March 11, 2008

Inside this Issue

Chinese Partner University Looks to Expand Programs
Events & Activities
Fundraising Fun In April
Golden Eagle Student-Athletes Earn NSIC Honors
Residence Hall Planning for Fall 2009 Continues
President Bruininks, SVP Jones Visit Campus March 14

From the Chancellor

Campus Visits from Chinese Partners and U of M Leaders

The week of March 10 is a busy and exciting time at the University of Minnesota, Crookston as we host visits from one of our international partners as well as U of M President Bob Bruininks and Senior Vice President Robert Jones.

Senior Vice Chancellor Tom Baldwin and I will meet President Li Shuming of Zhejiang Economic & Trade Polytechnic at the Twin Cities campus on Wed., March 12. There we will be joined by U of M leaders Senior Vice President Robert Jones, Associate Vice President and Dean of International Programs Meredith McQuaid and China Center Director Yongwei Zhang. We will be returning to Crookston Wednesday evening with President Li.

On Thursday, March 13, President Li and other ZJETP officials will be on campus to meet with several individuals and groups. Our intent is to sign an agreement with ZJETP to collaborate on an English as a Second Language (ESL) program at their campus.

Friday, March 14, will include a full day of open forums with President Bruininks and Senior Vice President Jones. There is time devoted for students at 8 a.m., faculty at 9:15 a.m., staff at 10:15 a.m. and community members and alumni leaders at 1:30 p.m. Open forums will be held in the Student Center Prairie Room. Meetings are also scheduled with campus leaders and partners, including the Northwest Research and Outreach Center, Regional Extension personnel and Northwest Regional Sustainable Development Partnership representatives. Review the day's schedule online for more details.

I hope everyone will take advantage of the opportunity to interact with our campus visitors and give them a warm welcome to the Crookston campus.

Celebrate Women's History Month

During March, we also celebrate Women's History Month on campus with many activities and events that recognize and celebrate the accomplishments of women. I encourage everyone to take time to attend some of the programs that have been developed – tonight's event features a theatrical production at 7 p.m. in Kiehle Auditorium – and thank the many individuals who have given generously of their time to support Women's History Month.

State Budget Concerns

The recent announcement of the state budget shortfall of $935 million is unsettling to all Minnesota citizens. The affect the shortfall will have on the University of Minnesota and the Crookston campus is unknown at this time. However with the possibility of a smaller bonding bill, some University projects could be at risk but the larger affect may be on state allocation to the University. Realistically, we know this could impact central support for the budget proposal we submitted during our February 19 meeting.

We will keep you informed of the latest developments and how they affect the University of Minnesota and our campus. If you have questions or concerns, please check with your unit supervisor or department head. You can also visit the U of M Legislative Network online to keep up to date.

I know many are looking forward to the semester break from March 17-21 which includes a holiday on March 21. This will be an opportunity to participate in several professional development programs and workshops for faculty and staff during the week. Please check schedules for dates, time and location and plan to participate.

Chuck
– Charles H. Casey, Chancellor
University of Minnesota, Crookston 

Featured Events & Activities

Business Activities Day, March 26 – Area high school students will compete in a variety of academic-related business activities during the second annual Business Activities Day. Registration begins at 8 a.m. in Kiehle Auditorium.

Women's Health Career Journeys, March 29 – Presentations will feature professionals from traditional and non-traditional career paths including nursing, medicine, dentistry, pharmacy, behavioral health, veterinary medicine, public health, alternative health, dietetics and fitness. The conference will be held from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. in the Student Center Bede Ballroom. Call 218-281-9200, ext. 216, to exhibit and/or register. A $7 registration fee covers lunch and refreshments.

Local Food and Wine Sampler Showcase, March 30 – Join us for a presentation by Congressman Collin Peterson and the opportunity to view short films along with local foods and wine at a reception from 5 to 8 p.m. in the Kiehle Auditorium and Rotunda. A special exhibit on “Reducing Children's Exposures to Pesticides in the Red River Valley” will be on display. Cost is free for Crookston campus students or $15 for all others. Register online at www.regionalpartnerships.umn.edu.

Home Grown Economy Conference, March 31 – The conference sponsored by Congressman Collin Peterson connects local foods and economic opportunity. It features presentations by Kate Clancy, Ph.D., senior policy analyst for Union of Concerned Scientists and Ken Meter, MPA, Crossroads Resource Center. The day includes exhibits, panel discussions and lunch with locally grown foods. Crookston campus students attend for $10; all other admission is $35. Register online at www.regionalpartnerships.umn.edu. Contact U of M, Crookston campus AVC Peter Phaiah at 218-281-8505 (phaiah@umn.edu) or U of M Northwest Sustainable Development Partnership ED Linda Kingery at 877-854-7737 (kinge002@umn.edu) for more details.

Open Ride Night, April 3 – Ride with the Crookston campus Horsemen's Association during Open Ride Night. The event takes place at the University Teaching and Outreach Center (UTOC) on campus from 5-7 p.m. and helps raise money for the Horseman's Association activities.

We look forward to seeing you. For more details or to discover what's happening this week, visit UMC Today at www.UMCrookston.edu/umcnews or review our news page at www.UMCrookston.edu/umcnews/stories.

Around Campus

Academic Affairs – Online course permission numbers are no longer required for online degree-seeking students to register for E90, P90 or T90 courses. From March 31 to April 17, distance delivered courses designated by these class sections will only be open for registration to students officially enrolled in distance education sub-plans (Online, Distance, Bachelor of Manufacturing Metro, Bachelor of Manufacturing Roseau, Bachelor of Manufacturing Warroad). This change will ensure that “place-bound” students have the first opportunity to enroll in online classes. On April 18, registration in distance delivered courses will be open to all students. For more details, contact the Center for Adult Learning at umonline@umn.edu or 218-281-8680.

We are planning to switch to the new telephone system this summer. A major advantage of the new system is the capability of identifying the number and location of 911 calls. There will be a number of other new features with the system, and we will have some in-service sessions organized for faculty and staff. Telephones are provided to units as part of the change over; however, a monthly cost per phone will be charged to units to cover operations and support.

Jack Geller will be on campus three-quarter time starting April 1 as the head of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences Dept. He will work with Interim Department Head Bill Peterson through the end of the semester to become acquainted with the faculty and the operation of the Crookston campus. The search committee recently reposted the Math, Science and Technology Department head position.

A number of companies have made presentations to the technology committee looking at the equipment that will be selected for the next laptop rollout and campus technology direction. Proposals will be reviewed and final selection of a vendor will happen in the near future.

Six Crookston campus undergraduate research proposals have been selected for funding this semester. Congratulations to students and supporters.

Student Affairs and Enrollment – A Campus Preview Day is scheduled for March 14, and New Student Registration dates are April 18; May 8, 9, 12, 15, 16; and June 9 and 20. Thanks to all for being available to help with the activities planned for these days.

Congratulations to the Financial Aid Office for receiving a clean audit for the second year in a row. The Financial Aid staff has also been busy this semester delivering Financial Aid Night presentations to eight high schools throughout the area.

On a bi-weekly basis, Laura Farris, a coordinator from the Minnesota Department of Veterans Affairs, will begin supporting some 25 student-veterans currently on campus and prospective students who are veterans. Her office is in the Admissions and Financial Aid offices in Owen Hall, fulfilling a requirement as a U of M institution to provide office space for a veterans coordinator on campus.

Finance & University Services – Plans to gain U of M approval this spring to construct a new residence hall to open fall 2009 continue to move ahead. The new residence hall will enhance the U of M, Crookston residential life experience and will offer an integrated, smart living/learning environment for an additional 180-200 undergraduates. It will meet the high demand for on-campus housing – current occupancy of 482 beds is at 100 percent and the campus expects more than 250 current resident students to apply for the coming year and has received more than 500 requests for contracts this year, up from 300 last year. The proposed design will support community building, collaborative research and social interaction conducive to building intellectual and working ties among students from different disciplines with core common interests. Air-conditioned living spaces, rooms for conferencing and collaborative learning and space to support summer researchers will be part of the facility experience. Project objectives will both incorporate green design investments to enhance operating efficiencies and advance the primary goals of increased enrollment, greater visibility and diversified revenue streams.

Negotiations with a preferred food service vendor will take place this week in the Twin Cities. A proposed contract has been forwarded for consideration. We will now discuss these items with the vendor and try to come to a final agreement.

Development & Alumni Relations – Director of Development & Alumni Relations Corby Kemmer participated in a national Counsel for Advancement & Support of Education (CASE) Conference for chief development officers in Naples, Fla., from February 26 -29. The conference was highly educational and informative.

Mark your calendars and save the date for a number of fundraising events that are on tap for April; we encourage your attendance and appreciate your support. The second annual Bill Tyrrell Walk-A-Thon will be held April 24 at Ed Widseth Field on campus. Fun Nite is April 25 at the Crookston Eagles Club – “early bird” tickets have been mailed out and can be purchased for $35; the deadline for “early bird” tickets is March 31. Fun Nite tickets at the door are $40.

On March 27, the University of Minnesota, Crookston and Office of Development & Alumni Relations will publicly announce and celebrate a major gift to the school.

University Relations – Innovative marketing strategies that utilize advertising on the Google search engine have increased the number of new visitors to the Crookston campus Web home page by more than 20,000 new visitors each month. The number of visitors to the Web site via search engines has also increased significantly since the advertising campaign began in November 2007. The Pay-Per-Click advertising on Google brings up a Crookston campus text ad as one of the top results when relevant key words are typed in as part of a search. Since November, nearly 2,000 individuals have chosen to click on the U of M, Crookston ads that highlight key academic majors and unique features of the campus. More than half of the visitors chose to continue on into the site and spend anywhere from six to 20 minutes on the Web site – in academics, admissions, online or international pages. Sixteen new visitors alone have been tracked to the “Apply Online” Web page via this advertising strategy.

Athletics – Golden Eagle pitcher Paul Krebs (Jr, RHP/C, Little Falls, Minn.) was named Pitcher of the Week by the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC). Krebs, a transfer from Itasca Community College in Grand Rapids, Minn., shut out Northland College (Wis.) February 28 with a 4-0 score at the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome in Minneapolis, Minn. He scattered three hits and struck out 11 while only walking two. The Golden Eagles started the season 2-0 defeating the Lumberjacks 4-0 and 13-4.

Golden Eagle Women's Basketball player Jamie Zelinsky (Fr, 5'11, G, Brooklyn Park, Minn.) recently earned NSIC Co-Newcomer of the Year and All-Conference Honorable Mention honors for her play during the 2007-08 season.

Ten Western Equestrian team members qualified for Intercollegiate Horse Show Association regional competition and traveled to Brookings, S.D., March 8. The Golden Eagles are hoping to qualify several riders for the semifinals hosted by West Texas A & M University in Canyon, Texas, on March 29 and 30. The National Show will be held in Los Angeles, Calif., May 8-11, 2008.

The Golden Eagle Hunt Equestrian team members won Reserve High Point team for the first time this season on March 1. It was a great ending to the regular season.

The Crookston campus Student Athletic Advisory Committee (SAAC) hosted a fundraiser for the Crookston Pirates Special Olympics on March 4 in Lysaker Gymnasium. There were two basketball games: one against community members and Golden Eagle coaches and the other against Crookston campus student-athletes. There were a lot of events and many prizes were given away that were donated by local businesses. The event was a great success and enjoyed by all who participated.

Visit www.goldeneaglesports.com for schedules and cheer on the Golden Eagles in 2008.

Publication notes: The E-Update is published twice each month August thru April and once each month in the summer, May thru July. Issues are posted online.

If you have any questions regarding the information in this news update, please send them to urumc@umn.edu.