05 Jun New SBHE leadership elected; interim president named at LRSC
Electing new leadership and filling a presidential vacancy topped the agenda for the North Dakota State Board of Higher Education’s May 29 meeting at Bismarck State College. The Board began its business by amending incoming Dickinson State University President Scott Molander’s contract to allow him to start in his position on May 30, rather than in July.
Additionally, Dr. Carmen Simone was named interim president at Lake Region State College (LRSC). She has served as dean and chief executive officer at Dakota College at Bottineau since August 2022. Simone will officially begin her duties at LRSC on July 1, following the retirement of President Doug Darling.
“Chair Mihalick, members of the Board, thank you for the confidence that you’ve placed in me. I very much appreciate that,” she said. “I’m looking forward to leading at Lake Region State College and working with the team that’s there, and I’m excited about its future.”
The Board also made nominations for its new leadership, including chair and vice chair. Kevin Black will serve as chair of the SBHE and Donald “D.J.” Campbell will serve as vice chair, both for one-year terms beginning on July 1.
Later in the meeting, the Board reviewed and discussed the NDUS’s internal review related to the Ray Holmberg criminal case. Chair Mihalick read the following statement:
At the April SBHE meeting, we announced that an internal review would be conducted to determine if there were any policy or legal violations, including a failure to report misconduct by any NDUS employees in relation to former Senator Ray Holmberg’s criminal conduct. Over the last month, the NDUS Chief Compliance Officer has reviewed thousands of pages of internal documents and law enforcement materials. Additionally, our General Counsel has coordinated with and provided information to law enforcement. The review so far has revealed no evidence that current NDUS employees violated policy or failed to report criminal activity by Former Senator Holmberg. The SBHE’s goal is to complete a comprehensive and objective review, ensure that any policy or legal violations are identified, and make any necessary improvements to our policies and processes. To that end, a neutral third-party investigator will be hired to complete this investigation. The safety of our campus communities is the number one priority of the SBHE and our institutional leaders. We encourage anyone who has information pertaining to this matter to make a report to an institution’s Title IX office or the NDUS Office of Compliance and Ethics.
Committee Reports
Member Kevin Black reported for the Budget and Finance Committee. He said the group discussed fiscal oversight, reviewed existing financial reporting and policy 302.3 (Budget and Finance Committee). They expect to develop and recommend new changes to the policy. The group also approved several tuition exemption requests, and tuition rates for the academic year were approved.
Member Jeffry Volk reported for the Audit Committee, which discussed an internal audit plan and draft plan from the compliance office on ethics. The group will vote on the audit plan approval during its next meeting.
Vice Chair Danita Bye reported for the Governance Committee. The group heard three reports, including an IT security briefing, a large IT project quarterly report and an Enterprise Resource Planning legislative update from Corey Quirk, deputy chief information officer.
Dr. Lisa Montplaisir reported on the Council of College Faculties. The group discussed HB 1437 (Tenure Bill) during its last meeting and ongoing reviews.
For the Staff Senate, Member Michael Linnell said University of North Dakota is on board for a staff emeritus initiative to recognize retired staff. Seven schools in the system participate in the program. The group also discussed year-end awards around campuses.
Member Campbell also gave an update on an Executive Compensation Methodology Report, while Vice Chair Bye shared updates from the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education.
The Board heard first readings for Policies 470 (State Authorization) and 1203.1 (Digital Accessibility). A second reading was heard for Policy 902.12 (Building Names). All policies were approved.
No public comments were made.
The next SBHE meeting will be June 26, 2025.