Wind Turbine Dedicated

Wow - what a busy couple of weeks since my last update. The big news is we held the ribbon cutting/ dedication cermony for our wind turbine.

(L-R Chris Schilken - Forward DL, Brian Killkelley-Native Energy, DL Mayor Dick Johnson, Scott Schroeder- Honeywell-ESG, Jay Johnson-LRSC Wind Energy Faculty, Jay Haley - EAPC, Doug Darling -LRSC President, Betty Pikop - Site Landowner, Tim Greene - Ottertail, Dennis Johnson, District 15 Representative.)

We had a great turnout for the event and mother nature provided one of the nicest days of the year for the event.  All of the major partners in the decade long process of obtaining funding, getting approvals and construction were in attendance and spoke about their involvement with the project.

Devils Lake Public Schools provided bus transportation to the site and back to campus for refreshments. Larry Liere, retired CCF board members was one of the drivers.

The Foundation office and Kristina Sogge put together a short (4 page) document that describes some of the challenges overcome in the 10 year process of completing this project.  The document is available in the Foundation Office if you would like one. It is a very interesting read.

 

The highlight for me was on the 18th (I had to wait until my wife, Teresa was out of state.) I had the opportunity to climb the turbine and see the magnificent view from the top of the turbine. We really live in a beautiful part of the country! I have said from day one, when we get it built, I'm going to climb it and have my picture taken on top. Mission accomplished!

 

 

Now we are on to the next important project. We received funding to expand and renovate the Erlandson Technical Building. We have reviewed proposals and selected JLG Architects from Grand Forks to complete the design and we will be selecting a Construction Managment firm later this week. We hope to get started yet this fall. This the first major campus building project in about 35 years.

 

We are also kicking off a campaign where $2=$3. The Legislature provide 1 million dollars of state funds for LRSC and the other campuses. For each $2 gift the State will match with $1.

The funds must be used for "enhanced academics". Five areas were identified in the legislation Research, Scholarships, Technology, Endowed Chairs, Educational Infrastructure. The gifts and pledges must be received between July 1, 2013 and December 31, 2014. Guidelines are still being developed by State Staff.  This is a great opportunity to enhance your gift to LRSC. There are also some interesting tax credit opportunities right now. Please contact the LRSC Community College Foundation for more detailed information.