with its toy section that
I would pore over and dog-ear
in days gone by. Today it means
poring over text and revising
courses and curriculum. In
either case the enjoyment is in the anticipation of
what will come, although I must admit that the instant
gratification of seeing the latest Millennium Falcon
playset trumped drafting a new course description.
Preparing for a new catalog begins in the curriculum
committee, where academic departments present
their revisions to existing programs or propose new
courses. At VCSU, that work was done last fall, when we
also made the commitment to transition to an online
workflow.
Even with the new system, the process consumes
hundreds of work hours, and staff and faculty are now
editing the department and office pages. The 2014–16
catalog ran to almost 200 pages, and it is hard to
imagine that the new one will be much shorter. As
an adviser, I see each catalog as a contract between
the university and the student. We commit to clear,
consistent and fair requirements for our degrees,
while students commit to following the guidelines and
policies.
Our job in publishing a new catalog is to not only change
with the times but also to maintain the standards that
ensure our degrees have merit. That way, while an
alumnus from 1975, one from 1995 and a third from
2015 may have taken different classes and completed
different degrees, the rigor and the institutional DNA
endure.
These days, the dog-eared university catalog is also a
thing of the past, but the digital version is every bit as
familiar—students can pore over course descriptions
and dream about the classes they will take next year.
Whichever courses they choose will be more useful
and better value for the money than the toys I used to
dream of.
Student Senate CoLUMN
Madelyn Zane
The holidays are always filled
with lots of family and, well,
lots of food.
This holiday break I did
something for the first time
ever—I traveled to see my Dad’s
side of the family. I have not
been with any of them for a
holiday in almost 10 years, so it was fabulous.
My parents and I were there for both Christmas and the
New Year. It was wonderful seeing everyone; however,
flying was a challenge at that time of the year.
I spent the beginning of 2016 in much warmer weather
and had family around that I don’t get to see as often.
Once I came back to North Dakota, I got sick with
something similar to the flu and spent the rest of my
break recovering.
I then began my last semester at VCSU on January
12—I’m both excited and nervous about graduation
coming so soon.
VCSU online programs nationally ranked
by U.S. News
Valley City State University’s online degree programs—
both its Master of Education (M.Ed.) and Bachelor’s
Degree programs—have been nationally ranked in the
2016 U.S. News Best Online Programs.
VCSU’s online M.Ed. is ranked 83rd among 263
programs listed in the Graduate Education rankings, and
in the Best Online Bachelor’s Program category, VCSU is
ranked 143rd of 297 listed programs.
No other North Dakota schools were listed in the
Graduate Education rankings; in the Best Online
Bachelor’s Program lists, Minot State University (191st),
Mayville State University (205th) and the University of
North Dakota (208th) were ranked along with VCSU.
“We’re proud of the recognition our online programs
have received from U.S. News,” said President Tisa
Mason. “We emphasize best practices in teaching,
learning and technology at VCSU, so that regardless of
how the instruction is delivered, students enjoy a rich
and rigorous educational experience. That shows in the
honors our programs receive.”
“Online instruction affords students additional flexibility
in choosing their courses and where they take them,”
added President Mason, “so when they choose us,
we’re able to increase the reach of the university
beyond Valley City and North Dakota, providing online
accessibility in key areas.”
U.S. News surveyed colleges and universities with
online programs to obtain data for the rankings.
Graduation rates, class sizes, retention rates, student
indebtedness, technological infrastructure, support
services, and percentage of faculty with terminal
degrees and with tenure were among the many factors
that were considered in ranking online programs.
Sanden, an
elementary
education major
with a minor in
library media and
information science,
served on the Viking
Campus Activity
Board, Student
Senate and the
Teacher Education
Committee. She
also was a Learning
to Live mentor
Jessica Sanden of Valley City
and Homecoming
presents the student reflection.
co-chair. Sanden
challenged her fellow
graduates to become difference makers—“to stand up,
to speak up, to make something of yourself” and to
enjoy “the beauty of the journey we were challenged
to begin at Valley City State.”
Education professor Alan Olson presents the faculty
reflection at VCSU’s first winter commencement exercises.
Olson received the 2015 Teacher Excellence Award for
Senior Faculty. He reassured the degree candidates
that they had learned critical-thinking skills and “were
graduating with more than just knowledge in [their]
program area.” Olson also reminded them that the
VCSU community shared in their accomplishments—
“We’ll be delighted to celebrate your successes today
and in the future as well,” he said.
first winter commencement celebrated
Dec. 17 in Graichen Gym
VCSU will hold its 2016 spring commencement
exercises on Saturday, May 14.
VCSU celebrated its inaugural winter commencement
exercises with a ceremony held the afternoon of
Thursday, Dec. 17, in Graichen Gymnasium.
Eighty candidates for degrees—including 9 Master
of Education candidates, 44 Bachelor of Science
in Education candidates, 26 Bachelor of Science
candidates, and 1 Bachelor of University Studies
candidate—were eligible to participate in the
ceremony.
President Tisa Mason led the event, providing
remarks along with Emma Tufte, staff adviser to the
North Dakota State Board of Higher Education. VCSU
student Jessica Sanden presented the undergraduate
reflection, and Alan Olson, associate professor in the
VCSU School of Education and Graduate Studies,
presented the faculty reflection.
Winter graduates Michael Bichler of Ashley, N.D., and Katie
Sather of Valley City savor the moment.