Armstrong appoints three members to North Dakota State Board of Higher Education
Gov. Kelly Armstrong announced three appointments to North Dakota’s State Board of Higher Education on July 14, naming Kevin Black and Dr. Joshua Deere to four-year terms and selecting Kelby Azure as the board’s student member for a one-year term.
The appointments change the membership of the statewide public board that oversees North Dakota’s public colleges and universities. They include two regular four-year appointments and one student appointment with a shorter, one-year term.
Black and Deere receive four-year appointments
Black, identified in the governor’s announcement as a Minot entrepreneur, was appointed to one of the two four-year terms.
Deere, identified as a Grand Forks physician and health-care administrator, was appointed to the other four-year term. The governor’s announcement refers to him as Joshua Deere.
The release did not identify the particular board seats assigned to Black and Deere. It also did not name the prior members, if any, associated with the positions or describe the vacancies being filled.
Neither appointee’s policy priorities, prospective board responsibilities or political affiliation were described in the announcement. The announced action establishes the duration of their appointments as four years, but the release did not provide separate start dates for those terms.
Azure selected as student member
Azure is a student at Mayville State University and was appointed as the board’s student member. Unlike the four-year terms announced for Black and Deere, Azure’s appointment is for one year.
The student-member appointment gives the board three newly announced appointees in total: two members with four-year terms and one student member with a one-year term. The announcement did not provide further detail about when Azure’s one-year term begins.
The differing term lengths are an important distinction in the governor’s action. Black and Deere were each named for four-year service, while Azure was named specifically to the board’s student-member role for one year.
Statewide higher-education oversight
The appointments are executive actions affecting a statewide public agency. The State Board of Higher Education oversees North Dakota’s public colleges and universities, placing the selections within the state’s higher-education governance system.
That scope is why the appointments matter beyond the three individuals named in the announcement: board membership helps shape statewide oversight of the public higher-education system. The governor’s release, however, did not announce any particular policy direction, board initiative or agenda connected to the appointments.
The announcement identifies the appointees’ professional or student backgrounds: Black as an entrepreneur in Minot, Deere as a physician and health-care administrator in Grand Forks, and Azure as a Mayville State University student. It does not provide additional biographies or explain how those backgrounds factored into the selections.
What is known next
No further procedural step, effective date or start date was specified in the announcement. The release also does not say whether Senate confirmation is required or whether the appointments took effect immediately.
As announced, Black and Deere are slated for four-year terms, and Azure is slated for a one-year student-member term. Beyond those stated terms, the governor’s announcement does not identify a next deadline, confirmation schedule or board action tied to the appointments.
Sources
- Armstrong appoints Black and Deere to State Board of Higher Education, Azure as student member, North Dakota Office of the Governor