MSU President's Column for Traill County Tribune
June 8, 2019
Summer means lots of activity at Mayville State University
Summer activities are in full swing at Mayville State University.
Jamie Eriksson and her campus grounds summer crew are busy sprucing up and planting flowers around the campus. Things are coming together, and it’s looking great! Volunteers Mike and Joan Osland and Doug Anderson were on campus on June 4 to get the Military Honor Garden shaped up and to re-work an area on the southwest corner of the Larson Alumni and Leadership Center that had to be torn up a couple of times last fall and this spring to make plumbing repairs at the building. We are so grateful for these willing and able volunteers, as well as our facilities staff who are helping to beautify the campus.
The MSU Staff Senate organized a campus clean-up activity, where they walked the campus looking for trash and disposing of it in preparation for our first Student Success Day event on June 7. Student Success Days are very important, since they are our opportunity to welcome the newest members of the Mayville State family.
Summer school classes are underway! We’re excited to know that we’re looking at another enrollment record for the summer session. Headcount and full time equivalent numbers are both up as of this writing.
Summer is also a time when area K-12 teachers are invited to Mayville State for workshops. The Education and Innovation Center hosted a two-day teacher workshop this past week, on June 3 and 4. Area teachers were on campus not only to learn, but also to create project-based lessons. Those who participated were able to earn continuing education credit.
The workshop was kicked off with a session led by Mayville State alumna and former Mayville State instructor Donalee Strand. She provided participants with resources, ideas, and instruction on how to implement project based learning.
MSU Division of Education instructor Carly Theis led an afternoon session where she taught participants about Restorative Justice and how to implement it in K-12 classrooms. The goal is that participants will bring the idea back to their respective school districts.
Many school districts across the nation are implementing Restorative Justice in place of punitive discipline measures. Restorative Justice opens the lines of communication between a victim and an offender by allowing those most affected the ability to participate in the resolution. It can restore community peace and safety, and help to build accountability in students.
Carly Theis and her Mayville State colleague Sarah Kallock offered a session on “Navigating Accommodations and Modifications” to wrap up the workshop. Many teachers have difficulty discerning the differences between accommodations and modifications. The session helped participants learn how and who should implement the two concepts. The final activity for the workshop was for participants to spend time creating portfolios of accommodations they could use with students in their own classrooms.
Later this summer, from August 7 to 9, ten Mayville State faculty members from various academic divisions will be attending the International Forum on Active Learning. We are fortunate that Title III grant funding will cover expenses and open this opportunity for professional development to our faculty.
Summer basketball camps are also underway. The first session of Future Stars camp for kids entering kindergarten through grade 6 has concluded and another session is planned for July 29 through Aug. 1. In addition, there will be team camps, an All Star Camp, and more throughout the summer. For more information, go to www.msucomets.com.
In July, we’ll be hosting the Shrine All Star Football Game participants and coaches during their week of pre-game practices. We’ve done this for the past several years, and look forward to what we know will be another great week. I’ll share more on this later.
We invite you to come to campus any time to take part in the various activities and to enjoy the beautiful grounds. Mark your calendar for June 21, Alumni Day, when there will be an afternoon ice cream social. We look forward to seeing you!