Water from an old underground water main leaked into the first floor of Bismarck State College's Jack Science Center Wednesday night (Sept. 3). Damage from standing water is severe enough that classes and offices on the first floor are being moved to other locations on campus.

Most of the classrooms on first floor are for math and computer classes that will be moved to classrooms in the new National Energy Center of Excellence (NECE) on campus and a few other locations. About 70 percent of the total 62 relocated class sessions will be held in the NECE this semester.

Faculty and staff offices on first floor are also being relocated.

Students can still get to the second and third floors of the Jack Science Center (JSC) from the main entry and from the south entry of the building.

Drake Carter, provost and vice president for academic affairs, said that all classes will be back to normal next week. Students will receive an e-mail from the campus regarding the relocations.

Dave Clark, BSC executive vice president, said a custodian discovered the water leakage about 8 p.m. Wednesday.

BSC building and maintenance crews and a restoration firm are working on clean up.

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U.S. Senator Byron Dorgan and Bismarck State College President Dr. Larry C. Skogen today announced that BSC has hired Kim Christianson to be the Director of the Great Plains Energy Corridor Office, located in the National Energy Center of Excellence (NECE) at Bismarck State College. This is a new position at BSC.

Christianson has more than 20 years experience working with energy programs for both North Dakota and the U.S. Department of Energy. His primary areas of focus were with energy efficiency and renewable programs, including wind energy, ethanol, biodiesel, biomass and solar. He also was involved in some planning and policy development for other energy sectors in the state.

U.S. Sen. Byron Dorgan secured funding to establish a Great Plains Energy Corridor Office, which will provide education and outreach services to the energy industry, initially in North Dakota and eventually expanding to neighboring states.

"The energy industry in North Dakota has the potential to grow exponentially in the near future, and in order to truly make our state home to world-class energy research, we need great people and great facilities," Senator Dorgan said. "With Kim heading up the Energy Corridor initiative and with the new National Energy Center of Excellence program and building at BSC, we are maximizing our state's potential to remain on the forefront of energy research and development."

Activities of the office will include facilitating two major energy conferences in Bismarck - the Great Plains Energy Expo and Showcase scheduled in November, and the Renewable Energy Action Summit, usually held in May; hosting additional "action summits" for particular sectors of the energy industry; and serving as a focal point for information on the current activity and status of the North Dakota energy industry.

Christianson served for 16 years as manager of the Office of Renewable Energy & Energy Efficiency with the N.D. Department of Commerce. Other positions include working as an energy conservation specialist with the U.S. Department of Energy in Denver, and in the Office of Intergovernmental Assistance/Division of Community Services with the N.D. Office of Management & Budget. Christianson also has experience in community and economic development in the South Central Dakota Region and for the city of Underwood.

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Bismarck State College will celebrate the opening of its National Energy Center of Excellence with a Ribbon Cutting Celebration and Open House at 9:30 a.m. Monday, Sept. 29.

Speakers for the ceremony will include N.D. Gov. John Hoeven, members of North Dakota's congressional delegation, Basin Electric CEO Ron Harper, BSC President Larry C. Skogen, and former BSC President Donna S. Thigpen.

Bismarck State College's nationally recognized energy technology programs are now located in the National Energy Center of Excellence (NECE) at 1200 Schafer St. The 4-story, 106,200 square-foot facility will also serve as a national resource center of education and training for the energy industry. Also located in the NECE are BSC's Division of Continuing Education, Training and Innovation, and some administrative offices.

Sources of funding for the $18.3 million building include industry partners; local, state and federal government; as well as individual and employee donations. The NECE has been designated as one of the State of North Dakota Centers of Excellence. It will also house the Great Plains Energy Corridor Office.

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Bismarck State College Gannon Gallery opens with an exhibit of recent paintings and a series of miniatures by New Hampshire artist Elizabeth Austin. Opening reception in the BSC Library is Wednesday, Sept. 3, from 4 to 7 p.m.

Austin grew up in Chicago and has lived in Italy and France. She exhibited in several galleries in Paris and the U.S., including New England, Illinois, Maryland, and Florida, and had a piece in a Christie's benefit for the New York City Opera. She also started a series of performance art pieces and toured the United States as a solo artist for 10 years.

Her miniatures, called "Cassetinas," means "little boxes" in Italian. Austin says they are the smallest pieces she can produce. She renders them with tiny tools such as a medical magnifying glass.

Austin has experimented with transparency and light refraction and reflection, which she incorporates into her pieces. "The Nocturnes" paintings are set at night in an enchanted landscape that glows with iridescent pigment and foil.

From 1999-2002, her work was shown in Cape Verde, Africa, through the U.S. State Department's Art In Embassies program. Austin has a BS in studio art from Lawrence University and studied new media at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Center for Advanced Visual Studies.

The exhibit runs through Sept. 18.

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Bismarck State College will begin offering classes in power plant technology and process plant technology to students in Wisconsin this fall through a partnership with Fox Valley Technical College in Appleton.

BSC and Fox Valley Technical College (FVTC) recently formed the partnership to help meet the needs of high-demand energy careers in Wisconsin and upper Michigan.

Courses from BSC will be offered online, says Bruce Emmil, associate vice president for energy technology programs at BSC. "Fox Valley faculty will teach some courses, such as math and electricity, that are part of their curriculum in other programs."

BSC credits will transfer to Fox Valley, and students will earn an associate's degree from FVTC, says Emmil. Fox Valley was able to subtitle these programs under their Computer Control Engineering Tech degree, which enabled them to quickly make these programs available to students in Wisconsin and upper Michigan.

According to the Wisconsin Public Service Commissions' Strategic Energy Report 2012, approximately 700 highly skilled workers will retire from Wisconsin utilities by 2010, and more than 1,300 will retire by 2015. In addition, increased consumer usage continues to contribute toward the demand.

FVTC President Dr. Susan May views the partnership as a proactive means to address career fluctuations. "Bismarck State College is a tremendous leader in energy-related training, and we are excited to partner with the college to help meet the industry's unique demands," says May.

BSC President Larry Skogen says this partnership addresses BSC's strategic plan and the goal to develop national and international partnerships. "We are developing these kinds of partnerships to increase the student population, and also to work more efficiently in meeting industry's workforce needs," he said.

BSC has partnerships with other community colleges, but this is the most comprehensive, says Emmil. The partnership includes a financial aid consortium agreement, an identified program coordinator on each campus, and provisions for Fox Valley students to have access to hands-on lab activities, internships, or job shadowing with local energy industry partners.

Since founding one of the nation's first Power Plant Technology programs in 1976, BSC has emerged as a national leader in energy technology education. In 2007 the U.S. Department of Energy designated BSC as the National Power Plant Operations Technology and Education Center for expertise in training and educating operators and technicians in the energy industry.

A new building to house the college's energy technology programs is nearing completion on the southeast edge of the campus. Called the National Energy Center of Excellence, the 106,200 square-foot facility will also serve as a national resource center of education and training for the energy industry.

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(Basin Electric news release)

Bismarck, N.D. - Some fairytales don't involve love. Take, for instance, academia and careers. A student picks a major, selects a school and enrolls in the program. Along comes a great employer that offers an internship. After hard work, the student lands a job with the employer who also happens to provide 50 percent tuition reimbursement.

Sounds like a fairytale? Not really. Right now, Basin Electric and Bismarck State College (BSC) are living out that scenario through a new partnership called the "Grow Your Own" Program.

Facing a significant amount of retirements in the next five to 10 years, Basin Electric knew it was time to take its recruiting efforts to the next level. The cooperative looked no further than its already-thriving relationship with Bismarck State College.

"Basin Electric and BSC have a longstanding relationship - much of which is centered on the college's highly reputable Power Plant Technology program," says Ron Harper, Basin Electric CEO and general manager. "With base-load power plants in North Dakota and Wyoming, many BSC graduates take root at Basin Electric facilities."

Today, that relationship continues to flourish. Starting this fall, students who enroll in the Power Plant Technology Associate Degree program will have the opportunity to apply for internships at Basin Electric's three power plants. Upon completion of the internships and the program, students may be offered a laborer position. If offered a full-time position, 50 percent tuition will be reimbursed according to established guidelines.

"We are offering up to five students an opportunity to complete their job shadowing requirements plus an 80-hour internship at each of our facilities," says Sharon Klein, Basin Electric manager of human resources. "This program allows students and Basin Electric the opportunity to see if we're a good fit for each other. It also allows us access to top students and reduces training time and recruitment costs, should we bring the interns on full-time."

Upon hire, graduates will receive 15 percent reimbursement. After completing one year of employment, they'll receive another 15 percent, and after two years, they'll receive 20 percent, for a total of 50 percent.

"We are excited that Basin Electric is offering this wonderful opportunity to our Power Plant Program students," says Kari Knudson, Bismarck State College vice president of energy technology programs and director of the National Energy Center of Excellence. "This is an excellent example of collaboration between industry and education to provide a direct benefit to students."

Hiring Bismarck State College graduates has been a longstanding tradition of Basin Electric. "During the past five years, Basin Electric and Dakota Gasification Company had 281 openings at our facilities with educational requirements of a two year degree or less. Of these 281 openings, we hired 166 BSC grads. That's 59 percent," Klein says.

In 2003, Basin Electric strengthened its relationship with BSC by pledging $2 million toward the college's National Energy Center of Excellence, further ensuring a legacy of hiring highly educated students. Construction of the center is near completion. It will include state-of-the-art equipment, which will provide energy students with relevant hands on experience.

"Basin Electric has provided tremendous support to Bismarck State College and continues to be a valued partner," says Dr. Larry C. Skogen, Bismarck State College president.

Harper adds, "Bismarck State College is truly a national leader, and we're honored to partner with the college in these endeavors. This is just another example of how two entities can come together and make great things happen."

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BISMARCK, N.D. - Bismarck State College fills with events Oct. 9-10 for the biennial North Dakota Arts and Humanities Summit, a creative showcase of work being done by faculty and students at the state's colleges and universities.

Author Sherman Alexie, award-winning poet, novelist and filmmaker, appears as key presenter Thursday, Oct. 9, at 7:30 p.m. in Belle Mehus City Auditorium. The general seating admission is free for this witty evening of entertainment, which concludes with a question and answer period and book signing.

The BSC Campus Read Committee selected Alexie's book, "The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian," for campus-wide discussion in classrooms and public events during fall semester. All Arts and Humanities Summit attendees are encouraged to read the book.

More than 40 events are scheduled during the two days, all open and free to the public. Students and faculty will share performances, readings of creative literature, scholarly papers on innovative topics, and much more. In addition, BSC galleries will display work by visual art faculty and students.

The summit concludes Friday evening, Oct. 10, with the North Dakota University System Collage Concert in Belle Mehus City Auditorium. Admission is free.

The 2008 Arts and Humanities Summit emphasizes future leaders this year with scholars and entrepreneurs speaking to students about their work as educators, artists, and arts organization workers. For detailed information, visit bismarckstate.edu/summit/.

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Bismarck State College will begin offering Instrumentation and Control Technology, a new two-year program, this fall.

Students in the program will begin with courses in Electronics Technology for the first year of the Instrumentation & Control (I&C) program. The second-year courses in I&C will begin in the fall of 2009.

Representatives from North Dakota's energy industry requested that BSC offer the program to help meet the growing need for skilled instrumentation and control technicians in North Dakota's power plants, ethanol plants and other process plants. Other employment opportunities would be with manufacturers of appliances, medical equipment, or others industrial sites in which automated systems are used.

Students in the program will gain the skills and knowledge to install, repair, upgrade, maintain and troubleshoot instrumentation and control systems. They will earn an associate in applied science degree or a diploma upon successful completion of the program.

BSC is the only college in the North Dakota University System offering this program.

For information about the program, contact Bob Arso, chair of the Industrial Technology Department, at (701) 224-5416, click here to visit the I&C Technology Web site, or click here to receive additional information.

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