Baesler Extends Deadline for ND Higher Ed Applicants

State School Superintendent Kirsten Baesler said Friday an application deadline for two openings on the North Dakota Board of Higher Education has been moved to 5 p.m. Central time on Tuesday, Dec. 17.

The four-year Board of Higher Education terms of incumbents Casey Ryan and Jeffry Volk end June 30, 2025. Volk, a West Fargo engineer and consultant, is completing his first term and is eligible for a second. Ryan, a Grand Forks physician and retired hospital administrator, is finishing his second term and is ineligible for reappointment.

The new application deadline for the position is 5 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 17, 2024. Applications may be emailed to the North Dakota Department of Public Instruction at [email protected] or sent by regular mail to the NDDPI at 600 E. Boulevard Ave., Dept. 201, Bismarck, ND, 58505.

Candidates must fill out a one-page application and provide a resume and no more than six letters of reference. They must have lived in North Dakota for the previous five years, and they may not have been employed or paid by the North Dakota University System within the last two years.

The governor appoints members of the Board of Higher Education. Baesler is chairwoman of a five-member committee that screens applicants and forwards a list of three suggested appointees to the governor. The committee's makeup is outlined in the North Dakota Constitution.

Current Gov. Doug Burgum is leaving office Dec. 15. His successor's choices for the Board of Higher Education will require confirmation by the North Dakota Senate. The new governor will have until mid-February 2025 to submit his nominees to the Senate.