Chancellor Community Letter December 2024

Seasons greetings from the University of Minnesota Crookston! Fall 2024 semester is wrapping up this week with class finals and end of the season events. The hard work put in by our students, faculty, and staff over the last few months makes the anticipation of the upcoming winter break well deserved.

If you keep up with our campus news, you'll see we have quite a few things to be proud of lately. We hosted some unique events in November and early December with the public education course on technical large animal emergency rescue, annual Veterans Day program with audience interaction from veterans in attendance, and the inaugural Bergland Lecture Series where we learned about and discussed the changing geopolitical landscape and opportunities for agriculture. The Crookston campus also announced future partnerships with Mongolian universities and started a free application month event exclusively for Crookston High School students.

Our athletics teams have also been in the news lately with edge-of-your-seat wins against regional rivals like Bemidji State, and meaningful themed events alongside their games like the teddy bear toss for Toys for Tots and food shelf and winter coat donation drives. Golden Eagle Athletics and their student athletes, and everyone here at the Crookston campus, invite you to take part in our upcoming games and matches this spring semester which starts in January. You might even find yourself in a photo or video with our famous Regal the Golden Eagle on social media.

Speaking of January, don't forget to check out our events calendar where you'll see things like the 50th (yes, 50 years) annual Ag-Arama on January 25 which takes place in our beautiful state-of-the-art equine arena. In January 1976, former agriculture and natural resources division head Gary McVey, Ph.D. proposed the program which originated the first Ag-Arama. The idea for Ag-Arama was to provide a fun break for U of M Crookston students who had to endure the long Minnesota winters. Ag-Arama also serves as a common place for agriculture and natural resources alumni to return and visit. Did you know Ag-Arama events used to be held at the Winter Shows Building in Crookston? It's now, of course, held at our own University Teaching and Outreach Center. In 2025, we'll have showmanship rounds, the alumni show, a new dog showmanship, coronation, alumni social, and a dance that's open to the public at the Crookston Eagles Club.

Happy Holidays to those who celebrate and stay warm.

Chancellor Mary Holz-Clause

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