North Dakota State College of Science President John Richman has been elected to the Board of Trustees of The Higher Learning Commission (HLC). Richman’s term will begin on September 1, 2017 and will continue through August 31, 2021.

Headquartered in Chicago, Ill., the HLC accredits more than 1,000 degree-granting post-secondary educational institutions in 19 states, including North Dakota. The Board of Trustees, which consists of between 15-21 members, is the HLC’s governing body. The Board of Trustees leads the work of HLC in serving its affiliated colleges and universities, deals with policy matters related to accreditation and votes on institutional actions.

After a months-long process involving feedback and input from students, employees and other stakeholders, the North Dakota State College of Science has identified and adopted its 2017-2020 Strategic Plan. The NDSCS AQIP Strategy Team, led by Dr. Jane Vangsness Frisch, guided the plan’s development process, which began in September 2016 and included feedback from various groups throughout the four-phase process.

The College’s strategic goals identified in the strategic plan are: improve the student learning experience, strategically meet business and industry needs in North Dakota and the region, commitment to the continuous development of NDSCS employees, and strengthen relationships with internal and external stakeholders. Each specific goal includes a number of strategies and key performance indicators to measure success and progress toward the goal.

The NDSCS Strategic Plan includes the College’s mission and values, and aligns with the North Dakota University System’s “The NDUS Edge: 2015-2020 Strategic Plan”.

North Dakota State College of Science has been awarded a $742,567 grant from the National Science Foundation to support the North Dakota Welds (NDWelds) Program: Advancing Welding Technician Skills for Students and Training for Educators.

NDWelds has a goal of enhancing welding technician skills for secondary school students, two-year college students, secondary school teachers and two-year college faculty members. Through this project, NDSCS will increase the number of trained and certified welders possessing essential and advanced skills to meet the workforce needs of the region.

The NDWelds project will increase awareness among students from under-represented groups of the opportunity for careers in welding. NDWelds significantly impacts the regional economic environment by filling a critical employment training need.

The grant award started on May 15, 2017, and will end on April 30, 2020.

Leah Barnes, a student at North Dakota State College of Science, has been named a 2017 New Century Scholar by achieving the state’s highest score in the All-USA Community College Academic Team competition. This is the third consecutive year in which the New Century Scholar from North Dakota has been a student at North Dakota State College of Science.

The New Century Scholars program, sponsored by The Coca-Cola Foundation, The Coca-Cola Scholars Foundation, Phi Theta Kappa and the American Association of Community Colleges, shares a common application with the All-USA Community College Academic Team program, which recognizes outstanding community college students.

More than 1,800 students were nominated from more than 1,000 community colleges for recognition. Judges consider academic accomplishments, leadership, activities and most importantly, how students extend their intellectual talents beyond the classroom. New Century Scholars are the highest scoring students in each state.