President’s ColumnTisa Mason, Ed.D., CAE

OpEn EDuCATiOnAl REsOuRCEs puT TO GOOD usE AT VCsu

I am so excited by and proud of our faculty who are trailblazers in the use of open educational resources (OERs) to enhance teaching and learning. A big thank-you to Julee Russell, Shannon Van Horn, our General Education Council, and the many faculty members actively engaged in this process.

What exactly are OERs? Open educational resources (OERs) are “high quality teaching, learning, and research resources that are free for others to use and repurpose,” including “full courses, course materials, modules, textbooks, streaming videos, tests, software, and any other tools, materials, or techniques used to support access to knowledge.” (The Hewlett Foundation)

From a faculty perspective, this allows for much flexibility and creativity in putting together course materials as the professor is no longer limited by a textbook. It allows for a mix of materials, videos, and interactive exercises. It also allows for more rapid integration of emerging knowledge and perspectives.

There are many direct benefits for students as well. The most obvious one is financial. In January 2014 the U.S. Public Interest Group released a report “Fixing the Broken Textbook.” For that report, the group surveyed

more than 2,000 students at 156 college campuses during the fall of 2013. Close to two thirds of the students—65 percent—said they were not buying all of their required textbooks because of the cost. Just imagine if two of every three students in a particular class did not have a book! At VCSU our professors have not only introduced a variety of learning materials and activities through the use of OERs, they have also saved our students about $82,000 collectively in textbook costs!

More importantly, just as our laptops ensure everyone has equal access to learning technology, OERs are ensuring that every student in those courses has equal access to course content—and that’s a game changer for teaching and learning.

Last week our faculty members leading this effort were awarded a $10,000 grant from the North Dakota University System to further develop our OERs initiative. In addition to training and supporting more VCSU faculty on the OERs program, the campus will also conduct a “Scholarship of Teaching and Learning” study to evaluate quality and effectiveness. (To view a video on the use of OERs at VCSU, visit www.vcsu.edu/president/vp.htm?p=3538.)

I am really impressed with yet another faculty initiative embracing our core values of innovation, commitment to a learner-centered philosophy, and making education meaningful with positive relationships and effective practices. Indeed, putting those values into action is another reason it is a great day to be a Viking!

Report to State Board of Higher Education April 2016

VCsu VikinG HEROEs uniTE: THE sTORy BEHinD THE sCHOlARsHip AuCTiOn

One of the many highlights of my first year as VCSU president was experiencing the VCSU Scholarship Auction last April. I recall so many people describing the event and the fun that I was sure to experience.

And then I was told about the costumes. Really? Hmmm. It was a moment of decision for me. Did I want to be the respectable, dignified, business-suit president, or the fun, get-into-the-theme (and therefore get into a costume) president? I actually surveyed students, faculty and staff—and in the end I dressed for the theme.

The event was a lot of fun. The Masons won some bids: we went home with pizza for a year, a bottle of wine (okay, two bottles of wine, but not wine for the year), new workout shoes for me (to counteract the wine and pizza), and the coveted parking spot at the Bubble to get as close as possible to the door for the chilly winter basketball games this year (which was, of course, a very mild winter).

The live auction was very exciting (matched only by the exhilaration of our first Winter Show). Bill almost made us “accidental auction winners” when he waved at some neighbors—yikes, that is definitely a lesson for newcomers.

But thanks to our tablemates, we not only met the parents of one of our students, we also had professional help while bidding during the live auction! And I also learned good strategy from Ken Astrup on the silent auction.

We enjoyed visiting throughout the night with our neighbors and many new friends, and, as always, we enjoyed the good food served by the Valley City Eagles Club.

So it is with great anticipation that Bill and I look forward to the social event of the year—the 22nd annual VCSU Scholarship Auction on April 15, 2016, at the Valley City Eagles Club, sponsored by Dacotah Bank.

I love this year’s theme: “VCSU Viking Heroes Unite.” Indeed, that is so descriptive of the real power of and the real story behind this event—our heroes coming together to make an impact for students.

VCSU heroes annually “save the day” by purchasing over 450 event tickets, providing a myriad of contributions of treasure and talent (there is something for everyone—including a stand-up paddle board, a Broilmaster barbecue grill, an electric fireplace, a certificate

for carpet cleaning, a Beats Pill wireless speaker, restaurant certificates, and much more), spending a substantial amount of time to plan and implement the event with more than 50 volunteer Viking heroes involved in the effort, and most important, raising $75,000, with the resulting scholarships going to more than 40 students annually!

Those scholarships make a difference for students who might not be able to come to VCSU without financial support—and that difference changes lives.

One does not need a superpower to know that the VCSU Viking heroes uniting this year are the businesses and community members who support our students. I am so grateful for this community.

I eagerly await not only the event but also the opportunity to personally thank those who invest in our students in so many ways. Friday, April 15, will not just be another great day to be a Viking, it will be a superhero day to be a Viking!

(And yes, I will be in costume.)

FaCulty senate Anthony Dutton “First, do no harm.” It was a surprise to me when I learned that this mandate is not actually part of the Hippocratic Oath, but instead merely a distillation of one of the central ideas of medicine. It seems so fundamental to most of our conceptions of caregiving that we assume it to be the one key principle. Still, it would seem to be a goal to which medical staff, social workers and people in helping professions should aspire. It is also a tenet that educators must take to heart.

In the past few weeks I have had reason to reflect on the responsibilities that I have to my students, my colleagues and my institution. Every spring semester becomes tumultuous at some point, and this year has simply been a little more acute than others. Nerves are worn, tempers flare, minor problems get blown up to major ones—anyone who has worked in any sort of office knows the drill. It is easy to snap and contribute to a growing crescendo of frustration. When it comes to dealing with colleagues at times of disagreement, it can be tempting to begin to look at them as potential enemies, when in fact there is often nothing more between us than a difference of opinion. Our ability to work together in the long term comes down to avoiding doing irreparable harm to that relationship.

The ability to communicate freely, openly, as colleagues, mentors or fellow learners, can profoundly shape our experiences on campus. It is in the relationships where there is a power differential, however, that our Hippocratic paraphrase becomes most important—first, do no harm. Faculty and administrators have a responsibility to protect the vulnerable, whether they be students or fellow colleagues. A college campus is a place where all voices should be heard and respected, and that is how we manifest our responsibility to the institution, by ensuring that the university is a place for dialogue and collaborative growth.

staFF senatekaleen peterson

Staff Senate at VCSU continues discussions stemming from the results of and the comments in the latest Employee Satisfaction Survey.

On request, we forwarded the raw materials to Cabinet so that they have the information we have in terms of the “pulse” of campus from a staff standpoint.

Staff Senate’s recommendations and requests are not ready yet, but we are encouraged that Cabinet is eager to see the results of the survey and wants to use it in their work moving forward.

The school year is winding down, and with that comes many events and activities around campus. Staff Senate is not competing with those events by planning our own things; we are simply doing our part in our areas this month.

student senate Madelyn Zane

Student Senate elected new officers for the 2016–17 academic year: • President: Jordan Bushaw • Vice President: Niklas Ernst • Secretary: Katelyn Willer • Treasurer: Hannah Gress

The NDSA representative will be chosen at the next election at the end of April.

Our next meeting will be the official last meeting of the year, in which senators will go over the 2016–17 budget and choose the Teacher of the Year, Student Advocate of the Year, and Senator of the Semester. As a group of

senators, we will be getting together to say good-bye to 2015–16 by having a pizza party in May.

As the outgoing (and graduating !) Student Body president, I am so proud to have the opportunity to lead such an amazing group of students. They have put in so much work this year and really taught me what teamwork looks like.

six students initiated into Phi alPha thetahistory honor soCiety Six VCSU students—Nick Groth, Michael Hiltner, Patrick O’Brien, Cassandra Reidburn, Jonah Rosin and Shawn Webb—were initiated into the Phi Alpha Theta history honor society Wednesday evening, March 30.

The initiation followed a dinner provided by faculty members from the Social Science Department at thePresident’s House Guest Inn.

Phi Alpha Theta represents 350,000 members in 860 local chapters. Qualifying students must have completed 12 credits of history with a GPA of 3.1 and an overall GPA with 3.0. This is the largest initiation ceremony at VCSU in more than 10 years.

VCsu GrouP attends n.d. Gen ed summit, Woehl to serVe as CounCil President VCSU faculty members Sam Keasler, Steven King and Katie Woehl attended the North Dakota General Education Summit held Friday, April 1, at Mayville State University. During the summit presentations, the group learned about creative, cross-disciplinary general education courses and programs at other North Dakota University System institutions, specifically Bismarck State College, Minot State University, Dickinson State University and the University of North Dakota.

King and Woehl also represented VCSU at the North Dakota General Education Council meeting that

followed, and Keasler attended as an alternate.

Woehl, VCSU assistant professor of psychology, was elected to serve as the next president of the North Dakota General Education Council at the April 1 meeting. She has previously served as council secretary and vice president. Her one-year term as president begins June 1, 2016.

ramos PieCe Featured in Kansas City exhibit A ceramic sculpture by Armando Ramos, assistant professor and chair of the Department of Art, was featured in the exhibit “Chromaphilia/Cromaphobia” held at the KCAI Gallery at the Kansas City Institute of Art in conjunction with the National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts (NCECA) 50th annual conference in Kansas City, Mo., March 16–19.

Ramos’s “Portrait of Puissance” was recognized as the “Outstanding Single Piece in an Exhibition” in Cfile’s “Top 10 Guide to NCECA Kansas City.” The piece was also featured on the “Chromaphilia/Cromaphobia” exhibit card. The exhibit runs through June 3, 2016.

bushaW Chosen For nbC internshiP in neW yorK City Jordan Bushaw, a junior software engineering major at VCSU, has been chosen as a NBC Universal media tech intern for the summer of 2016. Bushaw will work in the TV entertainment segment in content

distribution, helping with the redesign of the customer relationship management (CRM) software system. The 10-week New York City internship begins in early June.

Bushaw was offered the internship opportunity while attending the Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing in Houston, Texas, in October 2015 with CSSE classmates and faculty Jane Hammer and Sue Pfeifer.

sanden, taFFinder honored by teaCher eduCation GrouP VCSU’s Jessica Sanden and Shayna Taffinder were recognized as “Outstanding Students in Teacher Education” at the North Dakota Association of Colleges for Teacher Education (NDACTE) spring conference, held April 8 at Minot State University.

In accepting the award, Sanden, now subbing at Washington Elementary in Valley City, thanked her family, VCSU and the School of Education faculty. Al Olson, associate professor of education, accepted Taffinder’s award on her behalf; she is student teaching in her home province of British Columbia, Canada.

Sanden and Taffinder were among 17 teacher education students from 10 North Dakota universities and community colleges recognized at the event.