newsletter for students and alumni
Construction Management MINNESOTA STATE UNIVERSITY MOORHEAD
SPRING 2014 INSIDE THIS ISSUE: Student ASC Competition......................... 1 Joe Egan, Board member, Teaching Capstone.................................... 1 13 Pass the AIC Test................................... 2 Meet Scott Kluver...................................... 2 MSUM Budget Update.............................. 2 Fulfilling our Promise................................ 2
IN THE NEWS: MSUM Administration presents deficit reduction plan to faculty on December 5th. More to come December 20th. Enrollment summary, 4 year program • 118 – 2012 • 100 – 2013 Job Fairs – 2 major job fairs attended by MSUM faculty and students. This continues to be a great way to market students and develop relationships with key company recruiters. MSUM students competed again at Construction Management Quiz Bowl. The MSUM team made it to the semifinals, but were defeated by the team from University of Minnesota that eventually won 1st place. The event occurs annually, this year the event was held October 4th. CM 425 Equipment Productivity and Analysis was offered online for the first time in 2012.
CALENDAR OF EVENTS: February 4-6 | NAHB February 7-8 | AIC Exam Committee February 19-22 | ACCE March 4-8 | Con Expo Las Vegas March 5-8 | AGC Las Vegas April 14-16 | AIC May | Potential Alumni Event May 16th | Spring Commencement
Construction Management Team Wins ASC Student Competition Students from the MSU Moorhead Construction Management program won the Heavy Civil Division of the Region IV Associated Schools of Construction (ASC) CM student competition in Nebraska City, NE. held from October 23-25, 2013. Region IV ASC participants include construction schools from Minnesota, North and South Dakota, Iowa, Nebraska, Kansas and Missouri. The project scope of work this year included constructing an entire 4-lane Interstate bridge adjacent to its final location at Pecos Street and I-70 in Denver, then working with the Colorado DOT to shut down the I-70 Interstate for 50 hours to demo the old bridge and install the new one. The new bridge had to be jacked up on rollers, moved, and set on pre-poured bridge abutments after the old bridge was taken down. The new bridge weighed several hundred thousand pounds, so this was no easy task. The winning team was within $600,000 of the actual bid of $19.7 million. Team members included Cody Wegner, Steve Meidinger, Paul Nolden, Mitch Egge, Gabriel Nah. The team was coached by Scott Seltveit.
Joe Egan Teaching Capstone 496 at NHCC Advisory board member Joe Egan will be teaching the capstone 496 class at NHCC spring semester. Joe Egan brings a unique perspective to this senior year class. His wealth of industry experience, combined with a critical eye and challenging wit, gives you a unique perspective of what will be encountered in the world of construction. This course will develop a higher level of comprehensive understanding of the interrelationships between designs, estimates, schedules, and contracts. Success in the construction industry requires the skill and practice of both left brain brick and mortar and right brain emotional relationships. This course will balance both the logical side of the industry involving quantities, square footage, weights, plans, specifications, etc., along with emotional intelligence involving relationship skills, persuasion techniques and the key emotions that drive customer loyalty as well as the negative emotions that drive relationship destruction.
Spring 2014
CONSTRUCTION management
Meet Scott Kluver, Board Member Since 2011 College: MSU Moorhead Construction Management
Graduated: 1996 (year Kirby Puckett retired from Twins)
Family: Marcie (Spouse), and children Jordon (14), Emily (12)
Birthday: December 4th
Hobbies: Traveling, lake time, snowmobiling, hunting and outdoors
Favorite Movie: Any Good Action or Comedy
Favorite Food: Seafood
Best Class in College: All my construction classes
First Car: 1986 Dodge Charger
Current Car: 2014 Dodge Ram 2500 Laramie
A great weekend is: On the water and in the sun all day, bon fire with friends and family at night.
Fulfilling Our Promise University Strategic Planning Many construction businesses throughout industry are strategically planning for their future. MSUM is no different. Fulfilling Our Promise is the mission statement for MSUM’s strategic planning process. This has been in process for over one year. The goal is to strategically align the university with industry needs, thereby increasing our ability to draw students to the university, and better prepare them for our constantly changing world. Each program was given a list of challenges to which they had to define an actionable item. These were reported to administration to hold the department accountable. The CM program was fortunate to already have initiatives in place to alighn with the strategic goals. However, we were challenged to meet the remaining goals and improve upon what is in place. There will be additional work load for faculty to meet these needs. A full update will be given at the Spring Advisory Board Meeting.
Students pass the AIC Exam Thirteen from the spring 2013 Construction Management graduating class pass the American Institute of Constructors Level 1 test. The exam is currently used by over 60 universities nationwide, many of which require their students to take and/or pass the exam to graduate. The AC exam is a proven way to qualify individuals entering the workforce. Students who pass the AC exam are future leaders of our industry. They have shown exceptional knowledge by passing a comprehensive, industry-tested exam. These individuals also agree to abide by the AIC Code of Ethics, meaning they are dedicated and committed to the highest level of professionalism and ethical standards.
MSUM Budget Update Minnesota State University Moorhead administrators have completed a process of consultation with their faculty union in advance of reductions in faculty positions stemming from lower student enrollment. In November, the administration outlined a projected deficit of $8 million by 2016. This deficit follows years of enrollment declines and state funding reductions of almost $7 million from 2008 to 2012. Most of the deficit was addressed through efficiencies, administrative savings, and voluntary separations. In addition, building on its strategic plan and academic realignment, the administration will merge some academic departments in order to reduce the budget, create efficiencies, and promote synergies.
Minnesota State University Moorhead is an equal opportunity educator and employer and is a member of the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities System. This information will be made available in alternate format upon request by contacting Disability Services at 218.477.4318 (voice) or 1.800.627.3529 (MRS/TTY).
To better connect faculty resources with enrollment patterns, the administration will phase out the following five low enrollment majors (American multicultural studies, medical laboratory science, master’s in fine arts, music composition, and community health) and a certificate in Autism Spectrum Disorders. The 69 impacted students will have the opportunity to complete their programs. The university will continue to have 70 majors along with multiple minors and certificates, including new programs added recently due to student and employer interest. For more information visit news.mnstate.edu