MSU President's Newspaper Column
October 26, 2024
The goodness of people
My wife, Nina, and I had the pleasure of hosting the Mayville State Honor Society President’s Dinner Tuesday evening, Oct. 22. The annual event gives us the opportunity to recognize the members of the Honor Society, Mayville State supporters who have made cumulative financial contributions of $10,000 or more to the university during their lifetimes. It’s wonderful and heart-warming to know that members of the group have given anywhere from $10,000 all the way up to more than $2,000,000.
The generosity of Mayville State supporters never ceases to amaze me. Supporters very freely give of their time and talents, as well as their financial resources. The financial contributions are instrumental in making Mayville State the best it can be, and we are grateful.
Most of the financial contributions fund scholarships for deserving Mayville State students. These scholarships may be generated through earnings on endowments or financial gifts made directly to our general scholarship fund.
This funding is extremely important to our newly developed Honor Scholarship program. The program allows prospective students to know, based on their high school grade point averages, the amount of scholarship they are guaranteed. When a prospective student visits campus, they will know before they leave what they will receive in the way of Honor Scholarship funding if they enroll. It’s important that they and their families can, as quickly as possible, get a good handle on what it will cost for them to attend Mayville State. Honor Scholarships may be stacked with competitive scholarships, which, generally, are funded through endowments. Scholarships are instrumental in keeping the cost of attending Mayville State affordable for students and their families.
We were very happy for the opportunity to have several Mayville State student leaders join us for the dinner on Oct. 22. I really loved that we could have members of the Honor Society meet and interact with the students who are the recipients of their generosity and in whom they are investing.
During my remarks, I encouraged the members of the Honor Society to share the Mayville State story with the people they know and talk about the university’s strengths and commitment to personal service, as well as the goodness of young people who are intelligent, kind, thoughtful, respectful, and courteous. The Mayville State campus is full of them. These are special people who make us optimistic for the future.
I am grateful for each and every one of the students who joined us at the dinner and many, many more. It makes me proud to see how our students grow as individuals and as students while they prepare for exciting futures. It is our privilege to get to know them during their Mayville State Experience.
Yes, their music is different, and they may say things differently, but they are tremendous people. I daily watch as they show respect for elders, open doors, and say “please” and “thank you.” I also watch them go to school full-time while they work one, two, or even three jobs, play a sport, sing in the choir, and/or play in the band. I feel very good about our future and our community with the leaders who are following us. They value our country, and they value each other. They have learned what personal service means, and they show it daily.
Events like the Honor Society President’s Dinner fill my cup. To see the incredibly generous Mayville State supporters interacting with our wonderful students put a smile on my face that cannot be erased. There is no question that the goodness of people was the overarching theme in the Mayville State Campus Center Luckasen Room the evening of Oct. 22, 2024. The blessings of being associated with Mayville State flow abundantly.