Minot State University announced a $1 million gift from Roger and Ann Looyenga to broaden the University’s academic offerings in the area of leadership.

“Roger and Ann are passionate about the area of leadership and they are committed to ensuring current and future Minot State students have educational opportunities in this important area. The new leadership initiatives we will be establishing, thanks to the incredible generosity and vision of Roger and Ann, will be a tremendous benefit for our students. The Looyengas are great friends of MSU, and we are excited about the positive impact this gift will have on our students,” said Minot State President Dr. Steven Shirley.

The Roger and Ann Looyenga Leadership Center will develop leadership courses at Minot State and will offer a Leadership Certificate (nine total credits) or a Leadership Concentration (12 total credits).

In 2010, the Looyengas presented an initial gift to establish the Roger Looyenga Leadership College of Business Endowment to begin a program in business leadership, an overlooked area in higher education. Subsequent gifts to MSU by the Looyengas have grown the Endowment to nearly $500,000.

“I became particularly interested in leadership when I saw how just one person could influence the outcome of an organization — either positively or negatively,” Roger Looyenga said. “That organization, as an example, could be a sales territory, company, sports team, or even a country. We all have the ability to be leaders, however leadership skills need to be developed and honed. Ann and I are supporting the initiative at Minot State University because students can develop these skills earlier in their life and career.”

Minot State University Special Education and the North Dakota Department of Human Services (DHS) have formalized a longstanding partnership to implement a career ladder model for workforce development in developmental disabilities.

The agreement adds to an existing contract between DHS and the North Dakota Center for Persons with Disabilities (NDCPD), a University Center of Excellence on developmental disabilities, education, research, and service housed at Minot State.

“Our model is quite unique in the country and internationally,” said MSU Special Education Chair Holly Pedersen. “The partnership with DHS involves two MSU programs, the CSTP Program at NDCPD and the special education department’s associate and bachelor degrees in Human Services.”

It will allow for a seamless transition for students seeking to utilize state required Community Staff Training Program (CSTP) modules to complete a Certificate of Completion in Intellectual/Developmental Disabilities, an Associate of Science in Human Services with a major in Intellectual/Developmental Disabilities, or a Bachelor of Science in Human Services with a major in Intellectual/Developmental Disabilities.

Minot State University is commemorating the 2019-20 centennial of women’s suffrage in the United States.

The next event at MSU is a Dec. 5 presentation for history professor Bethany Andreasen’s History of American Women class scheduled from 12:30-1:45 p.m. in Old Main. Minot State students have reviewed newspapers from the early 20th century and will report on the activities of the suffrage movement and its opponents in North Dakota, with a special emphasis upon what took place in the Minot area.

The first event was a Nov. 21 screening of “One Woman, One Vote.” The documentary provided an overview of the decades-long struggle to gain the vote for women, highlighting women who played important roles, the organizations they created and worked within, and the actions that they took in the effort to advance their cause.

The fall 2019 events are a part of an ongoing celebration at Minot State with the first semester focusing on the history, the Spring 2020 semester focusing on the present, and Fall 2020 looking to the future.

High school students from across the region converged on the campus of Minot State University for the 22nd annual installment of Minot State College of Business Tech Day.

This event showcases Minot State business education students and area secondary business students as they compete in various business and technology related competitions.

Along with the competition, prep students attended concurrent sessions featuring Jordan Lakoduk, Kalix IT System Administrator, and the Minot State Enrollment Services “See Yourself at Minot State,” during the day. A pizza lunch and ice cream social along with an awards presentation finalized the event.

Regional schools participating in 2019 Tech Day included: Berthold, Bowbells, Burke Central, Des Lacs-Burlington, Drake-Anamoose, Kenmare, Powers Lake, South Prairie, Stanley, Surrey, TGU-Granville, TGU-Towner, Tioga, and Underwood.

Jan Repnow, business teacher education coordinator, and MSU business education students Kathy Klemetsrud, Kyla Grandy, and Kaitlin Walker coordinated the event. Minot State Phi Beta Lambda members Hannah Heisler, Melanie Macpherson, Tanner Thompson, and Zach Keller also assisted in the day’s events.  Emma Condit, 2018 Kenmare High School graduate, was recognized for receiving the Tom & Anita Seymour Tech Day $1,000 scholarship.

Tech Day 2019 corporate sponsors included SRT Communications, Vibeto Orthodontics, Brady, Martz & Associates, First Western Bank & Trust, North American Coal – Falkirk Mine, Investors Management & Marketing, Bremer Bank, and Minot State Enrollment Services.

The event would like to acknowledge All American Trophy for T-shirt production and award plaques, Tom and Anita Seymour for the Tech Day Scholarship, members of the BIT Department, and business education students.

As the holiday season draws near, Minot State University will host several musical events at Ann Nicole Nelson Hall. University events include the MSU Band concert on Friday, Dec. 6 at 7:30 p.m., the “Messiah” on Dec. 8, the Minot Symphony Orchestra’s “Holiday Pops” on Dec. 14, and the Western Plains Opera Children’s Choir on Dec. 15.

The Heritage Singers, Minot Chamber Chorale, Voices of Note, and Minot State University Concert Choir, along with MSU faculty and members of the Minot Symphony Orchestra, will join forces for the annual performance of “Messiah” on Sunday, Dec. 8 at 4 p.m. The production is free and open to the public.

On Friday, Dec. 14, the Minot Symphony Orchestra will celebrate the holidays with their annual “Holiday Pops” concert at 7:30 p.m. The orchestra will feature seasonal music from American, English, and French composers while collaborating with the Minot High School Choir and Minot State University Concert Choir. The audience is encouraged to sing along with their favorite Christmas tunes. Tickets for the event are available at minotsymphony.com.

Saturday, Dec. 15 will find the Western Plains Children’s Choir on stage at 3 p.m. The choir has maintained a tradition of choral excellence in Minot since January 1991. The three choral ensembles are comprised of youth grades three to 12.

In addition to Minot State’s holiday events, additional musical performances will take place at Ann Nicole Nelson Hall in December.

On Monday, Dec. 2, pianist Lorie Line and her Pop Chamber Orchestra will take the stage at 7 p.m. This year’s Christmas tour will celebrate 30 years of touring for Line. Tickets for the event can be purchased at lorieline.com.

Five legendary Medora performers will present “A Magical Medora Christmas” on Tuesday, Dec. 10, with start times at 3 p.m. at 7:30 p.m. Tickets and more information about the traveling family-friendly holiday show can be found at medora.com.

The Minot State University’s Broadcasting Department will host the 21st annual KMSU Auction on Thursday, Dec. 5 at 6:30 p.m. The auction will be broadcasted on local access KMSU Channel 19, accessible for SRT and MIDCO customers, and is streamed in real-time on YouTube Live. Viewers at able to purchase packages by calling in to place their bids — the highest bid wins the package. The KMSU Auction is a live auction event that is planned, organized, and executed by students in the Minot State Broadcasting and Professional Communications department. For more information contact Janna McKechnie, director of alumni relations & annual giving, by EMAIL or by phone at 701-858-3373.

The Minot State University Art Department is proud to announce the Harvey and Arlone Twyman Scholarship application process is now open for the 2020 academic year.

The scholarship is available to incoming freshmen and transfer art students and recipients will be awarded up to $2,000. Scholarship awards are determined by the quality of the application and the portfolio. Additional requirements include current art major status and a minimum 3.00 GPA.

Applications are due Saturday, Feb. 15, 2020. All scholarship awards are granted by the scholarship committee made up of art department faculty.

For more information and to fill out an application, visit the Minot State Art Department SCHOLARSHIP website. Questions can be directed to Minot State art professor Micah Bloom by EMAIL. All applicants must also fill out the general Minot State scholarship form, available HERE. Deadline for the general scholarship application is Feb. 15.

Northwest Arts Center
The gallery is located on the lower level of the Gordon B. Olson Library, with its own entrance on the south side of the library. It is open Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Thursday 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., and Saturday 1-5 p.m., and by special arrangement. It is closed holidays.

• Layers of Identity: An exhibition by North Dakota artist and painter Mark Holter, on view in the Northwest Arts Center’s Walter Piehl Gallery from Dec. 2-31. Holter grew up in Williston and Minot, and after high school he served for 10 years in the US Navy before relocating to Minot for a career in law enforcement. He received a Bachelor of General Studies degree from Minot State in 2016. It was there that Holter rediscovered his love for creating art in the Minot State Art Department. Currently, Holter is actively painting and experimenting with other mediums.
• Opening reception: "Layers of Identity," an exhibition of acrylic painting by Mark Holter on Dec. 6, from 4:30-6 p.m. There will be an artist’s talk at 5 p.m.

Hartnett Hall Gallery
The new gallery provides exhibition space for students, faculty, and community artists, and is located on the second floor on the west side of Hartnett Hall in Room 233. The Hartnett Hall Gallery is open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays.

Flat Tail Press
The gallery is located in the landing space on second and third floor of the Minot State Student Center, west entrance. It is open while the Student Center is open, Monday-Friday, 7 a.m. to 1 a.m.

Congratulations to the following Minot State University faculty for the successful grant awards funded by the North Dakota Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (ND EPSCoR):
Mikhail Bobylev (chemistry) – Research Experiences for High School Students
Rahul Gomes (math & computer science) – ND CyberGIS: Integrating Big Data with Intelligent Knowledge Discovery No-SQL System for Geo-Visualization and Machine Learning
Christopher Heth (chemistry) and John Webster (geoscience) – Microwave Plasm Atomic Emission Spectroscopy Equipment
Sayeed Sajal (math & computer science) – Analysis and Simulation of Historical Flooding in Fargo, ND
Darren Seifert, Sayeed Sajal, & Rahul Gomes (math & computer science) – Minot Area Cyber Security Education with K-12 Students
Robert Crackel and Naomi Winburn (chemistry) – MSU Science Division K-12 Outreach Activities

Lisa Dooley, Title IX coordinator, was named Minot State University Staff Senate's September High Five Award winner.

Jorge Talamantes Baez, a senator for the College of Business and a marketing major at Minot State, has been selected as the Student Government Senator of the Month for October.

In celebration of International Education Week, the Global Sights Photo Contest winning entries were announced. Congratulations to the following students, faculty, staff, alumni, and retirees:
Students
Emily Schmidt, first place: “Chuckle Park” taken in Australia
Lauren Blight, second place: “The Blues of the Canadian Rocky Mountains” taken in Canada
McKayla Marchus, third place: “Path to Happiness” taken in South Africa
Honorable Mention:
Cameron Deasy: “Cancun 2k19” taken in Mexico
Spencer Gordon: “Untitled” taken in Nigeria
Madison Tiedman: “Saxon Scene” taken in Germany
Spencer Furniss: “Sunset in Rauland, Norway” taken in Norway
Jenna Gigantelli: “The Oldest City” taken in Italy  
Howard Wade: “The Sun Protects Atlantis” taken in the Bahamas
Faculty, staff, alumni, and retirees
Luke Charley, NDCPD, first place: “Point of Silence” taken in Austria
Micah Bloom, art, second place: “Choose Your Shoes” taken in Japan
Bethany Andreasen, history, third place: “Hanoi Street Seller” taken in Vietnam
Honorable Mention:
Thea Van Burgsteden, alumni: “A Czech Christmas” taken in the Czech Republic
Holly Pedersen, special education: “Ribeira District” taken in Portugal
Laura Zucca-Scott, teacher education & kinesiology: “Summer Evening” taken in Italy