… or two

Ecklund said, noting the original bowl was excavated in the early 1900s with horse and buggy. The new bowl is being extended about 40 feet to the east.

“We're doing all of that work now with modern equipment,” he said, “but regardless, it still takes a heck of a lot of time.”

Mellmer said it has been fun for him to work on both campuses at the same time, especially knowing that students may be using for many years the projects the company has constructed at both schools.

“I think it's kind of a cool thing when we build these K-12 athletic facilities around the state of North Dakota,” Mellmer said. “We're building the athletic environments for these schools – whether it's Williston High School or Trinity High School or New England High School. And when we hear from parents that their kid is going to play football or is going to run track and field for the University of Jamestown, they're basically going from performing on one facility we constructed to performing and competing on another facility we constructed. … I just think that is a really unique thing, knowing that students may be utilizing our facilities for a 10-year period. That's pretty cool.”

ANDREW WEEKS PRAIRIE BUSINESS EDITOR

AWEEKS@PRAIRIEBUSINESSMAGAZINE.COM

701-780-1276

/ @PB_ANDREWWEEKS

FAR LEFT PAGE: A RENDERING OF THE FUTURE CENTER FOR THE ARTS BEING BUILT AT VALLEY CITY STATE UNIVERSITY IN VALLEY CITY, N.D. THE 56,000 SQUARE-FOOT FACILITY WILL HOUSE A 350SEAT PERFORMANCE HALL AND 100-SEAT CHORAL ROOM, AMONG OTHER FEATURES.

IMAGE: HGA

TOP LEFT PAGE: A RENDERING OF WHAT THE LOBBY MIGHT LOOK LIKE AT THE VALLEY CITY STATE UNIVERSITY CENTER FOR THE ARTS.

IMAGE: HGA

BOTTOM LEFT PAGE: A VIEW OF THE CHORAL ROOM AT THE CENTER FOR THE ARTS IN VALLEY CITY, N.D.

IMAGE: HGA

LEFT: THIS IMAGE SHOWS THE TRACK AND FOOTBALL STADIUM BEING BUILT BY JE DUNN CONSTRUCTION AT THE UNIVERSITY OF JAMESTOWN IN JAMESTOWN, N.D. THE $11.5 MILLION PROJECT WILL FEATURE A 15,000-SEAT GRANDSTAND. THE PROJECT IS SLATED FOR COMPLETION IN SEPTEMBER.

IMAGE: JE DUNN CONSTRUCTION

ABOVE: A SCHEMATIC OF THE TRACK AND FOOTBALL STADIUM BEING BUILT AT JAMESTOWN UNIVERSITY.

IMAGE: JE DUNN CONSTRUCTION

Kerry Shelton

Starion Bank names Morgan CEO

BISMARCK, N.D. • Starion Bank has named Don Morgan CEO-elect. Morgan will also remain president, a position he has had with the bank for more than a year. Craig Larson will remain CEO and chairman of the board.

With the additional responsibilities of CEO-elect, Morgan will focus more on the overall strategy and vision for the bank, in addition to his current management of the day-to-day operations for Starion Bank. Morgan, a certified public accountant, has been with Starion since 2012 when he joined the bank as vice president for credit administration. The next year he was promoted to chief credit officer. In 2014, he became a member of Starion’s Executive Committee, which is responsible for initiating key actions within the organization, reviewing financial data, and setting major project priorities. Morgan was most recently promoted to president of Starion Bank in January 2020.

In this new role, Morgan will have a more active role in the strategic positioning of the bank and its continued growth as he guides and develops Starion’s high-performance leadership teams.He focuses on all operational aspects of the bank and building relationships with customers in all the communities Starion serves. He is based out of corporate headquarters in Bismarck, N.D.

Lon Keller

John Lundwall Jillian Voss

Studios Team joins Bell Bank

FARGO, N.D. • Four team members with extensive video and audio production experience, and a long history of creating impactful projects in the region, have joined the marketing department at Bell Bank in Fargo, N.D.

Led by Kerry Shelton as vice president and director of photography, the new “Bell Studios” team also includes Lon Keller, director/Bell Studios and senior editor, senior producer/editor Jon Lundwall, and editor Jillian Voss.

Originally from Bismarck, N.D., Shelton has more than four decades of experience in creative direction, photographic direction, storytelling and producing videos, as well as executive production for live events, and his work includes an Emmy Award nomination. Prior to joining Bell, he was employed at KFYR-TV and WDAY-TV, ProVideo, Bankshot Productions, Sundog and Two Rivers Marketing.

Shelton and his wife, Nancy, live in Fargo. They have two children and two grandchildren.

Keller is originally from Tenney, Minn., and earned a degree in mass communications and advertising from MSUM. He has nearly 40 years of experience in audio and video production including writing, editing and directing, motion graphics, podcasts and live events. Keller was previously employed at KFGO and several other local radio stations, WDAY-TV (where he won an Emmy Award in 2000), Microsoft, Bankshot Productions, Sundog and Two Rivers Marketing.

Keller and his wife, Shelley, live in Moorhead. They have two sons.

A native of Arthur, N.D., Lundwall earned a degree in mass communications from NDSU and has more than 35 years of experience in concepting, writing, editing, shooting and producing video stories. He was previously employed at Prairie Public Broadcasting, Video Builders, Bankshot Productions, Sundog and Two Rivers Marketing.

Lundwall and his wife, Sara, live near Hatton, N.D. They have two children.

Voss is originally from Sibley, Iowa, and earned her degree in radio and TV broadcasting from Southwest Minnesota State University in Marshall. She has more than 12 years of experience in story concepting and editing, motion graphics and audio mixing. Previously, Voss was employed as a freelance audio/video editor as well as at Simply Michele, Sundog and Two Rivers Marketing.

Voss and her husband, Jeremy, live in West Fargo and have three children.

Paul Brucker

Railway Credit Union president named as CULAC Ambassador

BISMARCK, N.D. • Paul Brucker, president of Railway Credit Union, Mandan, N.D., has been named a CULAC Ambassador for his achievements in 2020.

CULAC is the federal Legislative Action Council for the Credit Union National Association and is the national PAC that contributes to federal candidates with input from the Dakota Credit Union Association. The Ambassadors Program is a CULAC Trustee involvement program with the main goal to increase Trustees’ involvement in CULAC fundraising in their respective state.

As the North Dakota CULAC Trustee, Brucker met four categories of strict criteria to achieve this prestigious award. He is one of only 22 credit union professionals nationally to receive the honor for 2020.

DakCU plays a key role in growing membership and helping to provide service excellence to members from offices in Bismarck, N.D. and Sioux Falls, S.D.

Bell Bank hires senior VP of Credit Risk and Regulatory Affairs

MAPLE GROVE, Minn. • Bell Bank has hired Steve Flaten as senior vice president of Credit Risk and Regulatory Affairs. In this role, he serves as a liaison with all bank regulatory agencies and helps the company with credit risk identification, measurement, and monitoring policies and practices.

Flaten, originally from Hatton, N.D., recently retired after 33 years with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. He earned a degree in banking and finance from the University of North Dakota and is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin’s Graduate School of Banking.

Flaten is located in Bell Bank’s Maple Grove, Minn., office and works across the company’s divisions and regions.

Essentia Health Welcomes

several new health practitioners

FARGO, N.D. • Essentia Health has welcomed several new professionals to its team.

Dr. Aaron Phillipps, who specializes in infectious disease, is now seeing patients at the Essentia Health clinic at 32nd Avenue in Fargo.

Phillipps earned his medical degree at Lincoln Memorial University in Harrogate, Tenn., and completed a residency in internal medicine and a fellowship in infectious disease at Carillion Roanoke Memorial Hospital in Roanoke, Va. He is board certified in internal medicine by the American Board of Internal Medicine.

Dr. Thomas Ortmeier, who specializes in pathology, has relocat-

Aaron Phillipps Thomas Ortmeier Kimberly Naplin

ed to Essentia Health in Fargo from Essentia Health St. Joseph’s Medical Center in Brainerd, Minn.

Ortmeier earned his medical degree and completed his residency in Anatomical & Clinical Pathology at Sanford’s USD Medical Center, Sioux Falls, S.D. He is board certified in Anatomic Pathology & Clinical Pathology by the American Board of Pathology.

Nurse Practitioner Kimberly Naplin, who specializes in walk-in care, is now seeing patients at the Essentia Health West Fargo Clinic.

Naplin earned her master’s degree in nursing from the University of North Dakota in Grand Forks, N.D., and is certified as a family nurse practitioner by the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners.

TSP design technician earns additional certification

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. • Evan Caldwell, design technician at TSP Inc., recently earned additional professional certification. He is now a CDT-certified specialist.

Evan Caldwell

The designation means he has completed advanced training and testing in Construction Documents Technology. The comprehensive program encompasses topics such as writing, interpreting, enforcing, and managing construction documents.

Caldwell is part of the company’s Sioux Falls office, creating digital models and contributing to construction documents in its fully integrated, multidisciplinary architecture, engineering and planning firm.

He earned his associate of applied science degree in architectural engineering technology from Southeast Tech. He put that learning to use for a structural firm before joining TSP in September 2019.

The CDT curriculum, designed and administered by the Construction Specifications Institute, takes learners on a full tour through a project’s life cycle. In addition to covering the full project structure and the ins-and-outs of bidding, the CDT training comprised relationships among design firms, owners, and contractors, including various delivery methods.

Amanda Fritz

Obembe Joins Houston Engineering

FARGO, N.D. • Palmer Obembe joins Houston Engineering Inc.’sFargo team as an Engineer I. Palmer will support water resources projects by preparing engineering studies, reports, analyses, and design documents to develop water management solutions for the company’s clients across the region.

The Fargo native holds a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from North Dakota State University. Palmer’s past experience includes working for an engineering firm in Lagos, Nigeria, and interning at the Fargo Water Treatment Plant.

SEND

Award-winning art director joins Paulsen

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. • Paulsen recently welcomed Amanda Fritz to the agency as art director.

Prior to joining Paulsen, Fritz was with Epicosity and Lawrence & Schiller, winning Gold ADDY awards at each agency. Along with an outstanding design portfolio, she brings a user experience background to the Paulsen table.

Fritz graduated from the University of South Dakota with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree and a minor in Contemporary Media and Journalism. She lives in Sioux Falls with her husband and young daughter.