Dakota Beacon

In the wake of NDSU President Joe Chapman’s resignation, a metaphorical dam broke at the GF Herald—it was as if the editors had been biting their tongues waiting for this time.  Humorist Ryan Bakken (“Say it ain’t so, Joe”) prepared a mock defense of Joe’s excesses.  A sample, “Didn’t you know the price of velvet robes has skyrocketed?”  Tom Dennis was right behind, making the more serious case that it was time for ND university foundations to commit to “openness, transparency and accountability” (the NDSU Foundation paid many of Chapman’s expenses).  Editor Mike Jacobs was the cleanup hitter.  He acknowledged Chapman’s exceptional leadership at NDSU, but then moved quickly to a LIST OF DEFERRED GRIEVANCES, including: “He (Chapman) exposed and exploited every weakness at UND” and his “breathtaking arrogance.”  Jacobs concluded that the embarrassing episode clears the way for a real university system in ND.

Forum editorials were all pro Joe—it was clear that no mea culpa should be expected from Chapman.  As it has for years, the Forum praised Chapman’s achievements.  As for blame, the Forum labeled the NDSU Foundation an enabler: “In essence, he (Chapman) had a blank checkbook, and he naturally made use of it.  In the context of his many contributions, the spending controversies are an unfortunate blemish.”  Blemish indeed!  James Ferragut, a Forum columnist, summed up his view: “CHAPMAN UNJUSTLY REVILED,”  casting the whole matter as another example of the sick pastime of bringing down public figures.

The Ralph Engelstad Arena just passed its eighth birthday.  The GF Herald says it’s THE BEST COLLEGE HOCKEY RINK—the 11,000 seat arena has developed an electric atmosphere and is a dreaded trip for any UND opponent.  In mid-October, UND was unbeaten at home in 16 straight games.  The Sioux-Gopher hockey games have become the state’s marquee sporting event.

The ND media routinely praise the state’s schools because students have high overall rankings on standardized national tests.  WHAT IS BEHIND THE RANKINGS?  As a generalization, top performing states, mostly near the northern border, have a high percentage of white students.  The worst performing states are along the southern border (Texas is an exception) and have a high percentage of Hispanic and black students who are more difficult to educate.  To get the most useful view of how ND schools are doing, comparisons should be made at the sub-group level, that is, white to white, black to black, etc.

To illustrate, in the National Assessment of Educational Progress, ND is ranked #4 in the nation for overall 8th grade math scores, while North Carolina is ranked #26.  But if you compare the scores of white students only, North Carolina (58% white) becomes #8 and ND (87% white) drops to #9—still respectable.  ND students also rank very high in science, but in reading and writing, white 8th grade students in ND rank #26 and #38, respectively, below the national average for white students.  THE MYTH OF SUPERIOR ND SCHOOLS is beginning to unravel.

Don’t miss a lengthy October 18 essay in the Minot Daily News by Kim Fundingsland about the CHANGING ND LANDSCAPE.  Some excerpts: “The setting sun once framed by the red barn, a windmill and an unobstructed horizon, now casts its rays through the churning blades of the wind turbine.  The silence of the land has been replaced by the rhythmic clatter of the oil well.”

Winter struck early and hard in some parts of ND in mid-October.  Icy roads and snow made driving hazardous.  Some visitors from southern states got ND WINTER DRIVING LESSONS the hard way.  State papers carried the following item: “The Highway Patrol says two men from Mission, Texas, who were working in the oil field died Wednesday after their pickup truck rolled in the ditch on icy U.S. Highway 2 near Stanley.”

When Barbara Deibert (74) of Fargo died recently, she left eight siblings living in six states and a Canadian province.  Her family had SCATTERED TO THE WIND ONLY TO BE REUNITED BY A FUNERAL.  This is not unusual and reflects how Nodaks have historically migrated to other states with higher economic growth rates.  ND constantly bemoans the loss of these young adults.  Should it?  Imagine what it would be like if Barbara’s brothers and sisters (and many others like them) had remained in ND competing for a fixed or shrinking number of jobs.  Employment rates, pay and job quality would be lower.  ND doesn’t need more people, it needs more productive, higher level jobs.  When that happens, as may now be the case in the energy industry, the number of people will take care of itself.

THIS AND THAT:  Higher prices have revived the ND oil industry.  The state is again setting monthly production records and may set a record for the year . . . The dean of UND’s School of Aerospace says the school is the national leader in the transition of Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) from military to civilian applications.  “We now are the first university in the world to offer an undergraduate degree in UAS” . . .  The Army Corps of Engineers has comed up with three major alternatives for flood control in Fargo-Moorhead: a diversion on the Minnesota side of the Red River, a diversion on the ND side and a dike system.  The diversions are considered to be the most cost-effective.  The “waffle plan,” storage of runoff on farmland, is not considered cost-effective and has been left off the table.

A reminder—THE RED RIVER RUNS NORTH.  The following worried expression came from Pembina County Commissioner Andy Adamson, “I think there’s going to be water coming at us like we don’t know what.”  He is concerned that F-M may solve its flooding problems at the expense of downstream communities.  Do you wonder why the Red flows so slowly and floods so badly?  Outdoor writer Burt Calkins has the answer:  Glacial ice at Pembina, once 3,000 feet thick, depressed the land several hundred feet.  The area is slowly springing back, lifting the northern end of the Red River Valley and slowing the river.

Recently, I mentioned that yet another senior officer at the MINOT AFB was relieved of his command because of mishaps near the base.  A reader of a ND paper wondered,  “Where do you get sent as punishment if you screw up in Minot?”

DAKTOIDS:  Moody’s has placed ND in the recovery category, saying recession has ended in the state’s three largest cities . . . ND did not get along with outgoing Manitoba Premier Gary Doer—there is cautious optimism about his replacement, centrist Greg Selinger . . . The Microsoft CEO says Fargo is the company’s third-largest presence in the U.S.—the compay has 1,500 personnel in Fargo and is considered one of the most important businesses in ND.