Chancellor Community Letter September 2025

Happy Homecoming Week! We're so happy to again be hosting a number of fun and impactful events for our students, alumni, community, and friends. Make sure to check out what's happening each day at crk.umn.edu/homecoming. We have home athletic games, student activities, annual alumni awards, socials, a banner raising for our championship hockey teams, and a Homecoming Block Party with food trucks, inflatable games, and activities for all our friends in the community.

Our on-campus and online students are fully into the swing of their class and campus life routine this Fall semester, and we're eager to share just how much we've grown following the Board of Regents meeting in early October. As you may have heard, we're trending in another positive direction as we have over the last several years. This signifies the hard work put in by our students, faculty, staff, alumni, and partners spreading the word about our treasured campus and the world-class education we provide.

All that hard work is also showing in our recent rankings. We're ranked as #1 Top Public School (Regional Colleges Midwest) according to the 2026 U.S. News & World Report. Niche has also provided us with some #1 rankings in Best Online College, Best College Dorms, and Best Colleges for Business in Minnesota, plus they named us in the top 3 for Best Online College in America. We're grateful to be recognized and proud to be one of the best in the state and country.

If you follow our social media (@umncrookston), you may have noticed our Fall classes continuing the valuable hands-on learning we talk so much about. Our Human Exercise Physiology class and Equine Exercise Physiology class recently collaborated on a lab examining both the horse and the rider in our state-of-the-art equine arena. They examined their breathing and heart rates, and blood lactate during three different phases of exercise. Our Ecotoxicology class recently went out to retrieve samples of zooplankton from rivers and lakes in the area. They plan to analyze for microplastics throughout the rest of the semester. Coming soon, we'll have a post on our Natural Resources students' annual volunteer trip to Itasca State Park where they spent the day repairing and moving wire cages that prevent deer from browsing young pines, pruning and controlling blister rust in white pines, and releasing pine saplings from competition with adjacent woody vegetation.

Do you know someone who might be interested in exploring our campus and these fun classes and volunteer opportunities? Make sure to connect with our Admissions team or visit our website for more information - umcrookston.edu

Go Golden Eagles!

Chancellor Mary Holz-Clause

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