Annual Recognition Awards for 2019-2020



Minot State University honored its 2019-20 Board of Regents Faculty and Staff Achievement Awards award winners at the conclusion of the academic year.

Faculty Achievement Awards
This program was established in 1985 by the Burlington Northern Foundation. In 1990 the Board of Regents established a second award and now solely supports the awards to recognize outstanding university teaching. The intent of the award is to recognize, reward, and motivate excellence in teaching, scholarship, and service.

Holly Pedersen - Scholarship
Dr. Pedersen is an MSU alumna and associate professor who currently serves as chairperson for the Department of Special Education. Her additional responsibilities include program director for the department's graduate program and the BAS in interpreting and sign language studies. Pedersen has over 25 years of experience working with children and youth with disabilities, specifically with children who are Deaf or hard of hearing. Pedersen’s research interests include the role of fathers in families of children with disabilities, interdisciplinary practices, and rural education issues. She has published and presented work on these topics at various national and international professional conferences in Italy, Norway, Austria, and Portugal. Originally from Saskatchewan, Pedersen lives in Minot with her husband, Scot and their three daughters Camryn (21), Carleigh (17), and Chayse (13).

Jean Francois Mondon - Scholarship
Dr. Mondon has just completed his 10th year at Minot State University. He's an East Coast transplant from Philadelphia originally, where he stayed and studied historical and theoretical linguistics at the University of Pennsylvania. Since coming to Minot State he has created pedagogical materials for dead Indo-European languages, resulting in the publication of four books (three on Latin, one on Classical Armenian) and a manuscript for a fifth (Middle Welsh) which he hopes to publish later this year. He has more recently written a pair of articles dealing with the moribund Celtic language, Breton, which was the native language of many of his great aunts and uncles from his mother's side. Mondon has also collaborated with Dr. Joseph Eska of Virginia Tech on some issues of Classical Greek phonetics as well as problems related to the Old Irish verb. He has done some fieldwork with Dr. Olav Hackstein of LMU Munich on the "Pennsylvania Dutch" language spoken by the Amish in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.

Staff Achievement Awards
The Board of Regents Staff Achievement Award was established in 1991. The Board of Regents established the award to recognize university staff members for outstanding service to the University and the community.

Lindsey Benson - Financial Aid
Benson is the assistant financial aid director and is currently on her ninth year at MSU. She graduated from Minot State in 2008 with a bachelor’s degree in business management and marketing. She has been involved on several committees both on campus and representing herself and Minot State on the state and regional financial aid organizations. She is currently serving as treasurer - elect for RMASFAA which is the regional financial aid organization serving eight states and will serve as MSU Staff Senate president for the 2020-2021 year.

Aaron Hughes - Student Activities
Hughes is completing her eighth year as the Student Activities Coordinator at Minot State University where she promotes a vibrant campus community through the coordination of hundreds of social events for Minot State students each academic year.

She is a 2012 graduate of Minot State University with a bachelor’s degree in graphic Design and minors in marketing and management. She advises MSU Life and Student Government Association and serves on numerous campus committees including the Diversity Council, Marketing Committee, and the Student Welfare & University Affairs Committee.

In addition to working at Minot State, Aaron owns a photography studio in Minot with a fellow Minot State graduate that captures memories for hundreds of families and newborns each year. Hint of Whimsy Photography also regularly donates time and talent to area businesses and service organizations such as Women United, Optimist Club, and Magic City Discovery Center.

Aaron and her husband of nine years, Jordan, have a five-year-old son, Graham, who loves to come to "Beaver School" and makes friends on campus wherever he goes.

Lori Braasch - Residence Life and Housing
Braasch, administrative assistant in residence life, started with Minot State in January 2009, working in the business office until moving to residence life in 2014. She and her husband, Jody, have been married for 31 years, have one son, Dylan, a grandson, and a granddaughter. She and her husband own B&B Insulation in Minot. In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with her family at their cabin exploring the outdoors and going to junk fests with her sister and friends.

Retirees

Retirees
Mary Smith Nursing
Larry Chu Math & Computer Science
Leslee Thorpe Teacher Education & Kinesiology
Niki Roed Nursing
Linda Petterson Nursing
Judy Swanson Nursing
Chris Keller Biology
Brenda Roedocker Nursing
Catherine Haarstad NDCPD
Toni Schwartz-Johnson Biology
Robin Wagner Business Office


Years of Service

Years of Service
5 Years of Service
Thomas Barnes Facilities Management
Evan Borisinkoff Special Education
Joseph Collette Science
Daniel Conn Teacher Education and Kinesiology
Rebecca Daigneault Addiction Studies/Psych/Social Work
Dana Dannewitz Business Office
Renee Duncan Nursing
Sherry Filler Addiction Studies/Psych/Social Work
Evan Forde Athletics
Shaun Hill Safety & Security
Jharna Khyer Safety & Security
Kelli Marchand Financial Aid
Luther Olson Math & Computer Science
Gary Orluck Safety & Security
Thomas Rakness Center for Extended Learning
Melissa Rowe Enrollment Services
Steven Shirley President's Office
Mark Singer Social Science
Leslee Thorpe Teacher Education and Kinesiology
James Tiffany Facilities Management
 
10 Years of Service
Sarah Aleshire Humanities
Tonya Critz Financial Aid
Sherri Giessinger Facilities Management
Richard Heit Marketing
Jynette Larshus Thompson Social Science
Michael Linnell University Communications
Jeanne MacDonald Business Administration
Heather Martin Academic Success Center
Daniel Ngugi Social Science
Elizabeth Odahlen Academic Success Center
Tyler Schmaltz ITC
Jessica Smestad Honors Program
 
15 Years of Service
Abbie Baklenko Nursing
Dean Frantsvog Accounting & Finance
Paul Lepp Biology
Thomas Lipsey Facilities Management
Jolene Nechiporenko Library
Deb Wentz President's Office
Naomi Winburn Science
 
20 Years of Service
Wojciech Cebulak Criminal Justice
Terry Eckmann Teacher Education and Kinesiology
Patricia Hunt Library
Cheryl Kremer Music
Deborah Olson Addiction Studies/Psych/Social Work
Ernst Pijning Social Science
Heidi Super Biology
 
25 Years of Service
DeVera Bowles Music
Lisa Haman ITC
Scott Muhle Facilities Management
Cheryl Nilsen Math & Computer Science
James Ondracek Business Administration
Jon Rumney Music
 
30 Years of Service
Evelyn Klimpel Academic Support Center
Jane laPlante Library
Terry Wald Facilities Management
Lorraine Willoughby Business Information Technology
 
35 Years of Service
Julianne Eklund Business Information Technology
 
40 Years of Service
Teresa Loftesnes Marketing
Robin Wagner Business Office


Staff Senate High 5 Recipients - April 2019 - March 2020

Staff Senate High 5 Recipients - April 2019 - March 2020
Keryl Lesmann Power Center
Aaron Hughes Student Activities
Brigittte Mikula Center for Extended Learning
Paul Brekke Wellness Center
Lori Braasch Residence Life
Johnny Guess Facilities Management
Lisa Dooley Title IX
Tricia Tessendorf Business Office
Tonya Critz Financial Aid
Anne Nordgaard Enrollment Services
Leon Perzinski Student Center
Deb Wentz President's Office


Academic Advisor of the Year

Academic Advisor of the Year
Christina Paxman Broadcasting & Professional Communication
Heather Martin Academic Support Center