President Kelley, Transition Officer Boyd to Hold Briefing on Nickname, Logo Monday, Sept. 20

When President Robert Kelley addressed the University in an open forum on April 9, 2010, following the State Board of Higher Education’s decision to retire the UND nickname and logo, he announced he was beginning the process of retirement as the Chancellor had directed.  He also announced that an inclusive and transparent transition process would be developed and that he had asked me to lead that effort.

As part of the process, President Kelley will hold a briefing on the nickname and logo transition on Monday, Sept. 20, noon in the Lecture Bowl in the Memorial Union.  At that time, President Kelley and I will review the structure for the process, which includes the establishment of two task groups.  A third task group, which will be charged with developing a process for recommending  a new nickname and logo, will not be activated until some later date.

One of the task groups already activated is Honoring History and Traditions.  The co-chairs for that group will be Bruce Smith, Dean of the John D. Odegard School of Aerospace Sciences and a former UND football player, and Kris Compton, Chief Operating Officer for Alerus Financial Corporation and a UND alumna.  This task group has three major assignments – consider the uses of the current nickname and logo and recommend whether or not any uses should be continued in a non-athletic environment; recommend ways that the 80-year history and traditions associated with the current athletic nickname and logo can be documented and made available for future generations; and recommend ways a formal retirement of the current athletic nickname and logo can occur to bring about a formal closure.

The second task group, Communications, is being led by co-chairs Kathryn Rand, Dean of UND’s School of Law and a UND alumna, and Joshua Riedy, Associate Vice President for Outreach Services and UND’s Chief Information Officer.  This task group has two major assignments – recommend a communications strategy and plan that helps ensure the transition process will be inclusive and transparent and monitor its implementation; and recommend ways that community can be re-established among people who have had vastly differing views on the use of the current athletic nickname and logo.

The Communication Task Group has already begun its work and will be recommending to President Kelley several specific ways the University community will be kept informed about, and involved in, the transition process as it unfolds.  One of the initiatives of this task group is the Sept. 20 briefing.  I hope you will join us.  I also encourage you to stay abreast of the transition process at http://nickname.und.edu/logo.