NDSU News

Innovation Week 2012 culminates Thursday, Jan. 26, with the final breakout sessions, keynote address and awards ceremony for Innovation Challenge winners.

The day starts with a breakout session titled “What not to do” from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. in the Memorial Union Prairie Rose room. The speaker is James Carlson, president of JDC Management, a real estate development firm in Fargo. Carlson also is the former CEO of PRACS Institute, a full-service contract research organization that offered pre-clinical, clinical, bioanalytical and statistical research services to serve the pharmaceutical, biotechnology and skin care industries.

“How I moved from concept to marketplace” will be from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. in the Memorial Union Prairie Rose room. Alex Warner, CEO and president of Pedigree Technologies, Dave Batcheller, CEO of Appareo Systems, and Mark Rheault, former CEO of Intelligent InSites, will be the speakers.

The keynote address and Innovation Challenge ’12 awards ceremony will be at 3:30 p.m. in the Memorial Union Great Room. Businessman Tom Walter, CEO of Tasty Catering, will be the speaker. A serial entrepreneur from the Chicago area, Walter has started 29 companies and acquired three more. He is a member of the Chicago Entrepreneurship Hall of Fame.

For more information about Innovation Week, visit www.ndsuresearchpark.com/about/Pages/Events.aspx.

North Dakota State University and the NDSU Research and Technology Park are hosting the third annual Innovation Week, Jan. 23-27, to showcase students’ creative research and development projects.

“Innovation Week showcases our activities at NDSU and allows us to bring in people with new ideas to brainstorm and share,” said Provost J. Bruce Rafert. “We live in a global knowledge economy, and higher education is on the front lines. At NDSU, innovation is everywhere.”

A new component is the Innovation Challenge ’12. More than 60 NDSU students representing 24 teams submitted ideas for new, progressive products or services. The teams are competing for cash prizes – $5,000 for first place, $2,500 for second place and $1,000 for third place.

“Innovation Week provides a platform to raise awareness for entrepreneurship on campus,” said Tony Grindberg, executive director of the NDSU Research and Technology Park. “By adding a competition to the week, students have the opportunity to showcase the innovative work being done on campus and to drive entrepreneurship through innovation.”

The teams’ posters will be on display Wednesday, Jan. 25, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., in the Memorial Union Prairie Rose Room. Oral presentations will be the same day, 10 a.m. to noon and 1 p.m. to 3 p.m., in the Memorial Union Great Room and Century Theater.

“We encourage the public to attend the presentations taking place on Wednesday so they can see firsthand the innovative projects that the students will be competing on,” Grindberg said. “New software technologies, coating advancements and energy self-sustainability platforms are just a few of the projects that will be showcased.”

The Innovation Challenge ’12 awards ceremony and the Innovation Week keynote address will be Thursday, Jan. 26, at 3:30 p.m., in the Memorial Union Great Room. Businessman Tom Walter, CEO of Tasty Catering, will be the keynote speaker. A serial entrepreneur from the Chicago area, Walter has started 29 companies and acquired three more. He is a member of the Chicago Entrepreneurship Hall of Fame.

Innovation Week also will include breakout sessions to help students learn what resources are available for aspiring business owners and to interact with members of the local business community. Topics include how to turn an idea into a business opportunity, how to finance a venture and how to find customers. Visit www.ndsuresearchpark.com/about/Pages/Events.aspx for a full list of events, which are all open to the public.

NDSU is a student-focused, land-grant, research university listed among the top 108 research universities in the nation by the Carnegie Foundation.

The NDSU Research and Technology Park and Technology Incubator are home to fast-paced, high-growth companies that promote technology-based economic development in North Dakota. The companies compete globally or have the potential to. To operate within the park or Technology Incubator, a company needs to be involved in the advancement and development of new technology and be willing to establish a working relationship with NDSU. The companies work in the fields of material sciences, biosciences and life science technology, information technology, nanotechnology, and advanced manufacturing and sensors/micro-electronics.

NDSU was selected by the Higher Learning Commission as one of 22 colleges and universities in the North Central region to test a new accreditation model that evaluates what a school is doing to improve student learning.

The model uses learning outcome benchmarks from the “Degree Qualification Profile.” To help administrators, faculty and staff understand the model and how to use it; the profile’s co-author Paul Gaston will visit NDSU on Thursday, Jan. 12. He will present a campus pedagogical luncheon titled, “Academically Adroit: Strengthening Student Learning Through Greater Intentionality,” from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the Memorial Union Great Room. All faculty, staff and graduate students are welcome to attend.

“The new model is about taking something we’re doing on campus, emphasizing student learning and seeing how we can improve the process,” said Larry Peterson, professor of history, philosophy and religious studies, who also is a member of the Core Undergraduate Learning Experience committee. “This model says, ‘let’s be thoughtful about what will help us do our most important work – student learning – and do it better.’” The current accreditation process, which occurs every 10 years, essentially approves a college’s or university’s past performance rather than considering quality improvement for the future.

The Higher Learning Commission invited a variety of schools – small, large and community colleges – to test the “Degree Qualifications Profile.” The schools have an accreditation date in either 2015 or 2016 and an unblemished accreditation record. Together, the schools are called Cohort Three of the Pioneer Institutions of the Pathways Demonstration project.

“It’s definitely an honor to be selected,” Peterson said. “It means we’re recognized as a school that’s done exceptionally well in previous accreditations.”

Gaston, trustee’s professor and former provost at Kent State, describes the “Degree Qualification Profile” as a framework that “illustrates clearly what students should be expected to know and be able to do once they earn their degrees.” The profile hopes to establish a set of minimum standards in area such as communication, quantitative reasoning and major-specific skills for all American colleges and universities. For example, “If you say that your students will be able to communicate clearly, what are the standards by which you judge this?” Peterson said.

As a test school, NDSU is required to complete a quality improvement project by spring 2013 and an assurance visit in fall 2015. For its quality-improvement project, NDSU is evaluating its capstone courses using a template to assess how course activities for each major match the applied learning outcomes for the “Degree Qualifications Profile.” Peterson said it requires departments to think in reverse. “We have to build backwards,” he said. “If these student learning outcomes are the goal, how do we get there?” For the assurance visit, a team of higher education leaders will visit NDSU for a more focused and scaled down version of the current accreditation process.

Gaston has written extensively on the Bologna Process, academic strategic planning and assessing educational outcomes. He earned his doctorate in English from the University of Virginia and has been both a Woodrow Wilson and DuPont Fellow.

During his visit, he also will meet with NDSU’s Core Undergraduate Learning Experiences team, a Faculty Senate ad hoc committee, reviewing general education requirements and assisting with accreditation, and with NDSU heads and chairs.

To register for the luncheon, visit

https://epayment.ndus.nodak.edu/C22800_ustores/web/store_main.jsp?STOREID=49&SINGLESTORE=true and add the luncheon to your “cart.”  Then check out.  The luncheon is free. The deadline to register is before Jan. 9.

For more information, contact Peterson at larry.r.peterson@ndsu.edu or 231-8824.

Burnett

Birmingham

Elizabeth Birmingham and Ann Burnett have been named associate deans for the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences at North Dakota State University, effective Jan 9. Birmingham is associate professor of English, and Burnett is professor of communication and director of the Women and Gender Studies Program at NDSU.

As associate deans, Birmingham and Burnett will be responsible for promoting grant-funded research, supporting faculty professional development and mentoring, and fostering an environment of diversity, equity and inclusivity. They also will lead efforts to strengthen the college’s honors program, enhance general education offerings and recruit and retain talented students.

“Dr. Burnett and Dr. Birmingham were selected as associate deans because they are highly talented and respected scholars, teachers and professional citizens who can serve as models of excellence for our college,” said Kent Sandstrom, dean of the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences. “They both bring strong skills in communication, problem solving and leadership to their new positions. They also have significant interest and experience in mentoring faculty and students. I am pleased that they are willing to serve as administrative leaders for our college, and I look forward to working closely with them.”

Birmingham earned bachelor’s degrees in English and art history from Dominican University, formerly Rosary College, of River Forest, Ill. She earned a master’s degree in English and a doctorate in rhetoric and professional communication from Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa. Before beginning graduate studies, she was a Fulbright Fellow in architectural history at Australian National University, Canberra. Birmingham joined the English department at NDSU in January 2001 as assistant professor. In August 2007, she was promoted to associate professor.

Burnett earned a bachelor’s degree in economics from The Colorado College, Colorado Springs, Colo., a master’s degree in communication from the University of Northern Colorado, Greeley, Colo., and a doctorate in communication from the University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah. Before joining NDSU’s communication department in 1997, she was assistant professor at Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tenn., and associate professor at the University of Nebraska, Lincoln, Neb. Burnett was named director of Women and Gender Studies in 2002 and was promoted to professor in 2010.

NDSU winter commencement ceremonies are scheduled for Friday, Dec. 16, at 4 p.m. in the Fargodome. The location will change to the Bison Sports Arena if the Bison football team hosts an NCAA playoff game during the week of commencement.

A total of 733 graduate, professional and undergraduate students are eligible to participate, and 520 have indicated they intend to march in the ceremony.

“This will be NDSU’s largest fall graduating class,” said Rhonda Kitch, associate registrar. “We’ll celebrate the academic success of more than 730 students at the ceremony.”

If the Bison host an NCAA football playoff game that weekend, the ceremony will take place at the Bison Sports Arena, which is adjacent to the Fargodome. According to Registrar Kristi Wold-McCormick, “Planning is underway to ensure that commencement is successful and memorable for our degree candidates and their guests, regardless of venue.” She said the location will be confirmed and communicated to graduates and the public by Sunday.

Adlina Paramarta, who will receive a Bachelor of Science in chemistry, has been selected to speak as the class representative. A dedicated international student who carries a 3.99 grade-point average, Paramarta is a native of the island of Java in Indonesia whose family came to Fargo in 2006, where she graduated from Fargo North High School. She has been highly involved in campus activities. She has been a College of Science and Mathematics Ambassador and participated in the International Student Association, Chemistry Club, Tennis Club and Phi Eta Sigma Honor Society. In addition, she served as a master of ceremonies for NDSU’s International Night.

The commencement soloist will be Chase Daniel Burkhart, a graduate of Grand Forks, N.D., Central High School, who is receiving a Bachelor of Music in vocal music education. He participated in numerous music performing ensembles such as NDSU Concert Choir, Madrigal Singers, Statesmen, Bison Arts Singers, University Band and the Opera Workshop productions of “Pirates of Penzance,” “Secret Garden” and “Die Fledermaus.” He also co-founded a student organization called the NDSU Songwriters Guild.

For commencement details and location updates, visit www.ndsu.edu/commencement.

NDSU is scheduled to host the first Northern Plains BEST Robotics regional competition on Saturday, Dec. 10, from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. in the Bentson-Bunker Fieldhouse at NDSU. BEST stands for “Boosting Engineering, Science and Technology.”

Sixteen teams from Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota schools will demonstrate how well their remote-controlled robots perform. The teams also will be judged on team exhibits, marketing presentations, engineering notebooks, spirit and sportsmanship.

The robots were designed and built through BEST Robotics, a program to encourage students to pursue careers in engineering, science and technology through a science and engineering-based robotics competition.

The 2011 program kicked off in September when 40 middle school and high school teams from three local hubs each received a kit of equipment and parts and a set of game rules. The teams were from Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana and Canada.

Five weeks later, the teams tested their robots. Six weeks later, they participated in the robotics competition at their hub. Teams that advanced to the Northern Plains BEST regional competition either had the top-performing robot or won the BEST Award, which is based on a project engineering notebook, marketing presentation, team exhibit and interview, spirit and sportsmanship, and robot performance.

The three local hubs are Bison BEST at NDSU, which has been in existence for five years, and two new hubs, Wildcat BEST at the North Dakota State College of Science, Wahpeton, and Blue Hawk BEST at Dickinson State University. The addition of Wildcat BEST and Blue Hawk BEST made it possible to offer the regional competition at NDSU for the first time.

Students participating in the competition will be on the NDSU campus Dec. 8-10. In addition to competition activities, they will tour the campus, meet with other BEST teams at a social and pizza party, and attend a Fargo Force hockey game.

The robotics competition is free and open to the public. The event will also be streamed live at www.cateyenls.com.

NDSU track and field athlete Whitney Carlson has been selected as a top 30 honoree for the 2011 NCAA Woman of the Year award. Thirty women, 10 from each NCAA membership division, were selected to the top 30.

Carlson is the second NDSU student-athlete, and the second from the state of North Dakota, to earn the top 30 distinction at the Division I level. Laura (Hermanson) Januszewski also garnered the honor in 2009. Prior to the change in the award process in 2007, the Bison also had six student-athletes named state Woman of the Year honorees.

“The culmination of the many academic and athletic accomplishments of Whitney is highlighted by her being named a top 30 recipient for the NCAA Woman of the Year Honors,” said Lynn Dorn, women’s athletic director. ”This tribute is indeed an extraordinary honor. We salute the many exceptional achievements Whitney has earned in the classroom and in competition. Truly, Whitney defines the meaning of a student-athlete. Our pride is immeasurable.”

The Buchanan, N.D., native was a five-time All-American who also excelled in the classroom. She graduated with a 4.0 grade point average, and earned CoSIDA Academic All-America first team honors as a junior and senior.

Carlson was awarded an NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship and was also received the NCAA Elite 88 Award at the 2011 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships, which is awarded to the competitor with the highest grade point average. She was named the 2011 Summit League Women’s Scholar-Athlete of the Year, and currently is attending dental school in Nebraska.

Carlson was named Summit League Field Athlete of the Year three times, a 17-time Summit League champion and was a league championship MVP five times. She set six school records over the course of her career.

Now in its 21st year, the Woman of the Year Award honors female student-athletes who have distinguished themselves throughout their collegiate careers in academic achievement, athletics excellence, community service and leadership.

To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must have completed intercollegiate eligibility in her primary sport by the end of the 2011 spring season, graduated no later than the end of the summer 2011 term and achieved a minimum cumulative grade-point average of 2.5. Last year’s winner, Justine Schluntz, was an NCAA swimming champion and 2010 Rhodes Scholar from the University of Arizona.

Sharon Beverly, NCAA Woman of the Year selection chair and director of athletics and physical education at Vassar College, said the award is one of the most prestigious honors presented to a female student-athlete each year.

“This award catapults the recipient into the next phase of her life and paves the way for a successful future in any chosen profession,” Beverly said. “When you consider the academic and athletic accomplishments of each of the candidates for this award and the ways they have given back to society, the Woman of the Year honorees are the top echelon of NCAA role models.”

The top 30 honorees were nominated by conference and independent members and represent multiple sports. Three finalists will be chosen from each division to form the nine finalists for the Woman of the Year award.

The national winner will be chosen by the NCAA Committee on Women’s Athletics and announced in an Oct. 16 ceremony in Indianapolis.