As I sat idly by while waiting for the “Forever Starts Here: A Celebration for the Future” to load on my computer, I started spiraling thinking about what the university could be announcing at this event. Would it be something actually worth my time? Would it be something that would affect me as a senior, or incoming students over the next few years. On Friday October 6, during Homecoming week, the UND Alumni Association claimed they had a groundbreaking announcement “that will change the trajectory of the University of North Dakota and declare a new era for our beloved alma mater,” and here’s what it was.  

The big announcement was that the University is going to start a new campaign called “Forever UND.” They are asking for 500 million dollars that would go to 4 pillars of the campaign. 125 million would go towards student scholarships, 125 million for faculty and research, 175 million for capital projects, and 80 million goes to programs and priority needs. Now what does this mean? They didn’t really explain.  

Werner Nistler, the main contributor to the new business building on campus, came on stage and talked about two new buildings that they are hoping to build. A new STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) building and a new Flight OPS center at the Grand Forks airport. The hosts, President Armacost and CEO of the Alumni Foundation DeAnna Carlson Zink, talked a little more about the scholarships, but that was all the explanation we got in regard to what the money would be used for exactly.  

So, “Forever Starts Here: A Celebration for the Future,” was really just an announcement from the University saying they would like more money. They talked briefly about what it would be used for, but nothing was ever confirmed or explained. The University has already announced that they have made 368 million dollars during the “silent period” of the campaign starting in 2018. The one thing we can take away from this announcement, is that current students, incoming students, and alumni will forever be paying UND.  

Claire Arneson is a Dakota Student Section Editor. She can be reached at [email protected].