It is with a great sense of responsibility and honor that I have accepted the position of Interim Chancellor for MSU-Northern. I began my duties on Jan. I and already I have come to feel welcome by people from all segments of the Northern community.

I would be remiss if I did not begin by honoring my predecessor, Alex Capdeville, who retired in December after seven years as Chancellor at this campus. I have the highest respect for what Dr. Capdeville and the students, faculty and staff of Northern accomplished during this period. Some of the items which began during those years will be on my agenda as well.

As many of you know, I am not a stranger to Northern or Havre. For more than a decade, most recently as the vice president for inter- campus affairs for all the Montana State University campuses, I have worked closely with MSU-Northern's students, faculty, staff and administration.

I am already aware of some of our successes and some of the issues that confront us. President Gamble has asked that during my interim tenure I focus on some of the difficult issues.

It is not news to anyone that the number of students graduating from Hi Line high schools is declining. All campuses in the state will be impacted by the decline in high school graduates, but our service area has been hit first and hit hardest. My charge is to arrive at a set of academic programs and campus services that will be attractive to prospective students, engage current students and serve the primary employment sectors of the Hi Line. We need to develop these programs in a way that will allow them to be financially viable into the future with the funding models that are likely to be in place for our state.
 

Achieving this result will require persistent hard work and cooperation from every segment of the Northern community and expertise and assistance from the other MSU campuses. If we do our work well and find the right mix, our faculty will lay the foundation for a successful and collaborative tenure by the next chancellor. If we do our work well, we will produce a model that other campuses can use to aggressively and creatively reposition themselves to take best advantage of changing conditions. I look forward to the work and I know we'll have some fun along the way.

Many of you have asked me about my background. I graduated with a bachelor's degree in 1969 from Michigan State University. Following two years in the U.S. Army, including a 12 month tour of duty in Vietnam, I earned a master's degree from Iowa State University and a doctorate from the University of Florida.

I came to MSU in Bozeman in 1977. During the past three decades, I've been the dean of students, vice provost, and executive assistant to the president. My wife, Jaynee Drange Groseth, is executive director of the MSU Alumni Association. We have two grown sons, Peder and Anders.

I am very enthusiastic about this opportunity and I look forward to working with Northern's alumni and friends. There is much to do and I have much to learn. I hope you will help me because the continued loyalty of alumni and friends will be critical to the long term success of MSU-Northern. I welcome your questions and feedback at rolf.groseth@msun.edu or 406-265-3720.

Sincerely,

Rolf Groseth
Interim Chancellor