The mission of North Dakota’s State Board of Higher Education (SBHE) is to enhance the quality of life for all of those we serve and the economic and social vitality of the state through the discovery, sharing, and application of knowledge. North Dakota’s abundant natural resources propel the development of innovation and new technologies and its 11 public institutions, guided by the SBHE, are positioned to provide programs and opportunities that our students need to be prepared for a successful future.
With more than 43,000 students taking classes across 11 institutions, the North Dakota University System is in the business of recruiting and training workforce talent. As chair of the SBHE, the board is committed to graduating students who are equipped with the skills and aptitude to strengthen our state’s workforce.
Paired with strong, vibrant communities, the state is a leader in fueling and feeding the nation. Energy and agriculture aren’t the only industries driving economic growth and future prosperity for the citizens of North Dakota. We have invested in unmanned aircraft systems autonomous systems, healthcare, cyber, data security, and manufacturing—and each one of our institutions have programs that are supported by SBHE policy for these emerging areas of workforce need.
Additionally, Forbes named North Dakota as the best place in the country to start a business because of the low cost of entry and funding opportunities. Recruiting and retaining a robust workforce has been a challenge, though, and the state’s No.1 barrier to further economic growth.
A Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce report published in November 2023 says by 2031, net new jobs in North Dakota requiring postsecondary education and training will grow by 24,000.1 Of all jobs in North Dakota, 71 percent (317,000 jobs) will require some training beyond high school in 2031. This means higher education’s role in workforce development will be even more crucial.
As a governing and coordinating board, North Dakota’s SBHE has the responsibility to balance the missions of each institution in the system, promote the state’s location and specific workforce needs, and ensure that there are specific programs within the system to provide a unified and systematic approach to achieve these goals.
The board cannot work to achieve all of these important goals alone. How boards work as a group is oftentimes not a unified vote but a compromise of perspectives. We work hard to ensure that our system of higher education is meeting the needs of both students and the workforce. From a board chair perspective, the only way to accomplish impactful work is to partner with legislators and get input from state leaders as well as private businesses. Through teamwork with other agencies, our work can impact the entire state.
Support from and partnership with the North Dakota Legislative Assembly has been imperative to meet workforce challenges. Here are just a few examples.
The Career Builders Scholarship and Loan Repayment Program is a dollar-for-dollar matching partnership with the private sector. Our state contributes $1 of scholarships or loan repayments for every $1 of private-sector money received. This helps businesses attract and retain talent in high-need and emerging occupations in North Dakota.
Approved by the North Dakota State Legislature in 2019, the North Dakota Career Builders Program was created to provide skilled workforce scholarships and student loan repayments to students who fill emerging occupations in the state. It is a public-private endeavor in which the state will contribute $1 of public funding for every $1 of private business support.
Certificate programs have exploded across the system in response to workforce needs. In the past three years, under the guidance of a board directive, more than 300 certificate programs have been created within the system. With as little as three courses, a student can earn a certificate skill. Many certificates are also offered online, so students can remain in their community while advancing their education.
The SBHE designated Bismarck State College as a polytechnic institution. Simply defined, this is an educational model that engages students and industry with hands-on applied learning to develop workforce-ready knowledge, skills, and degrees.
The SBHE also designated Dickinson State University (DSU) as a dual-mission institution. A direct response to workforce needs in southwest North Dakota, DSU is now offering two-year technical degrees in addition to four-year bachelor’s degrees.
Looking to the future, the SBHE has been teaming with academia, civic leaders, and business and industry professionals on a strategic plan called Envision 2035. The strategic findings paired with SBHE work to implement supporting policy will provide a 10-year roadmap to best position higher education in serving students and employers of the future.
Several Envision study groups were formed to analyze our students and teachers of the future. The SBHE in North Dakota is also looking at the future skills and academic programs needed to meet North Dakota’s future workforce in agriculture, energy, and healthcare. Each of these study groups is co-led by a member of the SBHE, bringing their expertise to bear on the study groups’ efforts.
Digitization and AI will affect all sectors of society and will change the ways in which we educate students and prepare them for their futures. The groundwork for this transformative shift is already being laid and will continue to evolve in the next 10 years.
The work of North Dakota’s SBHE is gaining national recognition. In January, North Dakota scored a major win to support economic growth in agriculture technology. The U.S. National Science Foundation awarded a $15 million grant to a team led by North Dakota State University and several other partners, including the North Dakota Tribal College System. The grant has the potential of totaling $160 million over 10 years.
North Dakota is also part of a regional clean energy project that received a federal funding award for up to $925 million. The University of North Dakota will partner with the Heartland Hydrogen Hub to produce low-carbon hydrogen, decarbonize regional supply chains, and create clean energy jobs across Minnesota, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wisconsin.
Investments like these influence the way we conduct planning for higher education in North Dakota. We don’t know for certain what tomorrow will bring, but we can do our best to embrace these emerging opportunities and through our board policy decisions and planning for the future work to make North Dakota the “legendary” state that it is.
Tim Mihalick is the chair of the North Dakota State Board of Higher Education.
1. Anthony P. Carnevale, Nicole Smith, Martin Van Der Werf, and Michael C. Quinn, After Everything: Projections of Jobs, Education, and Training Requirements through 2031 (Washington, D.C.: Georgetown University Center on Education and Workforce Development, November 2023), https://cew.georgetown.edu/cew-reports/projections2031/.
RELATED RESOURCES
Trusteeship Magazine Article
More of What We Need
Webinar On Demand
Scaling and Institutionalizing Work Readiness in Higher Education