Why the ND university system is good

[Admiral Ackbar]

Bill Goetz, N.D. university system chancellor, column: University system benefits entire state
Grand Forks Herald
Published Saturday, November 29, 2008
By Bill Goetz

BISMARCK — When one thinks of higher education, one thinks of our fundamental role of educating students; but the role of our state university system extends beyond what takes place in the classroom.

Woven into the State Board of Higher Education’s budget request are a number of separate budgets for university-system-related entities, each of which contributes greatly to our state’s quality of life and reaches into the daily lives of North Dakotans.

One clear example is the UND School of Medicine and Health Sciences’ contribution to health care in our state. This broad outreach takes on many forms, such as:

n The school maintains teaching and residency programs in Bismarck, Fargo and Minot in addition to the main campus in Grand Forks. Residency program personnel provide an estimated 100,000 patient services per year.

n More than 40 percent of the state’s doctors have been trained at the medical school, as have as a large number of other health care professionals.

n The school prepares physicians and conducts research into medical problems that affect many North Dakotans, such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and other neurodegenerative diseases as well as cancer, diabetes, alcoholism and obesity.

Here’s another example. Most North Dakotans know there’s a direct connection between North Dakota State University and the state’s nearly $6 billion per year farm industry. The strength of this relationship is clear in these examples:

n In 2008, North Dakota wheat producers sold $1.5 billion of wheat using varieties researched and developed by NDSU Experiment Station. This represents more than 70 percent of North Dakota wheat production.

n North Dakotans are served by Extension Service staff in 52 county-based offices and at seven Research Extension Centers. Each year, these staff members log more than 550,000 interactions with North Dakotans. Also, the lives of 40,000 youth are touched each year through 4-H, one of the Extension Service’s major programs.

n The Northern Crops Institute, a four-state consortium based at NDSU, trains agricultural buyers and leaders from foreign countries how to use North Dakota products, thus creating demand and export opportunities. Agricultural leaders from 138 countries have participated in these international symposiums.

Another partner in serving North Dakotans is the Upper Great Plains Transportation Institute, an interdisciplinary research and education center located at NDSU. Two specific projects show the institute’s broad functions:

n The institute and the North Dakota Department of Transportation are exploring possibilities for coordinated transportation in southwestern North Dakota. The vision is for all transit providers in the region, including schools, private operators, human services and transit agencies, to coordinate services.

n The institute recently assessed the demands a proposed ethanol processing plant would impose on state and county highways. Researchers developed computer models to predict the flow of corn from farms to the plant and the impact on state roads. This work will help highway officials plan improvements and make changes that’ll maintain traffic safety.

Then there is the North Dakota Forest Service at Bottineau, N.D. The service, which is aligned with NDSU, is responsible for the management of more than 13,200 acres of state forest lands and works to care for, protect and improve the state’s forest and natural resources.

During the 2005-07 biennium, the Forest Service impacted the lives of North Dakotans in many ways, including:

n Nearly 1.4 million tree seedlings were grown at the Towner (N.D.) State Nursery and shipped to more than 700 soil conservation districts, natural resource agencies and private landowners throughout the state.

n Some 172 communities benefited from the Sustainable Community Forestry Program, through which thousands of trees were planted and cared for along city streets and in parks.

n Working with the state Forest Service, 102 rural fire departments attended wildfire awareness and prevention programs, and 16 counties developed wildfire protection plans, all in an effort to protect North Dakota and its natural resources from the ravages of fire.

These are just a few of the many ways the North Dakota University System reaches every county — potentially every household — in our state.

It’s important for taxpayers to understand the impact of the university system’s budget proposal, not solely on our students and campuses, but on the people of the state. The work of these vital organizations shows, in one more way, that an investment in the University System is an investment in the future of our state.

Goetz is chancellor of the North Dakota University System.

http://www.grandforksherald.com/articles/index.cfm?id=95016&section=opinion

[pmp6nl]

Very true... the list can go on and on.  Now if only the state would invest some more money in higher ed.

[Sal Atticum]

Oh wow, I didn't even see this post.  Stupid thesis...

[pmp6nl]

Oh wow, I didn't even see this post.  Stupid thesis...

That doesnt get you out of commenting on it

[Sal Atticum]

Oh wow, I didn't even see this post.  Stupid thesis...

That doesnt get you out of commenting on it

Well then...

I agree.  I think universities are, for the most part, excellent for their local communities and for their states.  Apart from whatever bad things I say about the commercialization of college athletics and how I believe that sort of thing is detrimental to students actually learning, colleges and universities give the local population something to rally aruond, if they don't have a national sports team, and they give them a center for arts, culture, and sometimes entertainment.  I'm NOT saying that everyone outside of college or who never went to college is uncultured or anything, I'm just saying that the colleges do this thing for a living, without having to make a profit, something that private businesses sometimes have difficulty doing.

I think that a more educated population is important to have.  Whether it's an education in Biology, English, or a two-year vocational degree, it's good for the average person to be able to think critically and to apply the things they've learned when the situation arises.  Critical thinking is becoming recognized more and more as what the basis of a degree should be--and what material you actually learn just gives you a better framework for thinking critically in a variety of situations.

As far as the economic impact, I think that can't be stated enough.  The problem is that in many places, the relationship between the locals, the students, and the students' money is an odd one because there is a lack of respect between the two groups.  I don't know why this is, but I think it's the reason for some of the negativity shown toward supporting higher education--if I don't like noisy college students stumbling through my back yard at night, I may question th efficacy of providing an education to these students that seems to be failing to turn them into fine, upstanding members of society.

I hit a lot of themese there, but I'm in sort of a hurry right now.  I'll try to read more closely later.

[Sal Atticum]

O wow, I forgot about this.  Doesn't anybody else have something to say?