ntfall19

NORTHERN TODAY 3 FALL 2019 The activity and buzz on campus continues. It’s hard to imagine that this is already my fourth year as president at Northern. We have achieved so much in such a short period of time and there is more on the horizon. We started the fall semester with a larger freshman class, our fourth consecutive year of growth in that area. This is a tremendous achievement, but we understand there is work left to do in regard to our enrollment. One factor when recruiting students is facilities, and I’m proud to report that our new facilities are working! Our three new residence halls, Wolves Memorial Suites, Great Plains East and Great Plains West, all have more than a 92 percent occupancy rate. The Harvey C. Jewett IV Regional Science Education Center (featured on the cover), just opened this fall and our freshman enrollments in biology and chemistry increased more than 50 percent. Our new Athletic and Recreation Fields (opened last fall) have had an impact on our soccer and football recruiting. So has the new S.D. School for the Blind and Visually Impaired (scheduled to open early 2020), which will provide the nation’s best training facility for future teachers of the visually impaired. We continue to work together with the SDSBVI on expanding our academic partnership, with the goal of helping to meet a nationwide shortage in teachers of visually impaired students. The turf fields and SDSBVI are both part of the Educational Impact Campaign (educational- impact.com) , a $55 million campaign that also includes an on-campus regional sports complex. The complex will be connected to the Barnett Center and is made up of Dacotah Bank Stadium (football) and Koehler Hall of Fame Softball Field. At the time of this writing, we’ve currently raised more than $50 million and plan to begin construction on the new sports complex in spring 2020. A secondary outcome of the Educational Impact Campaign has been more than $5 million toward student scholarships and endowments. This is on top of the $50 million already raised! The entire region, state, alumni from across the world and friends of the university have all given generously to this game-changing campaign. What started out as a capital campaign has quickly turned into a comprehensive movement that cements Northern’s place in the region. Your gifts and contributions will have an impact on generations of students. Thank you for your support of Northern State University. Whether you have donated to (or plan to) a scholarship or the Educational Impact Campaign – thank you. If you’ve attended a fine arts, education, or sports event, or if you wear maroon and gold to show your support – thank you. If you’ve suggested Northern as an option for a high school student – thank you – and keep those suggestions coming! Together, we have made an impact on Northern and the region. Together, we will continue to move forward, unleashing Northern’s potential. Go Wolves! Timothy M. Downs President Letter from the President NORTHERN STATE UNIVERSITY | Letter from the President