Faculty, staff and students helped freshmen move into the residence halls on Move-in Day. Accompanied by a picnic, the Housing Office and MSU Life sponsored the event to welcome students and their families to campus.

Pictured, left to right, are Samantha Morse, Paul Brekke, Nikki Egge and Cole Krueger.

Mark McQuade, associate professor of music, assumed leadership of Western Plains Opera and Children's Chorus, one of Minot State University's premier arts organizations, this summer. A gifted musician, McQuade will direct as well as produce “The Magic Flute” in Ann Nicole Nelson Hall on Sept. 11 at 7:30 p.m. and Sept. 13 at 3 p.m.

“The executive director's position is a very important one for the organization, said Eric Furuseth, president of the WPO board of directors. “The annual production of a great opera requires the largest budget and most preparation of any single arts event in Minot. The executive director is involved in every aspect of that preparation, including hiring the professional singers who play most of the leading roles, casting local singers for smaller roles and the chorus and making sure that all aspects of the production are being well served.”

WPO has built an established opera tradition within the region, beginning with “The Student Prince” in 1976. After leading WPO for 21 years, Kenneth Bowles, music professor, stepped down as executive director but remains chair of the MSU Division of Music. WPO also sponsors musicals and concerts of the Western Plains Children’s Chorus.

McQuade, who previously taught at Oklahoma Baptist University, Shawnee, earned a bachelor’s degree in vocal performance at Oberlin Conservatory of Music, a master’s degree in vocal performance from the University of Oklahoma and a doctorate in vocal pedagogy and performance at the University of Mississippi. He possesses a distinguished record of heading university opera programs, including producing and directing a number of operas and musical productions.

WPO will celebrate Bowles’ contribution and welcome McQuade at the WPO Opera Gala Sept. 1 at the Holiday Inn Riverside at 7 p.m. The event will feature performances by the lead singers in “The Magic Flute.” The gala will also feature a silent auction.

Ticket prices for “The Magic Flute” range from $15 to $25 by seating choice. Tickets can be purchased through the WPO website, www.WPOpera.org, or the WPO Facebook page, www.facebook.com/WesternPlainsOpera, or by calling 858-3185.

The International Assembly for Collegiate Business Education board of commissioners recently reaffirmed accreditation of business programs offered by Minot State University’s College of Business. IACBE granted accreditation to MSU’s business programs with no notes and one observation, a rare achievement. MSU will be publicly recognized for achieving accreditation at the 2015 IACBE Annual Conference and Assembly Meeting on April 5-8 in Memphis, Tenn.

“We are very proud to be among the few universities to have no notes and one observation in our reaffirmation of accreditation of our business programs by the IACBE,” said Jacek Mrozik, College of Business dean. “This signifies the academic quality of our programs and rates them among the best programs accredited by IACBE in the nation. These results demonstrate our commitment to our students’ continuing education and to our community. This good news will not stop us in our efforts to continue improving our programs to be even better in the future.”

Commendations are findings of IACBE in those areas in which its board believes that the College of Business is demonstrating excellent performance.

• The College of Business upholds the academic quality of its programs and maintains oversight of the degree program goals. The Board of Commissioners recognized how the college cares about students and the quality of education offered. In addition, the college demonstrated that it values change, interdisciplinary work and the mission, vision and values of Minot State University.
• The College of Business does a remarkable job in working with its College Advisory Councils. The councils’ level of commitment to help the university is to be applauded. It was apparent to the Board of Commissioners that members of the councils, board and community truly believe in the institution’s mission and know of the positive impact they have on students’ lives.

Observations are suggestions for improvement by the IACBE Board of Commissioners that it believes would be helpful to the College of Business in achieving excellence in business education. Action on observations is highly recommended, but is not required. The Board of Commissioners recommends that the College of Business review program coverage to ensure that each program is overseen by qualified faculty members who have sufficient time to devote to the programs that they oversee.

MSU received specialized accreditation for its business programs through IACBE, located in Lenexa, Kan. The business programs in the following degrees are accredited by IACBE: Master of Science in information systems, Master of Science in management, and Bachelor of Science with majors in accounting, energy economics and finance, finance, international business, management, management information systems, and marketing. Accreditation represents a continuing relationship between an institution and its accrediting organization. The College of Business’ accreditation is valid for a maximum of seven years, through July 2022. For questions, contact Mrozik at jacek.mrozik@minotstateu.edu or 858-3110.

The North Dakota Art Gallery Association was awarded an $8,056 Institutional Support grant by the North Dakota Council on the Arts. With this grant, NDAGA will continue providing arts programming and supporting cultural activities in its region.

NDAGA, a nonprofit corporation promoting growth in North Dakota arts activities since 1975, provides professional training while coordinating exhibitions, information and services for gallery and museum personnel. It is headquartered in the Minot State University Art Department and overseen by Linda Olson, art professor and NDAGA executive director.

Minot State University welcomes new employee Samantha Morse. Morse, assistant volleyball coach, was a NCAA Division I player at the University of Louisiana Monroe. The native of Glendale, Ariz., joins MSU’s program after coaching the past two seasons at the Revolution Volleyball Academy in Scottsdale, Ariz.

Aug. 26-Sept. 20 — "Firecracker Press," a letterpress design studio from St. Louis, combines antique printing technologies with modern thinking to produce objects that bring surprise and joy. Their exhibit is part of NOTSTOCK and is in the Gordon B. Olson Library Gallery.

Aug. 26-Oct. 2 — "Americas 2015: All Media," a national juried exhibition with guest juror Richard Notkin of Vaughn, Wash., Hartnett Gallery.

The Office of Public Information proudly shares the many accomplishments of faculty and staff with the campus community in every issue.

Ernst Pijning, professor of history, co-organized a thematic symposium with Paulo Cavalcante (UNIRIO) at the Brazilian National Association for University Professors (ANPUH). This simposium was titled “Contraband, illegality and religious hetrodoxies in the (Early) Modern period,” where 15 presentations were introduced and commented on. Pijning also presented a paper, “War and Contraband: the War of the Spanish Succession and the conjuncture of illegality.” This paper was submitted for publication afterward with the same organization.

Kari Schmidt, Disability Health II project director at the North Dakota Center for Persons with Disabilities, recently presented at the American Society for Clinical Laboratory Science-North Dakota in Minot and to Sanford clinic and hospital lab personnel in Fargo. The presentations focused on accommodations for successful provision of lab services to people with various disabilities.