North Dakota
North Dakota nursing programs achieve NCLEX success
BOTTINEAU, ND — Dakota College at Bottineau (DCB)
nursing students
have set a new benchmark by achieving a 100% pass rate on the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX) for practical nurse (PN) certificate graduates. This notable accomplishment, administrators say, underscores the rigorous preparation and dedication of both the students and faculty within the Dakota Nursing Program, a collaborative initiative among North Dakota University System colleges.
The Dakota Nursing Program, which includes Lake Region State College, Bismarck State College (BSC) and Williston State College, has featured a string of recent successes. BSC reported a 97.87% pass rate, while both DCB and WSC achieved perfect scores of 100%. These outstanding results are significantly higher than the national average pass rate of 89.65%, highlighting what the administrators say is the program’s success in preparing students for the demands of the healthcare industry.
This achievement comes at a crucial time for nursing education in North Dakota, and for prospective students in Dickinson and southwest North Dakota. Dickinson State University (DSU) has recently faced significant challenges, including the
resignation of its entire full-time nursing faculty
and
university president Stephen Easton
, amid concerns over workload and accreditation standards. In response to this crisis, DSU has entered into a collaborative agreement with
Mayville State University (MaSU)
to support and restore its nursing program.
Manuel Holguin JR / The Dickinson Press
The partnership between DSU and MaSU involves sharing nursing administration resources to maintain accreditation and ensure that DSU nursing students can continue their education without disruption.
MaSU nursing administrators
Carey Haugen and Collette Christoffers visited Dickinson to speak with students in the nursing program and expressed their commitment to helping DSU maintain its program standards and support student success.
DSU recently appointed
Ty Orton as the acting president
following the resignation of Easton. Orton, who has served as the executive director of the DSU Heritage Foundation since 2015, says that the university plans to conduct a full search for a permanent interim president starting on Aug. 7, with the goal of filling the position by late September.
Bismarck State College has also announced plans to expand its nursing program to accommodate students affected by the situation at DSU. According to BSC representatives at a recent State Board of Higher Education meeting, several DSU nursing students have reached out to the college, seeking to transfer and continue their studies.
Despite the challenges faced by DSU, the collaborative efforts between North Dakota institutions underscore a collective commitment to maintaining high standards in nursing education and addressing the critical demand for healthcare professionals in the state.
The Dakota Nursing Program’s exemplary NCLEX pass rates reflect the program’s dedication to rigorous preparation and student success, providing a promising outlook for the future of nursing education in North Dakota.
Dakota College at Bottineau’s nursing program offers an 11-month practical nursing Certificate and associate degree on the Bottineau campus and at remote locations in Minot and Valley City.
James B. Miller, Jr. is the Editor of The Dickinson Press in Dickinson, North Dakota. He strives to bring community-driven, professional and hyper-local focused news coverage of southwest North Dakota.
Kalamazoo — There’ll be a new champion in the NCHC.
Will Zellers scored the game-winning goal in the third period as No. 3 North Dakota downed No. 4 Western Michigan, 5-3, Friday night at Lawson Arena. The Broncos never led and trailed all of the third period, though a late push nearly tied the game with the net empty.
“Overall in the game, I thought it was a pretty tightly contested effort. I thought they just scored too easy,” Western Michigan coach Pat Ferschweiler said. “You know, for us, we had a couple breakdowns, and they’re so talented, so good, they took advantage when we broke down.”
The teams finish the regular season Saturday night. Western Michigan came into Friday’s game tied with Denver in standings points and five points behind North Dakota, needing that many to get a share of the Penrose Cup it won last season en route to an NCAA championship, too.
As far as regular season results go, the Broncos will play for second seed in the NCHC Tournament, needing to outpace Denver, which plays Arizona State this weekend.
Western Michigan (23-9-1, 15-7-1 NCHC) goaltender Hampton Slukynsky made 16 saves on 20 shots in the loss while North Dakota’s Jan Spunar stopped 22 of 25 shots. It was a battle of two of the NCHC’s top netminders, and each made key stops in a tight-checking, physical game.
Zellers put North Dakota (25-7-1, 17-5-1) up 4-2 4:42 into the third period off an assist from Detroit Red Wings draft choice Dylan James.
“He kind of made a play out of nothing there,” said North Dakota coach Dane Jackson, who is in his first season as head coach after being on the coaching staff since 2006. “And that was a really nice kind of moment where you go OK, we got a little got a little leeway here, and we can just kind of play a little bit more free.”
North Dakota took a 3-2 lead into the third period with goals from defenseman Sam Laurila alongside forwards Ollie Josephson and Josh Zakreski. Defenseman Zach Bookman and forward Liam Valente scored for Western Michigan.
One too many times in the second frame, Western Michigan’s blue line let a North Dakota forward in all alone to face Slukynsky, who stopped a couple of rushes in the opening minutes of the period.
With four minutes until the intermission, the Broncos finally got burned. On a feed from linemate Anthony Menghini, Lakreski cut to the glove side of a sprawling Slukynsky and beat him with the backhand. The goal gave North Dakota the 3-2 lead, after a seeing-eye shot from Bookman along the right wall had tied it up two apiece 8:10 into the period.
“I actually thought the second period was our best period,” Ferschweiler said. “… We started to take over. We got the goal, tied 2-2, and are kind of just humming along. Four minutes left, we just hand them a goal. Blown coverage. That was inexcusable, honestly, with some of our better players on the ice.”
The opening period played out as a back and forth track meet through the neutral zone as each side settled in. Laurila put North Dakota up 1-0 with his first career goal. After Slukynsky denied him on a trio of tries earlier in the shift, he fired a shot to beat the Western Michigan netminder 4:40 into the game.
It took just a minute and 34 seconds after Laurila’s opener for Western Michigan’s top line to get it right back. A blue-collar shift from captain Owen Michaels fed linemate Will Whitelaw along the left boards, and he sprung Valente for a breakaway goal that evened up the score.
“I thought we gave it to them too easy a couple times tonight,” Whitelaw said. “And I think when you’re playing a team like that, obviously they’re gonna put it in your net. But I think it’ll be a big lesson for our group going forward.”
For the better part of the first period, the Lawson Lunatics peppered North Dakota defenseman Jake Livanavage with jeers, but he got his own licks in with 7:48 left in the first period as he fed Josephson right at the net for the 2-1 goal. That score held through the first period.
With 2:02 remaining and Slukynsky pulled, forward Zaccharya Wisdom pulled Western Michigan within one. He nearly had the equalizer with 40 seconds on the clock on a backdoor try, but he mistimed the shot. Mac Swanson scored an empty-netter with 20.7 seconds on the clock to clinch the win, and with it the Penrose Cup, presented to North Dakota in the locker room and then paraded around the ice.
“It’s the hardest regular season championship to win, in my opinion,” North Dakota forward Ben Strinden said. “So it’s awesome. Obviously, it’s not our end goal, but we’re going to enjoy it for sure.”
cearegood@detroitnews.com
@ConnorEaregood
North Dakota
Morton County did not violate North Dakota’s open records law when the County Auditor, within a reasonable time, informed the requester that the requested records were not in the County’s possession.. – North Dakota Attorney General
27 Feb Morton County did not violate North Dakota’s open records law when the County Auditor, within a reasonable time, informed the requester that the requested records were not in the County’s possession..
in Opinions
February 27, 2026
Media Contact: Suzie Weigel, 701.328.2210
BISMARCK, ND – Karen Jordan requested an opinion from this office under N.D.C.C. § 44-04-21.1 asking whether Morton County violated N.D.C.C. § 44-04-18 by failing or refusing to provide records.
Conclusion: It is my opinion that Morton County’s response was in compliance with N.D.C.C. § 44-04-18.
Link to opinion 2026-O-06
###
BISMARCK, N.D. (KFYR) – The North Dakota Court System threw a reception for a retiring member of the state Supreme Court.
Justice Daniel Cothers is leaving after serving for more than 20 years.
He plans to step down on Feb. 28.
Before Crothers became a judge, he served as a lawyer and as president of the State Bar Association of North Dakota.
Mark Friese is set to replace Crothers starting March 9.
“He knows what is important and what to keep focused on. Justice Friese will be an exceptional replacement to me on the bench,” said Crothers.
Crothers plans to keep up on teaching gigs and spend time at his family’s farm as he steps into retirement.
Copyright 2026 KFYR. All rights reserved.
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