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In fact, Neset had a job lined up in that industry, before an oil company visited Brown to recruit employees. “It sounded exciting, so I changed my career path.”

Even though she grew up on the East Coast, Neset stayed in North Dakota, settling in Tioga, where she started Neset Consulting Service Inc. in 1980 with her husband Roy. “I stayed here because of a combination of my passion for the industry, coming to the state during the oil boom, my love of being on the rigs and I fell in love with Roy Neset.” Neset Consulting provides well site geologic/geo-steering and engineering services to the oil industry.

When the oil boom turned into a bust, Neset says it was “a near disaster” for the company, but the the family had Neset Farm and she taught science at Tioga High School. “The mid80s was definitely the hardest period of time for us,” Neset

Neset Consulting’s operations. “When it got really busy, I knew where I needed to be. I’m not out on the rigs as much as I would like to be, but I do still get out there on a regular basis.”

During the most recent oil boom and slowdown, Neset says her greatest challenge has been scheduling. “When oil was booming so much and everyone is tired and needs a break, but you can’t give everyone those breaks, it’s a challenge. But on the flip side, now, during the slowdown, everyone needs hours but you have to be conservative, so scheduling is still a challenge.”

In the middle of it all, Neset was appointed to the North Dakota University System’s Board of Higher Education, where she has served since 2012 and is the current chair. “I absolutely love serving on the Board of Higher Ed,” Neset says. “In all my work in the oil field, with the state Board of Higher Ed and on the North Dakota Petroleum Council, my passion has always been education.”

NDUS Chancellor Mark Hagerott says Neset is an important member of the SBHE. “It has been wonderful to work with Kathleen and the state Board of Higher Education as we move to accomplish the many goals we have set for higher education. Her leadership style is visionary and thoughtful. She is well-informed and her expertise and experience lend to her very capable leadership abilities. She is enthusiastic about students and in every decision she makes, she thinks about the student and their success first.” says. She says there were times when she was only managing one well for a 12-month period. In 1997, she had zero rigs for the first time, and then one rig started drilling again. “Neset Consulting always had work going on, but we relied on the farm to get us through.”

Some drilling resumed in the late ’90s and early 2000s. Then, in 2004, the number of rigs started growing. From 2004 to 2007, “it really started growing and we really started ramping things up,” Neset says. And then, the boom hit again. “It’s been fabulous, exciting and challenging. We’ve been catching our breath and regrouping for the last year. Even though it’s been a slowdown, it’s been intense as we strive to do better for the companies we manage rigs for.”

Neset “lived on the rigs until 2006,” she says. At that point, she knew she needed to be in the office to manage

Neset’s passion for education crosses over into her work at Neset Consulting. When she started in the oil industry in the 1970s, there were very few women. Today, it is still a male-dominated industry, but Neset has dedicated herself to sharing her passion with young women. “Being able to provide quality technical science jobs to young people through Neset Consulting is important to me, especially in such a rural part of the state. I’m really proud I can share this industry with science-minded women in this remote area.”

Neset calls being one of the few women in the oil industry “a challenge, but a good challenge. The way I was accepted in the ’70s was as a professional, and that hasn’t changed. I always made sure I showed that I was professional, but the industry always felt like a natural fit for me because I grew up with eight brothers.”

As for Neset’s future, she has plans for a new geosteering center and more services at Neset Consulting when the industry picks back up, which she fully expects to happen. PB

Kayla Prasek Staff Writer, Prairie Business 701.780.1187

kprasek@prairiebizmag.com