MSU President's Newspaper Column
February 8, 2025
Our students make us proud
We are proud of our students for so many reasons. Each student is embraced for their own special qualities they bring to the world around them. Mayville State students are making a difference as members of Collegiate DECA, Student Education Association, Intercultural Club, Math and Science Club, CRU, and more. As research assistants in the Mayville State labs, student teachers, paraprofessionals in K-12 schools, nurses, and interns, they are impacting others through the work they do every day.
All of this happens while the students are pursuing their educational goals and enrolled in classes full-time, and in some cases, part-time. Many students are juggling their work schedules, classes, and family responsibilities while being active and engaged students.
With the recent announcement of the Athletic Director Honor Roll for the fall semester, I was reminded of the dedication and hard work it takes for our student athletes to participate in an intercollegiate sport while attending college. Many of them are busy with jobs and other activities as well. On top of representing their university well on the courts and fields, they are high achievers in the classroom. That is definitely reason to be proud.
To be named to the Athletic Director Honor Roll, a student must have achieved a 3.0 grade point average or higher for the semester. The list of Fall Semester 2024 recipients is impressive, for sure. In addition, many students were named North Star Athletic Association Scholar Athletes for Fall Sports, which requires a grade point average of 3.25 or higher; and a number were named Daktronics NAIA Scholar-Athletes for fall and winter sports. To qualify for this honor, students must be a sophomore or above (by academic standing), must have attended one full year as a non-transfer or one full year as a transfer, and have a 3.5 grade point average in classes taken at Mayville State.
You can see a listing of individuals who have received these awards at www.mayvillestate.edu/fall2024honors. Please do take a look. It’s impressive.
Athletic Director Rocky Larson tells me that Mayville State athletic teams had the following overall team GPAs for the Fall Semester of 2024: Football - 3.05; Volleyball - 3.61; Men’s Golf - 3.34; Women’s Golf - 3.55; Women’s Basketball - 3.67; Men’s Basketball - 3.13; Softball - 3.41; and Baseball - 3.18. Way to go, teams!
Many great things are happening at Mayville State University, and our students are happy. Evidence of this can be seen in our recent retention rates. In the Fall Semester of 2021, the retention rate for student athletes was 61%. That percentage increased in the Fall of 2022 with a 75% rate, and again in the Fall of 2023 with an 86% retention rate. For general students, retention was at 55% in the Fall of 2021, and this increased to 61% in the Fall of 2022, rising again in the Fall of 2023 to 67%. Overall retention rate for all students was at 58% in the Fall Semester of 2021, 67% in the fall of 2022, and 77% in the Fall of 2023.
Achieving significant success such as that shown in retention rates is a great team effort. I am grateful for our outstanding faculty and staff members who always go above and beyond to help make Mayville State the special place it is, a place where individuals have a chance to learn and grow while preparing for exciting futures. We owe a debt of gratitude to our alumni and financial supporters who are helping by providing scholarship assistance to these students, and to the State Board of Higher Education and North Dakota University System, North Dakota Legislature, Governor Armstrong, and all who value what happens at “The School of Personal Service” and support our efforts.
This team effort is the source of a ripple effect that starts at Mayville State and reaches out to the state of North Dakota and beyond as our students earn their degrees and go out into their careers and communities and make a difference for all.