Top 10 | August 2025 | Grand Forks EDC

1. Agristo Signs Development Agreement, Hosts Community Welcome

Since announcing plans in January to build a $450 million potato processing facility in Grand Forks, Belgium-based Agristo has continued to make major progress toward bringing one of the largest private sector investments in northeast North Dakota history to life. The project is expected to create 300–350 new permanent jobs and begin initial site work in 2025.

To celebrate and connect with their new community, Agristo hosted “A Taste of Belgium” on August 25th at Town Square in downtown Grand Forks. The free community event featured Belgian food and music, and was a chance for residents to learn more about the company and its future in the region. The event was attended by an estimated 1,500 people, which demonstrates the community’s excitement about Agristo and this project. On the same day, Agristo leaders formally signed the development agreement with the City of Grand Forks—another major step toward 2026 construction. Agristo is in negotiations to purchase land on the north side of Grand Forks and is expecting to close on the land any day.

2. Career Impact Academy Cuts Ribbon, Welcomes Students

Our community celebrated a vision years in the making — the official ribbon cutting ceremony for the Grand Forks Career Impact Academy took place on Wednesday, August 13th. The new $30.5 million career and technical education facility welcomed students for their first day of classes on Thursday, August 28th. The facility was supported by nearly 100 industry partners to provide training in high-paying, high-demand careers to students and adults seeking knowledge and skills to start or advance their professional careers. Thank you to everyone who made this vision a reality!

3. UND Defies Trends, Starts Semester with Largest Enrollment to Date

Despite the national decrease in higher education enrollment, the University of North Dakota welcomed the largest class in history onto campus on Saturday, August 23rd. UND’s first-day total enrollment headcount was 15,440, with 2,534 of those students being freshmen, up 4.86% and 14% respectively, from 2024. “It’s always a wonderful thing to bring even a single student to the university, and welcoming the largest incoming class in UND’s history is that much more gratifying,” said President Andrew Armacost. Congratulations to UND!

4. InternGF Summer Cohort Experience Participants Graduate

On August 7th, the 2025 InternGF Summer Internship Cohort Experience closed out the program and summer with a celebration at the Opal in Downtown Grand Forks. Attendees heard from speakers Becca Cruger, Amanda Voigt, and student speakers Nneka Nwaokeafor, Alexandra Johnson, Femi Oni, Kaleb Wintermute, Parker Martinson, and Kaitlyn Hepper. They shared about their experiences in the cohort as well as what they would take away from the program now that it is over.

The students were surveyed at the beginning of the cohort and again at the end with the same questions. The survey results revealed that the program:

Increased students’ feeling that there is a lot to do in Grand Forks by 14 percentage points (53% pre-program vs. 67% post-program)
Increased students’ perception that they can make an impact in Grand Forks by 24 percentage points (58% pre-program vs. 82% post-program)
Increased students’ confidence in accessing leadership and resources in Grand Forks by 19 percentage points (63% pre-program vs. 82% post-program)

The overarching goal of the program is to increase retention of UND students in Grand Forks. To continue tracking program effectiveness, students will be tracked for five years post-program to determine overall retention rates.

Photos from the entire summer and graduation program are available on the GF is Cooler Flickr.

5. Lund Joins Community Leaders Meeting with United Airlines for Expanded Air Service

On Thursday, August 7th, EDC President & CEO Keith Lund joined the City of Grand Forks Mayor Brandon Bochenski and other community leaders in meetings with SkyWest and United Airlines. The purpose of the meetings was to present a Grand Forks business case for enhanced air service at GFK, specifically daily non-stop air service to Denver, which would provide connections to destinations in the western United States. The group met with senior network planners who will be responsible for forecasting the success of these routes. The group believed the information presented was compelling.

The EDC has committed to being a strong partner in air service development moving forward and is attending air service development conferences with GFK and air service consultants that are assisting us in achieving our goals. The group will continue to meet and follow up with the airlines to promote GFK as an expansion location and hopes to have positive news by the end of the year.

6. UND Awarded Nearly $2 Million for NSF Research Traineeship

The University of North Dakota has received $1,999,846 from the National Science Foundation to support its NSF Research Traineeship program. The initiative helps graduate students in research-based master’s and doctoral programs build the skills needed to pursue STEM careers across multiple industries.

The funding will support projects focused on assessing the status of land and water resources, exploring sustainable uses, and developing strategies to protect them. The program also emphasizes collaboration with stakeholders, ensuring research connects directly to real-world challenges. This investment highlights UND’s growing role in advancing resource sustainability and workforce development in STEM fields.

7. UND Aerospace Foundation Receives Approval to Pave Gorman Field Runway

The UND Aerospace Foundation received approval from Grand Forks County to move forward with plans to pave the existing grass runway at Gorman Field, a UND-owned UAS testing and training site in Emerado. Foundation leaders will now begin meeting with contractors and seeking competitive bids. While the project is unlikely to begin in 2025, foundation leaders are optimistic that work could start next year. A paved surface will improve safety for current aircraft and expand the types of aircraft able to utilize the runway in the future. Commissioners voted on August 5th to approve the special use permit, noting the project’s importance to the region’s growing UAS ecosystem.

8. EDC/GF is Cooler Launches New UAS Jobs Board, Highlighting Career Opportunities

The Grand Forks Region EDC, through its talent attraction initiative Greater Grand Forks: Way Cooler Than You Think!, has launched a new UAS workforce page to showcase available career opportunities in the region: grandforksiscooler.com/uas-jobs. The page uses a job-scraping tool that automatically pulls open positions from EDC client and member companies, saving staff significant time each week while making it easier for professionals to connect with employers. Member companies are featured on the landing page, all UAS firms are included in the listings, and the site links to ND Job Service resources for trailing spouses. Similar workforce pages are also being developed for other key industries.

To help employers attract talent, the EDC is running a digital ad campaign from mid-August through mid-October, timed with anticipated hiring increases at major UAS companies. The ads, primarily on LinkedIn, will target candidates with skills aligned to open roles. The jobs board will track applicant engagement, include a resume upload feature, and will be promoted at the UAS Summit through attendee bag inserts, a magazine ad, and a feature article. Together, these efforts position the region as a hub for UAS innovation and workforce opportunity.

9. Lund Joins GF Leaders Meeting with Governor Armstrong

In a continuing effort to maintain and strengthen relationships with the Governor’s office, EDC President & CEO Keith Lund joined Chamber President Barry Wilfahrt, City Administrator Todd Feland, UND President Andrew Armacost, and State Senator Scott Meyer in a meeting with Governor Kelly Armstrong in Grand Forks on August 13th. Meeting attendees shared many updates, including Agristo’s establishment, UND’s record enrollment, Grand Forks Air Force Base, GrandSKY’s continued expansion, and overall business and community growth. The Governor shared his appreciation for Grand Forks’ support for his legislative priorities this past session, including property tax relief and natural gas expansion. The group plans to continue working together to advance priorities that maintain the region’s and state’s tremendous momentum.

10. EDC, Region 4 Host Healthcare Listening Session

The EDC and Red River Regional Council brought together more than 20 healthcare organizations on Thursday, August 12th, to discuss recruitment and retention challenges in the region. The group identified opportunities such as expanding youth mentorship programs, training dental hygienists locally, enhancing marketing to improve healthcare’s image post-COVID, and supporting workforce pipelines through immigration and shared regional marketing. Other key takeaways included strategies to retain CNAs and improve access to state and federal workforce training dollars. The discussion was hosted at Unity Medical Center in Grafton, marking an important step in strengthening the region’s healthcare workforce ecosystem. For more information, reach out to the Director of Workforce Development, Becca Cruger.

11. Maliskey Teaches IEDC Marketing Course

EDC staff talents were recognized by the international organization, the International Economic Development Council, IEDC. Marketing & Communications Manager Mark Maliskey taught IEDC’s Economic Development Marketing & Attraction Course on August 7th and 8th. Maliskey presented to a group of over 100 students from around the continent about International Trade and Exporting, and facilitated a group activity where breakout groups created economic development marketing plans for a selected community. While teaching the course, Maliskey shared positive examples of economic development and marketing from the Grand Forks region.

InternGF spring 2026 applications are open! InternGF is a program that connects businesses with talented UND students to provide internships. Receive up to $3,500 to offset the cost of an intern’s wages. The priority deadline is September 1st.