MSUM Construction Management Newsletter Spring 2018

A newsletter for students and alumni of Minnesota State University Moorhead.

Construction MANAGEMENT Spring 2018

In this issue: 2 Sigma Lambda Chi

make blankets for Children’s Hospital 2 Where are they now?

Guy Fox 3 Students Attend

Pursuit Competition hosted by Ryan Companies 3 MSUM CM Alumni

Gathering in Minneapolis 4 CM Society: A word

from our President, Levi Geffre 4 Join us on LinkedIn

Kiewit Women’s Construction Leadership Seminar

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SUM Construction Management Student, Kalley Bardson, got the opportunity to participate in the Kiewit Women’s Construction Leadership Seminar. The Women’s Construction Leadership Seminar took place at the end of January in Denver, Colorado. The seminar’s main focus was on developing leadership skills among females.

Kalley, learned a lot of leadership skills that will hopefully help her out in the Construction Industry. Students got to interact and ask questions to female Kiewit employees about their experience while giving good advice to the female college students.

Students Attend ASC Competition

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SUM Construction Management students competed in the Region IV Associated Schools of Construction (ASC) Competition on October 25th- 29th in Nebraska City, NE. MSUM brought two teams to this year’s competition. Returning students who competed in the competition for the second time placed 4th in the Commercial Division, missing 3rd by just a couple points! MSUM Design-Build Team competed for the first time, and gained lots of knowledge for next year’s competition. Two of our professors, Rachel Axness and Scott Seltveit coached the teams to prepare the students for the competition.

Region IV ASC Division consists of universities form MN, ND, SD, IA, NE, KS, and MO. The project scope for the Commercial Division was a new 25,000 GSF, one story Data Center. The Data Center had to meet or exceed FEMA P-361, F5 Tornado resistance. The Commercial Division project was delivered by JE Dunn Construction.

The project scope for the Design Build Division was a new consolidated Hospital Support Service Building. The project consisted of 164,000 GSF of office space, 7,500 GSF of retail space, and able to withhold 225 parking spaces. The new building and site had to achieve a LEED Certified rating.

Construction MANAGEMENT

Sigma Lambda Chi make blankets for Children’s Hospital

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or Valentine’s Day, MSUM Construction Management Honors Society, Sigma Lambda Chi, made fleece tie blankets and passed them out for the young children at the new Sanford Hospital Children’s Wing in West Fargo. Sigma Lambda Chi students were able to tour the finished Children’s Hospital Wing. Everyone had a fun time getting together and making blankets for the children!

Where are they now?

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uy Fox, a 2007 graduate, is the owner of Fox Underground, Inc., a site utility company based in Fargo. Fox Underground started in 2011, employs 19 people, and has seen steady growth with the rapid expansion of West and South Fargo. Fox Underground specializes in public street projects, private developments, office buildings, and apartments.

Guy has also expanded his other businesses, which include oilfield services, real estate investment, and general contracting. Guy is married with 3 kids, lives in West Fargo, and is active in the community.

Guy states, “The MSUM Construction Management is a gem of a program.

The unity and camaraderie created a wonderful learning environment that helped me build a foundation for my business career. I created lifelong connections. The partnering atmosphere created by the professors will always be special to me and I am indebted to this program.”

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Construction MANAGEMENT

SPRING 2018

Minnesota State University Moorhead

> MSUM CM Students pose with trophy after winning Pursuit Competition.

Students Win Pursuit Competition hosted by Ryan Companies

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his year MSUM had a group of 6 senior students who competed in the The Pursuit competition in Minneapolis, MN. The Pursuit challenges students to create and present a complete proposal to win the contract for a real project and is sponsored by Ryan Companies. Students were required to submit qualifications, cost, schedule and project work plans for the project and present to a jury of professionals, who then judged and awarded the Pursuit Prize. The top teams from University of Minnesota, Dunwoody, University of Wisconsin – Stout, MSU Mankato, SDSU, NDSU, and MSU Moorhead competed against one another. MSU Moorhead’s team won the overall competition!

Student, Jake Busse, states: “The pursuit project has been challenging but rewarding. We created a company, Viking Construction, where we made company documents such as organizational structures, finances, safety policies and many more. We also put together an estimate and a schedule for the Millwright Building. Early on we took a site visit there to help us put this proposal together and it turned out to be very informative. Overall, it has been both fun and challenging. We are excited to present our company in Minneapolis to a group of industry professionals and compete against many other great construction management schools.”

Way to go seniors!

SPRING 2018

Construction MANAGEMENT

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Construction MANAGEMENT

CM Society: A word from our President, Levi Geffre

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he start of the 2017-2018 school year began with seeing many new faces joining the Construction Management Society here at MSUM. From the very first meeting, new members got a taste of what the CM Society has to offer. The year began with our Society involving ourselves in community events. In addition to our biannual ditch cleaning, we also volunteered at the Wanzek Annual Company Picnic. This allows our members to give back to the community while also giving them the opportunity to network within the construction industry. With the help of the Construction Management faculty, we were also able to arrange multiple construction company presentations on campus. Industry professionals were given the opportunity to speak to our fellow students and recruit them for upcoming internships and careers.

Join us on

The MSUM Industry Advisory Board is now using the MSUM

As the winter snow began to melt and the smell of spring filled the air, the Construction Management Society volunteered at the 57th annual Red River Valley Home & Garden Show with volunteers. Working directly with the Home Builders Association, we had members judging Lego Competitions, helping companies with setup and tear down, and assisting with the Garden Show’s Beer Walk.

Construction Management LinkedIn

As the year flew by, it brought the joy of meeting new members, and the sorrow of seeing many go. But as the faces change over the years, the mission of the Construction Management Society does not. From meeting new students and building strong relationships, to making connections with industry professionals and giving back to the community. This year was graced with ample opportunity for our members to further themselves in the Construction Industry.

any number of things, from job

page to communicate with alumni.

The goal for the LinkedIn page is to allow all alumni the opportunity to connect with each other regarding placement, questions relating to issues with projects, and even upcoming networking and happy hour events as well. We encourage all MSUM CM Alumni to join the page. You can find it by simply

Know someone who may be interested in a career in CM? Spread the word of MSUM’s Construction Management program!

Learn more at: www.mnstate.edu/cm Contact us at: rachel.axness@mnstate.edu or 218.477.2828 facebook.com/msumcm

@MSUMCM

searching “MSUM Construction Management” on LinkedIn, or by going to https://www.linkedin.com/ groups/4041560, and then clicking the box that says “Ask to Join”.

linkedin.com/groups/4041560

mnstate.edu/construction-management Minnesota State University Moorhead is an equal opportunity educator and employer. This information will be made available in alternate format, or if a disability-related accommodation is required, please contact Accessibility Resources at 218.477.4318 (voice) or 1.800.627.3529 (MRS/TYY).