This week's Hotline! includes the following articles:

• President’s column: End of semester brings flurry of activity and great news
• Commencement to be held Saturday in fieldhouse
• Your Ally is here! Workshops to be held May 15 & 16
• Viking sports update
• What’s happening at VCSU and around Valley City…

The VCSU Hotline! online newsletter is published every Monday. Deadline to submit articles (photos encouraged) is 3 p.m. the Friday before publication.

This week's Hotline! includes the following articles:

End of semester brings flurry of activity and great news

Greetings from Valley City State University!

What an activity-packed couple of weeks we have been enjoying at VCSU! Whether athletic or music contests, concerts, gallery shows, guest lectures, award ceremonies, or conference tournaments, there has been no lack of things to do! The calendar has been full of activities featuring and recognizing students and their achievements this past academic year. I continue to be amazed at the breadth and depth of activity in which our students are involved. I’d like to take a moment to highlight just a few of these activities that have been populating our calendar.

On April 24, I was honored to spend some time with VCSU alumni at a special gathering in Jamestown. Organized by Kim Hesch and the VCSU Foundation Office, this was a terrific gathering of a large group of alumni from the Jamestown area. It was great to meet some new folks and reconnect with others we already know.

VCSU hosted a regional Academic and Literary Publications Conference on April 26. The event brought writers and editors from Bismarck State College, NDSU, the University of Jamestown and VCSU. Many of our students participated in this engaging event, which included a keynote reading by Larry Woiwode, North Dakota poet laureate.

That same day, VCSU hosted the North Dakota High School Activities Association’s State A string and vocal music competition, which brought more than 1,000 student musicians from across North Dakota to our campus. Beautiful spring weather permitted the musicians to gather on the campus green when they weren’t performing; the whole place was buzzing with energy and excitement throughout the day.

On April 28, the VCSU chapter of the National Society of Leadership and Success inducted new members into their organization; it was great to see many of the students’ parents in attendance to witness this honor.

The Eagles Club was the site of the 2019 Athletic Department Awards Banquet April 29. What a tremendous site to have more than 200 of our student-athletes on hand to celebrate the many team and individual successes this past year.

Earlier that evening, I was honored to present 16 Valley City High School seniors with scholarship awards to VCSU totaling over $130,000 over the next four years beginning with the 2019-20 academic year! These scholarships are awarded based on each student’s cumulative grade point average and ACT score.

We capped off the flurry of activity by hosting the North Star Athletic Association softball and baseball championships May 2-6. Teams from throughout the conference participated in the tournaments, and players, coaches, parents and other fans spent time in our beautiful city. The cooperation and support we received from local businesses helped make this exciting event possible. I hope you had the opportunity to get out and see some tremendous softball and baseball.

In the midst of all of this, we’ve been preparing for our spring commencement which will recognize more than 320 student candidates for degrees, with a large proportion of that group participating in the ceremony and marching across the stage May 11. Commencement is always a day of celebration and pageantry, and we look forward to celebrating the successful achievements of our students with their families and friends!

Finally, I would be remiss to not mention the momentous news that capped off the legislative session: Governor Burgum’s signature on Senate Bill 2297 finalized the Senate and House funding for our new $32 million communication and fine arts building to replace Foss Hall.

Planning and final design work is underway, and we are very excited for the many ways this facility will strengthen the academic footprint of VCSU! We look forward to bringing art, communication arts, and music together under one roof, and we thank all those who helped make this happen for VCSU and North Dakota. 
Go Vikings!

Commencement to be held Saturday in fieldhouse

The 127th spring Commencement Exercises at Valley City State University will be held Saturday, May 11, at W.E. Osmon Fieldhouse on the VCSU campus.

Presiding at the ceremony will be VCSU President Alan D. LaFave, D.M.A. LaFave will be participating in his first VCSU commencement, having joined the university in mid-December 2018.

Daniel Traynor, J.D., a member of the North Dakota State Board of Higher Education and an attorney from Devils Lake, will bring remarks on behalf of the board.

Marc Wagner of Jamestown will give the undergraduate reflection. Wagner will graduate with a bachelor's degree in physical education and health education with a focus on special education, along with a coaching certificate.

Emily Fenster, Ph.D., will present the faculty reflection. Associate professor in the VCSU Social Science Department, Fenster was recognized as “Teacher of the Year” by the VCSU Student Senate this spring.

The public is invited to attend the commencement ceremony, which will also be live streamed. It can be viewed online at 10 a.m. Saturday, May 11, at www.youtube.com/user/VCSUVikings/live.

Read more at www.vcsu.edu/news/10737/vcsu-commencement-to-be-held-saturday-may-11.

Your Ally is here! Workshops to be held May 15 & 16

Ally, the universal access tool that works within BlackBoard, will be “turned on” in all classes after the May 14, 2019 grades are submitted. You will see small dials next to your documents indicating the level of accessibility; you will find a course accessibility score, and Ally will provide you with assistance in making your documents accessible in a variety of formats.

Your students will not see the dials and score, but you will be able to work with the documents to make them universally accessible. Ally is a tool that will assist you in creating accessible documents and courses.

Our on-campus resource for Ally and its capabilities is Anthony Wendel. He knows Ally and BlackBoard. Anthony will be conducting two workshops on May 15 and 16, 2019, 8 a.m.-noon each day in McFarland 313.

Please consider attending one of these faculty development opportunities. Contact Anthony at anthony.d.wendel@vcsu.edu to sign-up for one of these workshops. Stipends will be available in Fall 2019 for completed courses.

May 15, 2019, 8 a.m.-noon, McFarland 313
May 16, 2019, 8 a.m.-noon, McFarland 313
anthony.d.wendel@vcsu.edu

Viking sports update

Softball
The Valley City State softball team won the NSAA Tournament Championship on Saturday, defeating Bellevue University 3-2 and 7-0 in the championship series. The Vikings earned the North Star Athletic Association’s automatic bid to the NAIA National Tournament Opening Round to be held May 13-15. VCSU will find out its opponent and location of the opening round on Tuesday afternoon. The Vikings now have a 51-3 overall record.

Baseball
The Valley City State baseball team will play for the NSAA Tournament Championship at 11 a.m. Monday in Valley City. The Vikings won two straight elimination games on Sunday, 13-2 over Mayville State and 10-0 over Waldorf University, to qualify for the championship. The Vikings will face top seed Bellevue University and must beat Bellevue twice to win the title. The second championship game, if necessary, will be played at 2 p.m. Monday. The winner moves on to the NAIA National Tournament Opening Round.

Golf
The Viking golf teams wrapped up the 2019 season by competing at the NSAA Golf Championships last weekend. The Viking men placed second of six teams, and the VCSU women placed fifth. Collin Hoss and Casey Julson earned 1st Team All-Conference, and Jared Lentz and Jocelyn Braunberger earned 2nd Team All-Conference.

Track & Field
The Viking track and field team competed at a pair of events this past weekend, completing their final tune-ups before the conference championships this week. The NSAA Outdoor Track & Field Conference Championships
 will be held Thursday and Friday in Dickinson, N.D.

Upcoming Events
May 6: Baseball vs. Bellevue, 11 a.m. (NSAA Tournament Championship)
May 9-10: Track & Field @ NSAA Championships (Dickinson, N.D.)
May 13-15: Softball @ NAIA National Tournament Opening Round (TBA)

What's happening at VCSU and around Valley City ...

Monday, May 6
VCSU Finals Week
11 a.m. and 2 p.m. (if necessary) Viking baseball conference championship game, Charlie Brown Field, Valley City, N.D.

Tuesday, May 7
12:05 p.m. Rotary, Student Center Student Senate Room
6-8 p.m. “The Forge” Open Mic Night, Allen Memorial Library

Wednesday, May 8
noon Kiwanis, Valley City Town & Country Club

Thursday, May 9
7 a.m. Optimists, Vicky’s Viking Room
Track & Field @ NSAA Championships, Dickinson, N.D.
5:30 p.m. VCSU Employee Recognition Social and Dinner, Student Center Cafeteria

Friday, May 10
noon Senior Honors Luncheon, Student Center Cafeteria

Saturday, May 11
10 a.m. VCSU Commencement

Sunday, May 12
Mother’s Day

Monday, May 13
New Student Orientation
Softball @ NAIA National Tournament Opening Round (TBA) (May 13–15)

Tuesday, May 14
12:05 p.m. Rotary, Student Center Student Senate Room

Wednesday, May 15
Pay Day
noon Kiwanis, Valley City Town & Country Club

Thursday, May 16
7 a.m. Optimists, Vicky’s Viking Room

Friday, May 17

Saturday, May 18

Sunday, May 19

Go to https://www.valleycitynd.org/calendar.php to see more events happening in and around Valley City.