BISMARCK, N.D. – University of Mary President Monsignor James Shea announced Tuesday, April 14, 2015, a new capstone course in the Gary Tharaldson School of Business, to be taught by National Information Solutions Cooperative (NISC) President and CEO Vern Dosch and NISC employees.
The announcement was made at the conclusion of the noon Lunch and Learn series sponsored by the Bismarck-Mandan Chamber of Commerce and the University of Mary. Today’s program was entitled “Wired Differently: Leadership Through Service.” Wired Differently is the name of NISC’s newly released business book that highlights the company’s unique business model, servant leadership principles and shared values. Wired Differently will be the textbook for the new college course.
“We are truly excited to have Vern and his team work with our students and teach from a book that humbly describes how to spark better business results,” said Monsignor Shea. “This new capstone course is a perfect example of our university’s work to strengthen relationships between the business community, our students and our faculty.”
NISC is a nearly 50-year-old technology business built on the cooperative model. It started out providing software and IT services for three rural cooperatives a half-century ago and has grown to 14 million end users in 49 U.S. states or territories and in Canada. NISC has four locations and employs more than1,000 individuals in Mandan, N.D.; Lake Saint Louis, Mo.; Cedar Rapids, Iowa; and Shawano, Wisc.
Dosch is an alumnus of the University of Mary as are 61 NISC employees, or 17 percent of NISC’s Mandan campus employee population. He says he hopes NISC employees will help students see what servant leadership looks like in a business setting and he wants students to better understand how shared values should guide good decision making.
“There is no question that the seeds of NISC’s servant leadership culture likely germinated on a hill overlooking the Missouri River, on a campus that prides itself in producing servant leaders,” Dosch said. “This partnership with the University of Mary is the right thing for us to do. It also provides our employees with an incredible opportunity to give back to our community in a unique way.”
Course schedules for the summer and fall semesters of 2015 are already finalized, so the NISC capstone course will be offered in the spring semester of 2016 and will provide three credit hours on successful completion.
“This course will be offered to our juniors and seniors in the Gary Tharaldson School of Business,” said Dr. Karel Sovak, associate professor. “It will be a 400-level, capstone course which means it will be highly interactive, and students will get to discuss with business professionals when and how the principles, business models and strategies they’ve been studying really do or don’t apply. This is an exceptional learning opportunity.”
Dosch co-wrote Wired Differently with Wally Goulet and Tracy Finneman, also of Bismarck. Dosch, Goulet and Finneman will all be involved in teaching the University of Mary course.
The book is for sale at www.Amazon.com in hard cover, paperback and Kindle formats; in the University of Mary bookstore; and at www.BN.com for Nook. Net proceeds for Wired Differently go to the NISC Foundation, a 501(c)9 organization devoted to providing benevolent assistance and financial help for NISC employees and their families.
For more information about the University of Mary, visit www.umary.edu.
For more information about NISC, visit www.nisc.coop.
For more information about Wired Differently, visit www.WiredDifferently.coop.
About the University of Mary
As a Christian, Catholic, Benedictine institution, the University of Mary offers education for the whole of life through cutting-edge professional programs grounded in a solid liberal arts tradition.
Founded in 1959 by the Benedictine Sisters of Annunciation Monastery, Mary offers nearly 60 undergraduate, 14 master’s, and three doctoral programs in Education, Nursing Practice, and Physical Therapy. The University of Mary is also home to the new and innovative Year-Round Campus — where starting this fall students will be able to get their degree in 2.6 years and master’s in four years. With over 3,000 students, Mary has locations in North Dakota, Minnesota, Montana, Kansas, Arizona, Rome, Italy and Arequipa, Peru as well as vibrant online offerings.
About NISC
National Information Solutions Cooperative (NISC) is an information technology organization that develops, implements and supports software and hardware solutions for their Members/Customers. NISC delivers advanced solutions, services and support to more than 700 independent telephone companies, electric cooperatives and other public power entities. NISC is an industry leader providing information technology solutions including billing, accounting, operations, automated mailroom services, third-party integration as well as many other solutions. NISC and its subsidiaries employ more than 1,000 professionals between four locations in Mandan, N.D., Lake Saint Louis, Mo., Cedar Rapids, Iowa and Shawano, Wis. Additional information can be found at www.nisc.coop.