Greetings from the President’s Office!As the snow lightly falls outside, I have a beautiful wintry view of campus looking to downtown Valley City and can’t help but marvel at the beauty of winter. While it may seem that the pace of life slows a bit during this season, that is not the case here at VCSU! I would like to share a few exciting events from the past few weeks that have taken place on and off campus.We all know the importance of student success, and we value this highly as one of our guiding principles at VCSU. I had the privilege of meeting with the VCSU Student Senate on February 11. This was a tremendous opportunity for me to get to know these student leaders better and to learn more about what they value in their experience here and the challenges they face in their pursuit of a college degree. Let me assure you that these students are driven, engaged, and taking control of their educational success in a most proactive way. We are fortunate, indeed, to have such outstanding student leaders and ambassadors for this fine institution!On February 12, Kim Hesch from the VCSU Foundation Office and I traveled to Fargo for a very enjoyable alumni gathering. This was another great opportunity for us to meet with graduates and friends of VCSU and see the important role that this institution has played in the lives and careers of so many outstanding alumni and to witness the connections they’ve made with each other because of their common VCSU bond.Valentine’s Day brought the Giving Hearts Day campaign, once again highly successful! On February 14, the VCSU Foundation was one of over 400 charities participating in the Giving Hearts Day program. I’m very happy to report that we exceeded our goal of $15,000 by almost $5,000, receiving a total of more than $19,700! Special thanks to Ludvigson, Braun & Co. for providing a $5,000 matching gift. Gifts made on this day to the foundation’s Annual Fund help support scholarships and other Alumni Association initiatives.Over the weekend of February 15-16, we were honored to recognize “50 Years of Women’s Intercollegiate Athletics at Valley City State University.” This amazing event, organized by athletic director Jill DeVries, brought over 70 women’s athletic alumnae from the past five decades to share stories from their days as student-athletes here at VCSU. It was just wonderful to share this event with these amazing athletes and to hear and see how the opportunities and sports have changed in the past 50 years. For the event, Mark Potts, our sports information director, assembled a wonderful history of women’s athletics at VCSU. I encourage you to go online and visit vcsuvikings.com/50 to see this history. I’m continuing the listening and learning tour of all academic departments and am amazed at the fine work being accomplished here! I look forward to sharing exciting developments in the weeks and months ahead. Go Vikings!