Board of Regents Meeting
September 25-26, 2003

Montana State University – Billings
1500 N. 30th Street
Billings, Montana

Flathead Valley Community College

Jane Karas, President

·         Flathead Valley Community College held its first New Student Orientation for fall 2003 on Friday, August 1, and filled both morning and afternoon sessions.  Over 200 students attended, and Robbie Sullivan, Instructional/Tutorial Assistant, Reading Lab; Vocational Retention Advisor, held a special parent orientation.  The final New Student Orientation is scheduled for Wednesday, August 20, and more than 300 students are scheduled to attend.

·         Dr. Larry J. Blake, Sr., Flathead Valley Community College’s founding president, died on June 11, 2003, in The Dalles, Oregon.  Dr. Blake began his tenure at FVCC in 1967 when the college was established, and left in 1974 to become the founding president of Fraser Valley College in British Columbia.  On September 12, 1997, FVCC’s Board of Trustees, in celebration of the College’s 30th Anniversary, dedicated and renamed the student center and administration building in honor of Dr. Larry J. Blake.  The Founding President, Dr. Larry J. Blake Endowed Scholarship Fund was established at Flathead Valley Community College in 1998.  Six students have each received $1,000 scholarships to help with their school expenses at Flathead Valley Community College.  Recipients must be residents of Flathead County with a minimum 3.0 G.P.A who can illustrate outstanding leadership qualities with a concern for the local community.

·         The FVCC Foundation has scheduled a Board Retreat for October 7, 2003, at Averill’s Flathead Lake Lodge in Bigfork. The FVCC Foundation Board will explore future goals following the successful conclusion of their Connecting for the Community’s Future major gifts campaign which raised over $4 million.

·         Due to increased enrollments, the college has rented storage units and is constructing two temporary classrooms in the physical plant storage area in the Science and Technology Building. The college will be installing two state-of-the-art computer labs in the Business and Social Sciences building, one funded by the National Guard and the other funded by a grant from the Rural Utilities Service.

·         FVCC is pleased to welcome four new faculty members this fall 2003 semester.  David Ackroyd, MFA, Theatre Instructor, joins the FVCC faculty with a wealth of experience as an actor, director, and producer in film, television, and live theatre.  David has a Master of Fine Arts from Yale University and his theatre and film credits include Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf and Memories of Me.  Anita M. Ho, Ph.D., Geology/Geography Instructor comes to FVCC from Eastern Oregon University in La Grande where she was an Assistant Professor teaching introductory geology classes and labs and upper division courses in volcanology, petrology, and Pacific Northwest geology.  She earned her Ph.D. in Geology from the University of Oregon, and in 2002, she was selected as a Faculty Fellow for the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory.  Keith B. Fowler, MBA, Computer Applications/Business Education Instructor returns to FVCC this fall as a full-time faculty member.  He joins the college’s team of Cisco-trained instructors in delivering a completely updated networking curriculum.  Keith earned his Master in Business Administration from Oklahoma City University and has extensive managerial and administrative experience in the private and public sector.  Effat Rady, Ph.D., Engineering Instructor, joins the FVCC faculty to teach in the Math and Science Division.  She received her Master of Science in Civil Engineering and a Ph.D. in Applied Mechanics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and she brings a wealth of research, consulting, and teaching experience to FVCC.

·         FVCC announced three new certificate programs beginning this fall 2003 semester.  Heavy Equipment Operation will be a two-semester curriculum, including both classroom and hands-on training to prepare students to operate heavy equipment for the construction trades.  Medical Coding, a three-semester curriculum, will include both classroom (didactic) and hands-on training (clinical) to prepare students to code patient charts for disease and procedures.  The Surgical Technology certificate program will also be a three-semester curriculum including both classroom and hands-on training to prepare students to assist in surgical operations.  All three programs currently have waiting lists of students interested in attending.

·         New this fall, FVCC will offer a series of credit classes designed for seniors age 62 or older.  Seniors may choose from Watercolor for Seniors, Montana History for Seniors, or Exploring Local History for Seniors.  These classes will be offered in downtown Kalispell at three historical locations – the Hockaday Museum of Art, the Central School Museum, and the Depot Building at Depot Park, and are designed to provide an opportunity to experience the ambience of our Valley’s historical buildings while enjoying art and/or history.

·         Completion of the new facilities housing the Lincoln County Campus is progressing according to schedule and the remodeling will be completed in time for the beginning of fall semester.  Over $76,000 has been raised for the LCC remodel, including a $25,000 matching grant from Glacier Bank.

·         This fall, FVCC has added women’s soccer to the intercollegiate sports offered on campus.  The college currently offers men’s soccer and men’s and women’s cross country.

·         FVCC has received a grant totaling $34,011 from the Department of Public Health & Human Services, Early Childhood Services Bureau.  The grant will support the College’s “One Credit at a Time” program to promote and strengthen early childhood programming options.

·         Both the Kalispell and Lincoln County Campus of Flathead Valley Community College are extending the fall registration deadline for Montana’s firefighters.  Fall semester begins September 2nd.  The men and women fighting Montana’s wildfires can register up until Monday, September 22nd, three weeks after the fall semester begins.  Special accommodations will be made for firefighters getting a late start in classes.  Additionally, based on demand, shorter intensive courses may be offered following the fire season.

Montana Tech of The University of Montana

Chancellor W. Franklin Gilmore

·        The first Montana Tech Kids' College was offered this summer, to rave reviews by attendees and parents alike.  The three week-long series of workshops for children aged 5-12 focused on creativity, outdoor science, and international cultures.  Kids' College was created and facilitated by Ginette Abdo (Mineral Museum and Bureau of Mines), Colleen Elliott (Geological Engineering) and Amy Verlanic (Technical Outreach).

·        Colleen Elliott (Geological Engineering), Joe Griffin (consultant), and Bill Callaghan (Butte School District #1) received a $25,000 grant from the State of Montana's Natural Resource Damage Program to initiate a Watershed Education Program for the public schools in the upper Clark Fork Watershed.  The goal of the program is to bring hands-on, outdoor, stream science education to every school child in the watershed.  The grant will be administered by Technical Outreach at Montana Tech.

·         Montana Tech, the Bureau of Mines and Geology, the Mineral Museum, the Mining Museum, and the Momex Children's Science Learning Center have put together a web site called the Southwest Montana Community Science Calendar. The web page lists all upcoming science and mathematics related activities in SW Montana and provides links for further information.  The site address is http://www.earthmaps.com/science_cal.htm

·         Robert Ziegler’s (Liberal Studies) second book The Mirror of Divinity: The World and Creation in J-K. Huysmans, will be published in 2004 by the University of Delaware Press.  His first book Beauty Raises the Dead was selected by Choice as an outstanding academic book for 2002.

·         Willis Weight (Geological Engineering) participated as an instructor for junior and high school students from the Rocky Boy Indian Reservation on geology and groundwater issues.

·         Willis Weight submitted two papers for publication to be presented at the MODFLOW conference at the Colorado School of Mines in September. 

·         Dr. Weight has been invited to make two presentations at the 2004 North American Environment Field Conference in Florida in January 2004.

·         Montana Tech recorded 6.8M$ in grant and contract expenditures in FY2003.  This is an all time high and represents a 26% increase over FY2002. 

·         The campus submitted or supported 32M$ in earmark requests to our congressional delegation for FY2004.  To date, 5.7M$ worth of these requests have appeared in either House or Senate conference reports.

·         In FY2003 the campus submitted 112 competitive proposals with a net value of 14.5M$.  To date 69 have been funded for a success rate of 62%.

The University of Montana-Missoula

President  G. M. Dennison

·         Danielle Cross, a senior in the Radio-TV Department, won top honors in the final round of competition of the Hearst Journalism Awards Program, the “College Pulitzers,” in San Francisco.

·         Sarah Segel, a student in the UM-M School of Education, won third place at a NASA Science and Math Seminar for Elementary Teachers.  

·         UM-M College of Forestry and Conservation faculty members Ramakrishna Nemani, William Jolly, and Steven Running collaborated with NASA and several other universities to present a paper that indicates that global changes in climate have resulted in a net plant growth production increase of 6% globally.

·        The NASA EOS Education Project, a project under the Division of Educational Research and Service (DERS), trained K-12 teachers and students in Billings and Western Montana to use Geographical Information Systems (GIS).  This rapidly advancing technology, that disseminates earth imagery, was used to help students understand the war in Iraq and to enhance classroom curricula.

·        Department of Physics and Astronomy senior Brian Hand received the prestigious Watkins Research Scholarship and spent the summer using the Observatory CCD camera to collect photometric data for his study of short-period, variable red-giant stars.

·         HJ 26, a joint resolution of the Montana Senate and House of Representatives, supports creation of a hydrogen-based economy in the state.  It is based on an energy plan, crafted by R. Paul Williamson, Dean of the College of Technology, that would make hydrogen the state’s key economic development focus.

·         UM-M staff member Terri Peterson has been awarded a U.S. Army Command Award for Excellence for being the nation’s top ROTC human resource assistant for 2003.

·        Two Davidson Honors College students have completed summer internships abroad.  Lysandra Wolberd worked at the US Embassy in Kazakhstan and Christina Anderson at the Embassy in Croatia.

·        John Heenan, a May graduate of the UM-M School of Law, recently won the Roscoe Pound Institute’s Roscoe Hogan Environmental Law Essay Contest for his essay titled, “Graceful Maneuvering: Corporate Avoidance of Liability Through Bankruptcy and Corporate Law.”

·        Department of Economics professor Richard Barrett received a Fulbright Fellowship to provide a series of workshops and seminars on economic development issues in Montevideo, Uruguay this summer.

·        School of Journalism professor Sharon Barrett received a Fulbright Fellowship to provide public lectures about media services and a series of workshops and seminars about journalism in Montevideo, Uruguay.

·        The UM-M Center for Riverine Science and Stream Re-Naturalization will host a conference “Assessing and Re-Naturalizing Streams Impacted by Mining” on the campus September 25–26. Professor William Woessner, in the Department of Geology, has organized the conference that will feature a field trip, poster session and five keynote speakers.

·         Reznetnews.org, UM-M School of Journalism, has won first place for General Excellence, Best Internet News Site in the 2003 Native American Media Awards Contest.  The awards are sponsored by the Native American Journalists’ Association.

·        Eduardo Chirinos, Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures, most recent work, “Escrito en Missoula”, was recently published by Pre-Textos and received an international poetry prize.

·        UM-M Geography Department and the Central Asia and Caspian Basin Program have been awarded a $73,000 U.S. Department of Education Fulbright-Hays Group Project Abroad Grant to support UM’s “Teaching About Central Asia: Mountains and Society in Kyrgyzstan” project. 

·        The Montana Museum of Art and Culture at the UM-M has received a $20,000 “Access to Art” grant from the National Endowment for the Arts to support a new exhibit, “Native American  Artists – After Lewis and Clark.” 

The University of Montana Western

Karl Ulrich, Interim Chancellor

Faculty Accomplishments

·         Dr. Rob Thomas, Dr. Sheila Roberts and UM-Western Environmental Sciences graduate Sherrie Landon co-lead a field trip in central Wyoming July 12 to 18 for the Geological Society of America.

·         The National Education Association for the Improvement of Education hasawarded Dr. Rita Moore and UM-Western a Learning and Leadership grant of $3,000.00 (this is maximum amount for these awards) to pursue Dr. Moore's and her associates' work with Kansas children and teachers.  With award funds, the two Kansas teachers will visit and present teaching workshops at UM-Western.

·         Professor Craig Zaspel has received word from the editor that his article, "A simple apparatus for illustration of magnetic hysteresis effects", with Western student coauthors: Annah Dahle,Lora Given, and Jessica Weinert has been accepted for publication in the American Journal of Physics (AJP).

·         Professor Jim Sethi had the following publications during 2003:  Book:  Sethi, A.S. (Jim) Teamwork and E-Business: A Guide for CEOPs and Team Leaders. Universal Publications, 4l0 pages.  Journal Articles:  "A Model of Teamwork: Balancing Economics and Ethics in a Turbulent World. Journal of  Comparative Sociology and Ethics, Vol. XXX, pp. l-99;  "A Framework for Ethical Leadership for Strategic Analysis of Balancing Profitability and Ethical Equity" Journal of International Business Economy, Fall, I-26.

·         The University of North Carolina Press at Chapel Hill published an article by Western Professor John Xanthopoulos titled:  “An Alternative to Criminal Behavior:  Educating Inmates as Captive Student or Just Captives?” published in a book titled “The Future of Education Studies.”

·         A book Professor Alan Weltzien co-edited, "Coming Into McPhee Country:  John McPhee and the Art of Literary Nonfiction" was recently published (spring 2003) by the University of Utah Press.

·         Early Childhood Professor Julie Bullard received notice that the higher education grant to support Western’s Early Childhood Education programs that she wrote was awarded.  The grant is for $55,000 and is renewable for four years.  It will fund a mentor/advisor program for Western’s AAS and BS in Early Childhood Education degrees.

·         Glenda Elser, Assistant Professor of Business, has been named as a Microsoft Office Specialist Master Instructor.

·         Dr. Laurie Henneman of Western’s Environmental Sciences Department gave a talk the end at the XIII International Entomophogous Insects Workshop, in Tucson, Arizona.  The paper was co-authored by Dr. Eric Dyreson of Western’s Mathematics Department.  The paper was titled "Impacts of exotic parasitoid foraging strategies on a native Hawaiian community:  a detailed simulation”.

·         Last May, Dr. Judy Ulrich was a co-presenter at the International Reading Association Conference in Orlando Florida.  The workshop discussed the use of children’s literature and classroom activities to enhance concepts of social justice and multicultural awareness. 

·         Professor Julie Bullard, Director of Western’s Early Childhood Education program, has received word that her article titled "Constructivism:Does Your Practice Match Your Conceptual Framework?" was accepted for publication in the Journal of Early Childhood Teacher Education.

Montana Youth ChalleNGe

·         The ninth ChalleNGe class has arrived at Western from its pre-ChalleNGe training in Helena.  Western’s ChalleNGe College Program, to provide additional support to ChalleNGe graduates entering as freshmen at Western, has fourteen students enrolled this fall.

Horse Show

·         The first annual UMW Equestrian Team Benefit Horse Show was held on August 2-3 and had participants from across the state.  The show was organized and staffed by Western professor and Show Manager John Xanthopoulos and others from the Western campus, from around the state, and beyond.  The show was very successful and featured types of horsemanship not often seen in Dillon.

Experience One

·         Faculty met all week August 18th through August 22nd and made great progress on the curriculum changes and scheduling modifications necessary for Experience One scheduling to be fully implemented across campus.  Each department submitted a progress report on the tasks that they were assigned in order to effect the full implementation.  These reports, and other information, will be analyzed by the administration in order to decide the best way to proceed with the implementation.  The target date for implementation is fall 2004, but a phased implementation will be considered if a full implementation is not feasible for 2004.

WebCT

·         The campus is introducing new WebCT software designed to support the teaching of all of its courses.

Montana State University – Billings

Ronald P. Sexton, Ph. D., Chancellor

·         The College of Business, Professor Scott Harris and twelve students were involved in a three-week cultural exchange program in Japan.  The students attended classes at the Perfecture University of Kumamoto, a Japanese Institution where MSU-Billings has a sister school arrangement. 

·         Professors Nafi and Abbas Heiatt were selected as regional directors by the Western Decision Sciences Institute meeting in Honolulu, Hawaii.

·         The Sponsored Research Office, Dr. C.A. Carey, Director, and Professor Gary Amundson, Director, Center for Business Enterprise and MSU-Billings sponsored a, Grants Acquisition Workshop, July 28-29, 2003 at MSU-Billings Downtown.

·         The MSU-Billings Library Special Collections was honored to receive a generous donation in June 2003.  Vanette Johnston, as a way to make this valuable historical material available to Western history researchers, donated the Terry C. Johnston research collection of 750 Western novels.

·         The College of Technology, St. Vincent Health Care, City of Billings, and the College of Professional Studies have partnered to complete three separate summer camps:  Health Careers Academy, Internet Technology Camp, and the Fire Science Camp.

·         MSU Foundation named the College of Business Building, “McDonald Hall,” in honor of Judith Covert and Sam E. McDonald, Jr. families on September 17, 2003.

·         Dean Joe Michels, Ph.D. P.E., Professors Steerey and Holman recently attended the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) accreditation seminar in St. Louis, Missouri.  MSU-Billings College of Business is in the third-year of Professional Accreditation candidacy by AACSB.

·         Facility Services has just completed the conceptual design (LRBP & Campus Funds) for the new McMullen Bridge with the engineering firm of Morrison Maerle.  Construction is scheduled for sometime between this October and next April to accommodate the irrigation season of the Billings Benchwater Canal.

·         On September 22-23, 2003, the College of Education and Human Services, MSU-Billings, will host the Education of American Indian Students Symposium, which will address rural schools, and the challenges they face, as a result of the No Child Left Behind legislation. 

·         The Montana Youth Leadership Forum was one of two state programs chosen to be featured on a teleconference presenting Youth Leadership Forums as outstanding Transition Programs for youth with disabilities.

·         Upward Bound Olympics was held at the University of Montana, with competition in math, computer science, engineering, spelling, art and chess.  Montana State University-Billings students participated in athletic events earning first place in women’s mile, men’s 100 meter, and women’s shot put.

·         Students from the College of Business, Matt Robertson and Gina Findley, both earned scholarships for exceptional academic records and were able to participate in the Golobal Village Experience at the Laococca Institute at Lehigh University, Pennsylvania.

·         Facility Services awarded the Technology Training Center to General Contractors Construction of Billings, MT on May 15, 2003.  The project commenced the following week.  The project is divided into two phases: (1) rough-in the Technology Center and install a fire sprinkler system throughout the building to be completed by September, and (2) complete the interior finish work within the Center by December.

Montana State University – Great Falls College of Technology

Dean Mary Sheehy Moe

·          Library Expansion - As a result of a space allocation process on campus, the MSU Library on the Great Falls Campus has been expanded by 1500 square feet of additional space including new shelving, additional study rooms and a computer lab. Students, faculty and staff were involved in the space allocation process, with efficiency and student demand driving the decisions for library space use. A $10,000 sustainability grant from Montana State University will be used to expand the collection.

·          E-Training and E-Learning Project - A project to provide effective incentives for and orientation to web-based teaching through an online Master’s level course has been made possible through an MSU sustainability grant for $75,000. Development and mentoring activities will provide individual faculty with assistance and bring together a technology-facilitated learning community at the MSU-Great Falls College of Technology. Fifteen faculty participants were selected to experience, as teachers and learners, the methodologies required to deliver high-quality web-based and web-supported courses.

·          A Class Ahead - A two-day workshop focusing on the variety of means by which Montana students can earn college credits while in high school was held at the MSU-Great Falls Campus in July. Fifty-four attendees represented twenty-nine educational agencies or institutions, including twelve Montana colleges, three Tech Prep regions, the Office of the Commissioner of Higher Education (OCHE), and thirteen high schools. Attendees recommended that a task force be formed to implement a statewide dual credit effort.

·          LPN Program - The Practical Nursing program received rave reviews when they gave their annual report to the State Board of Nursing in July. Program Director Cheryll Alt reported that the board was enthusiastic about the continued 100% pass rate on the licensing exam and with the goals the program has attained, particularly the introduction of an IV Therapy Course.

·          Creative Enterprises Project - Input from the Montana Arts Council, artisans and arts-based businesses participating in roundtable discussions in Great Falls and Bozeman has indicated a need for programs to support and enhance creative enterprise in Montana. Working with an international group of community colleges called CraftNet, Great Falls College of Technology faculty Kris Hartman, is developing a plan for a Creative Enterprises project that will include academic and outreach programs to fill this need.

·          Great Falls Higher Education Degree Inventory – Did you know that there are over 127 postsecondary degrees and certificates available in Great Falls? The Great Falls Higher Education Advisory Council has created a website to provide a searchable database of providers, their programs and degrees.

·          Equipment Donated to Area High Schools - Computers, library shelving units and tables have been donated to Stanford and Geyser School Districts by the MSU-Great Falls College of Technology. The items donated were surplus materials made available due to updating and renovating on the MSU-Great Falls Campus. Public institutions have the option of sending surplus materials to State Surplus or donating it directly to public schools or other state agencies.

Montana State University - Bozeman

President Geoff Gamble

·         During FY 2003, MSU-Bozeman’s faculty recorded $82.3 million of actual expenditures from research and other sponsored programs, a remarkable 24% increase over FY 2002. Top MSU departments in securing external funds were Physics, with $7.8 million followed by Veterinary and Molecular Biology, Civil Engineering, Chemistry and Biochemistry, University-wide EPSCoR programs, and Plant Sciences and Plant Pathology. Outside agencies which provided the greatest level of funding were the National Science Foundation, U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Institutes of Health, and the U.S. Department of Transportation.

·         Outside magazine has picked Montana State University as the fifth best university in the magazine's annual "Top 40 College Towns" poll. The list, which ranks colleges and universities that combine the best intellectual and outdoor potential, was released today (Aug. 12) when its September 2003 edition hit the newsstands. Bozeman and MSU are the top pick in the Northwest in the ranking of "the coolest college towns, places where the outdoors and intellectual esprit mingle blissfully."  MSU ranked behind the University of California at Santa Cruz, the University of Colorado at Boulder, Middlebury College in Vermont and Warren Wilson College in Asheville, N.C.

·         Citing an increased student demand, solid financial management and a bright outlook, Moody's Investors Services has upgraded its rating of Montana State University bonds to A2 from an A3. According to an analysis released last month by the national financial services firm, the reason for the upgrade included MSU's "position as a leading system for higher education within the state with rebounded student enrollment; diversified revenue streams enabling the university to adjust to a continued weak state funding; and adequate levels of reserves with manageable debt and moderate identified borrowing plans."
      "(The upgrading of the bonds) is a flattering recognition of the hard work MSU has done recently in tightening its fiscal controls, expanding its revenues, (and) diversifying its revenue sources…," said Craig Roloff, MSU's acting vice president of administration and finance.

·         Joey Paskey of Frenchtown, a May graduate of Montana State University, was recently selected by the Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE) to receive the Burton W. Marsh Fellowship for Graduate Study in Traffic/Transportation Engineering in 2003-2004. "With only four awards made available nationally each year…Joey successfully competed with the best and brightest students from the most prestigious universities around the country. …”

·         Dr. Henrietta Mann, the first person to hold the Endowed Chair in Native American Studies at Montana State University, has been named Special Assistant to the President and appointed to MSU President Geoff Gamble's cabinet of advisers to help improve the education of MSU's American Indian students. Mann is an Indian spiritual leader who has been invited to speak around the world. She was the first Indian to bless Ground Zero in New York City following 9/11. She was named to the Rolling Stone Magazine's Honor Roll of Ten Top Professors Nationwide in 1991 and came to MSU in 2000 from the University of Montana.

·         Walter Metz, a Montana State University professor who teaches film and television courses in the Media and Theatre Arts Department, has won a Fulbright Fellowship to teach the same subjects in Berlin during the coming year. Metz, who won a Fulbright junior teaching fellowship, will teach film and television courses at the John F. Kennedy Institute for American Studies at the Free University in Berlin.

·         The Thomas and Stacey Siebel Foundation has donated $2 million, the largest single gift ever received by the Museum of the Rockies, as the lead gift for a new dinosaur exhibition wing of the museum that will showcase research by the museum's Curator of Paleontology, John "Jack" Horner. The new halls will triple the size of the museum's existing dinosaur displays. The Siebels and their family divide their time between Montana and the Bay area, where Mr. Siebel is in the eBusiness and customer relationship management applications business.

·         The MSU-Bozeman Foundation, which in April increased the goal of its scholarship campaign from $10 to $18 million, has now reached the level of $14.1 million.

Montana State University -Northern

Chancellor Alex Capdeville

·         Summer enrollment at MSU-Northern remained even with last year in which we showed a significant increase.  Our fall numbers are also looking good with applications and FTEs up compared to this reporting period last year. 

·         A new orientation activity was offered to new incoming freshman this fall.  Interest students were taken to the Bears= Paw Mountains for a Discovery Weekend.  The two days were packed full of activities designed to help the students get to know each other and have fun.  The theme was developed around the anniversary of the journey of Lewis & Clark and titled "Discover Yourself".    

·         We have received word that the fundraising efforts in Lewistown to build a new Central Montana Education Center, which will eventually house MSU-Northern at Lewistown, are going very well.  As of the last report before this writing, well over $600,000 had been raised with many pledge cards still out.  This will be a great opportunity for MSU-Northern to serve the people of Lewistown as well as other communities in Central Montana. 

·         U.S. Senator Conrad Burns visited the Northern campus in early August.  During his visit he toured the Community Technology Education Center(C-TEC), which celebrated its one-year anniversary in May.  He was also given an update on our new Applied Technology Building project.

·         Montana State University-Northern was recently awarded two grants from the United States Department of Education totaling more than $2.3 million to continue its Veterans Upward Bound and Veterans Math and Science Programs located in Billings. 

·         Our annual faculty/staff fall orientation was held on Wednesday, August 27.  In a morning session, new employees were introduced and service awards given for 5-, 10- etc years of service to Northern.  This is also a time when the administration gives updates on accomplishments of last year and plans for the upcoming year.  An evening barbeque is also held on campus for all employees and their families. 

·         N.F.L. Legends are coming to Havre!  MSU-Northern and the Havre community will be hosting approximately 20 former N.F.L. football players in the third annual Legends for Lights Pheasant Jamboree, October 18-20.  Many former N.F.L. stars have already confirmed and will take part in the event, which includes trap shooting, pheasant hunting and a A Taste of Havre@ event, which will showcase many different cuisines offered in Havre.  The event kicks off with a trap shoot on Saturday morning Oct 18 and then the MSU-Northern Homecoming Football game later that day.  We have many local and area merchants sponsoring teams for the event as well as corporate sponsors. 

·         The Northern Alumni Association will hold its Annual Scholarship Social and Auction on Saturday, September 27th at 6:30 p.m. in the Donaldson Commons. This is one of the largest events on campus to raise scholarship dollars for our students.  Everyone is invited to attend. 

Miles Community College

Darrel L. Hammon, President

·         For the sixth straight year, the Men’s Basketball Program at Miles Community College have earned the NJCAA Academic-Team-of-the-Year award for maintaining a team grade point average of 3.00 or higher. The Pioneers of the 2002-2003 maintained a team grade point average of 3.20 for the fall and spring semester, earning them the third highest in the nation among all junior college men’s basketball teams. In 2001-2002 the Pioneers had the highest team grade point average in the nation with a 3.42 and also had the highest in the nation in 1998-99 with a 3.54

·         At the Billings Big Sky games in July, Vicky Crofutt, Nursing Administrative Assistant, took first place in the women’s trap shooting division. She hit 73 of 100 targets.

·         The Miles Community College Health Occupations Jump Start program was recently awarded a $5400.00 grant from the L.P. and Teresa Anderson Foundation. The grant will be used to fund scholarships for at-risk high school students enrolled in the Fall 2003 internet-based Fundamentals for Health Professions course. This course is available to high school juniors and seniors for dual credit. The dual credit agreement allows students to earn high school graduation credits concurrently with two college credits at Miles Community College. Additionally, scholarships will be available to students enrolled in the Spring 2004 high school Certified Nurse's Assistant Prep course.

·         LPN to RN Completion Program, a joint partnership with MSU-Billings, is up and running. Billings-area LPNs are able to complete their RN degree via distance education in one year.

·         Miles Community College hosts Health Occupations Students of America (HOSA) charter secondary chapter. Annette Gorton, FIPSE Coordinator, has been named to Montana’s HOSA. This project promotes our FIPSE Introduction to Health Occupations course that initiates fall 2003 via Internet/video conferencing.

·         Miles Community College is sponsoring its First Annual Nurse Educators' Conference on September 26-27, 203. Keynote speaker will be Donna D. Ingatavicius, author of Medical-Surgical Nursing: Critical Thinking for Collaborative Care and Introduction to Long-Term Care Nursing: Principles and Practice; Nursing Across the Health Care Continuum. Co-authored Core Curriculum for Case Management.

·         The RSVP Program held its annual Volunteer Appreciation Dinner on Saturday, August 9, 2003 at the Range Riders Museum. Approximately 250 volunteers and sponsors throughout eastern Montana attended.

·         The new student housing facility continues on track for fall semester opening. In conjunction with the building of the residence hall, the college is installing a new phone system, using the new IP technology. The system will allow the College to include the previously built housing “quads” on our Internet service. The phone system also will include our off-campus programs to eliminate long distance rates.

·         New personnel include: Sheila Seifert, Counselor; Rachel Gunnare, Centra Assistant Director; Jeff Brabant, Information Technology Specialist; and Dan Leidholt, Maintenance Foreman.

·         Miles Community College just completed our lighting retrofit.  Costs hovered around $50,000. The state rebated us $6,300 rebate, and Montana-Dakota Utilities (MDU) also rebated us an additional $5,000.00 for participating in the lighting retrofit. 

Dawson Community College

Terry Hetrick, President

·         Two long-term employees of the College retired at the end of the 2002-2003 academic year.  Both Mr. Tom Ree, Agriculture Program instructor, and Mr. Vern Lindquist, Physics and Mathematics instructor, were DCC employees for thirty-three years.  Their numerous contributions to the college and its students will be sorely missed.

·         Work continues on the facilities expansion project.  The DCC fund-raising committee is hard at work developing campaigns, brochures, and advertisements to raise the remaining amount of funds necessary for project construction. 

·         On June 30, the college was informed by the Commission on Colleges and Universities that its accreditation was reaffirmed on the basis of a recent focused interim report and visit regarding DCC’s substantive change proposal to offer an A.A. and an A.A.S. program in Business by distance delivery through a contractual agreement with CCCOnline.

·         New instructional hires include Mrs. Leanne Hoagland, Agricultural Program instructor, and Mr. Paul Kingsbury, Agricultural Power and Machinery Program instructor.  Mrs. Hoagland came to DCC from Chinook where she taught high school agriculture courses.  Previously, Mr. Kingsbury was a high school automotive instructor in Philomath, Oregon.

·         On Thursday, August 21, the DCC faculty returned to campus for professional development day activities including an update on the internal self-study process currently nearing completion, committee assignments,

·         On Monday and Tuesday, August 25 and 26, 2003, DCC provided orientation, placement testing, and academic advisement for new students.  These two days also provided students with opportunities to become familiar with the campus and other students through a variety of educational and social activities.  Classes commenced on Wednesday, August 27th.