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UGPTI to Host Annual Awards BanquetPosted: Sep 24, 2008 The Upper Great Plains Transportation Institute at NDSU will host an annual awards banquet Thursday, Oct. 9, at the Fargo Holiday Inn. Tickets for the banquet are $30 and must be ordered by Sept. 30 by calling (701)231-7767. The event opens with a social at 5:15 p.m. and dinner at 6:45 p.m. The banquet will recognize Mark Andrews, Garry Higdem and Bob Tosterud. Andrews will receive the John Agrey Award. During his service in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1963 to 1981 and in the U.S. Senate from1981 to 1987, Andrews' efforts secured funding for some of North Dakota's most pressing transportation needs. He supported funding of the Aerospace Science School at the University of North Dakota and was instrumental in securing $15 million for a Missouri River bridge in Bismarck. In his book, Richard Fenno, Jr., wrote "North Dakota's transportation problems were, for Andrews, a barometer for his state's well being." The Agrey Award, named after John M. Agrey, a transportation pioneer and advocate for transportation in North Dakota, is the Upper Great Plains Transportation Institute's highest honor. Higdem will receive the institute's Lifetime Achievement Award. Higdem is president and chief group executive of CH2M Hill Companies Ltd., in Englewood, Colo. The Lifetime Achievement Award is presented to an individual who has had a distinguished career in a transportation-related field. Higdem has been an active member of the board of National Commission for the Certification of Crane Operators since 1999. He also is a fellow in the American Road and Transportation Builders Association Transportation Development Foundation Young Executive Development Program. He earned a bachelor's degree in civil engineering at NDSU in 1975, and is a registered professional engineer in Colorado, North Dakota and Texas. Tosterud will receive the institute's Chairman's Award. Tosterud served as the director of the Upper Great Plains Transportation Institute for six years during the 1970s. Under his leadership and direction, the institute diversified its activities and began to garner national attention. Tosterud is founder of the National Council of Entrepreneurship Chairs, director of the International Institute for Entrepreneurship Development, and former chair of the Nontraditional Academics Committee and the Distinguished Chairs Committee of the Entrepreneurship Division of the Academy of Management. Tosterud earned bachelor's and master's degrees in business economics from NDSU and a doctorate in agricultural economics from the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg. Tosterud is the Freeman Chair of Entrepreneurial Studies and professor of economics at the University of South Dakota. The Chairman's Award recognizes an individual for contributions to transportation research, education and outreach at NDSU, and contributions to the viability of the institute. The institute also will award four scholarships to students likely to become tomorrow's leaders in the industry. Paul E.R. Abrahamson Scholarships will be presented to Kevin Buxa, a senior in agricultural economics from Harvey, N.D., and Tyler Klain, a senior in agricultural economics from Ruso, N.D. The scholarship is named for Paul Abrahamson a champion for North Dakota agriculture who served as the first administrator of the North Dakota Wheat Commission. Transportation Engineering Scholarships will be presented to Andrew Bratlien, a senior in transportation engineering from Laporte, Minn., and Jacob Loegering, a junior in transportation engineering from Milaca, Minn. The Mountain-Plains Consortium through a grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation's University Transportation Centers program funds the $1,500 scholarships. Published in NDSU's staff newsletter |
