Top 10 | September 2024 | Grand Forks EDC

1. UND Defies National Trends, Sees 3rd Highest Enrollment

The University of North Dakota has bucked national trends of shrinking enrollment! UND has reported a fall 2024 enrollment of 15,019 students, ranking third for the highest-enrolled semesters of all time. The last enrollment peaks were in the fall of 2012 and 2013. Freshman enrollment increased by 25%, and the overall enrollment grew by 6%. Congratulations to UND!

2. EDC Receives 2 International Awards for Economic Development

The EDC has won two International Awards for Economic Development!

The 2024 Excellence in Economic Development Awards were presented to the EDC for silver for the Greater Grand Forks: Way Cooler Than You Think! (Cooler) rural video series in the multimedia promotion category, and bronze for the InternGF internship funding program in the talent development and retention category that impacted between 25,000 and 200,000 residents.

Both awards were presented and honored at various events at the IEDC 2024 Annual Conference in Denver, CO, from September 15th to 18th. Director of Workforce Development Becca Cruger accepted the awards.

3. GrandSky & GFAFB Receive $11.6 Million for New Fire Station

On Friday, September 20th, Senator John Hoeven announced that an $11.5 million federal grant was awarded to fund a new fire station serving Grand Forks Air Force Base and GrandSky! With the expanding missions at both locations, having the ability to address fires is critical.

4. 60 HR Professionals Learn About Workforce Strategies at HRVIP Day

The UND Center For Innovation (CFI) hosted a 40-year celebration on Tuesday, September 24th. The event included comments from Dr. Amy Whitney, Phil Gisi, Shawn Riley, several students who were positively impacted by the services of the CFI, and DeAnn Carlson Zink. Congratulations to the CFI and team for an amazing milestone!

5. Red River Potatoes & BeMobile PACE & FlexPACE Approval

Congratulations to two EDC Clients, Red River Potatoes and BeMobile who received approval from the Jobs Development Authority for their loan requests!

BeMobile operates 68 retail cellular phone and accessory stores in seven different states. They plan to expand to 100 total stores, which requires additional staff and space at the company’s corporate headquarters which are located in Grand Forks. BeMobile was approved for a FlexPACE loan through the Growth Fund for the expansion.

Red River Potatoes is a value-added agriculture company that utilizes potatoes to produce pet food ingredients. They are expanding capacity and increasing efficiency through equipment purchases. Red River Potatoes was approved for loans through the Growth Fund for the PACE program and the EDA Revolving Loan Fund.

6. City Receives Almost $3.5 Million for Greenway Redevelopment

The City of Grand Forks announced on September 26th that it received a $3,490,000 grant from the National Parks Service to redevelop Greenway recreational features in the downtown area! The redevelopment is part of a master planning process that started in the fall of 2023. The concepts and Master Plan were unveiled in winter 2024. The plan was then utilized to apply for the grant. While not all parts of the redevelopment are funded, the steering committee is seeking feedback on which amenities should be prioritized with the funding.

7. UND School of Medicine Receives $11 Million Grant

The UND School of Medicine and Health Sciences received an $11 million grant to study colorectal cancer, Alzheimer’s, and Parkinson’s. The grant was awarded by the National Institutes of Health through the US Department of Health and Human Services as part of the Translational Science Engaging North Dakota project, TRANSCEND. The $11 million is one of the largest grants received by the School of Medicine and Health Sciences.

8. Project ULTRA Receives $3.5 Million from Pentagon

Project ULTRA has received an additional $3.5 million in funding from the Pentagon! The funding will support the already existing program and integrate an aircraft of the Pentagon’s choosing to complete ten round-trip flights from Grand Forks to Cavalier. The demonstration flights are set for June or July of 2025.

ULTRA will demonstrate how UAS can support everyday activities at Grand Forks Air Force Base (GFAFB) and other military installations. Activities include delivering supplies, inspecting base infrastructure, and developing practical ways of securing the base from UAS threats. Much of the project is tied to the strengths and capabilities of the Northern Plains UAS Test Site and its ability to provide critical support for flight route modeling, UAS selection, and FAA coordination.

9. Fall 2024 InternGF Awards Announced

InternGFThe last InternGF applications for the Fall 2024 semester were reviewed and approved, bringing the total number of dollars awarded to $20,407.60 These dollars will fund 9 internships across 8 businesses.

Awardees include:

Alerus Center – Administrative Events Intern

Bifrost Manufacturing – Design Engineer Intern

Burian & Associates – CAD Technician Intern

Delta Advisory Group – Intern

Kirkwall – Autonomous Systems Security Intern

MindMend Biotech, LLC – Engineering Intern

SafetySpect Inc. – Machine Learning Engineer Intern

SafetySpect Inc. – Data Engineer Intern

True North Equipment – Engineering Intern

Applications for the Fall 2024 semester closed on August 1 and applications for the Spring 2025 semester will close on October 31.

10. EDC Tours Career Impact Academy

Thanks to the Grand Forks Public Schools for inviting the EDC board and staff to participate in a construction tour of the Career Impact Academy. The building is progressing nicely and is on track for substantial completion in May 2025. With the structure and framing progress, you can see the shape and size of learning spaces, hallways, and more!

Thank you to all the industry partners who helped to make this space possible.

11. EDC Staff Represent GF Region at State, Regional, & International Conferences

Hatcher Sells GF to UAS Companies at Commercial UAV Expo

EDC Business Development Manager Kevin Hatcher attended the annual Commercial UAV Expo in Las Vegas, Nevada, from September 3rd to 5th. The 2024 expo emphasized utilizing drone technologies in real-world use cases in energy and utilities, city infrastructure, construction, and surveying. Additionally, attendees experienced outdoor live demonstrations and heard recent updates regarding FAA regulations. The event had 225 exhibitors and 3,700 attendees. Hatcher developed several leads with companies that wanted to learn more about the UAS opportunities in Grand Forks.

Lund & Hatcher Connect with Legislators at EDND in Bismarck

On September 11th and 12th, EDC President & CEO Keith Lund and Business Development Manager Kevin Hatcher attended the 2024 EDND Fall Conference in Bismarck. During the conference, attendees had the opportunity to tour the North Dakota State Capital building and meet with legislators. They discussed the importance of building relationships and speaking under testimony during legislative sessions. The conference also included several educational sessions including effective TIF business cases and how to utilize New Market Tax Credits in designated zones of North Dakota through Dakota Business Lending.

Cruger Attends IEDC Conference, Connects with Site Selectors

EDC Director of Workforce Development Becca Cruger attended the International Economic Development Council fall conference in Denver, Colorado from September 15th to 18th. Cruger attended educational sessions about the latest trends and standards in economic development, received the IEDC Excellence in Economic Development Awards, and connected with several site selectors to share more about the Grand Forks region.

https://denver.iedconline.org/

Hatcher Showcases GF BioMed Assets at ND Bioscience Summit

From September 17th to 18th, EDC Business Development Manager Kevin Hatcher connected with several national and international biomedical companies at the 2024 Bioscience Summit hosted by the Bioscience Association of North Dakota and the Greater Fargo Moorhead EDC. The summit highlighted the growth of technology and innovation in the North Dakota biotech industry and the importance of collaboration and relationships between UND and NDSU. Hatcher will continue to connect with the companies that are considering expansion and relocation opportunities in North Dakota.

https://denver.iedconline.org/

West Attends Project Management monday.com Conference

EDC Operations Manager Bridget West attended the monday.com Elevate 2024 conference in New York from September 24th to 25th. EDC staff use monday.com to store client and partner contact information and manage projects and forms. This conference provided monday.com users the opportunity to network with monday.com developers and staff, hear from professionals who utilize the platform to maximize efficiency in their organizations and learn about new platform features. West will utilize what was learned at the conference to continue improving the efficiency of EDC staff’s day-to-day operations and streamline processes.

Volunteers Needed for NVCE on 10/23

We have a large need for volunteers for this year’s Northern Valley Career Expo on Wednesday, October 23rd! Various roles are available: greeters, set-up/tear-down crew, ushers, and student supervisors.

Spring ‘25 InternGF Applications Due 10/31

Employers: do you want to offset the cost of a spring 2024 internship by $3,500? Apply for InternGF internship funding program for your new and innovative internship by the deadline of October 31st!