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Tuesday, September 27, 2011

Message from Chancellor Black - September 27

Dear Campus Community,

Freedom of expression, fostering diverse views and opinions, and
promoting civil debate form the foundation of our democracy, and are
part of the treasured tradition of this country's public universities
and of the University of Minnesota Duluth.


I want to provide information to you about a video that was produced
by Youth for Western Civilization (YWC) and posted recently on its
website. The video provides edited excerpts of a dialogue that took
place on September 16, 2011, between a YWC representative, a UMD
student, and a UMD staff member. Because the entirety of the video
recorded that day has not been shared with us, it would be imprudent
to jump to conclusions about the full exchange between the parties
portrayed in the edited video that has been made public.

Some additional facts:

* YWC is not an affiliated student organization at UMD, but like other
organizations, it is free to distribute literature on campus as long
as it complies with campus guidelines. The YWC representative is not a
UMD student.

*The YWC representative was distributing copies of the U.S.
Constitution and the organization's promotional materials. In
recognition of Constitution Week, UMD's Office of Civic Engagement
sponsored several activities including distributing pocket-sized U.S.
Constitutions.


*No complaints about threats or violence were made to the UMD Police
Department at the time of the incident. One complaint was made on
September 27, 2011, after the videotape was posted on the internet.

At UMD, we strongly support the staff of the Office of Cultural
Diversity and the Multicultural Center. We place a priority on
creating a positive and inclusive campus climate. Advancing equity,
diversity, and social justice is a core value of our university and is
a goal of the UMD Strategic Plan.

Sincerely,

Lendley C. Black, Chancellor

Monday, September 12, 2011

Director of External Affairs Announced

September 12, 2011

To: UMD Campus Community

From: Chancellor Lendley C. Black

Subject: Director of External Affairs

I am pleased to announce that Sue Banovetz has been named the Director of External Affairs, effective September 26, 2011. Sue currently operates Banovetz Public Relations and, since 1997, has been the mayor of the City of Vadnais Heights, a suburb of St. Paul. Her previous experience includes serving as the Director of Media and Public Relations for the College of Liberal Arts on the University of Minnesota Twin Cities campus. Other positions she has held include Vice President of Government Relations for R3 Verdant Technologies in Minneapolis; Director of Alumni Relations at William Mitchell College of Law; Director of Public Relations and Marketing for the Saint Paul Area Red Cross; Director of Public Relations and Marketing for Century College in White Bear Lake; Communications Manager for the Minnesota Higher Education Coordinating Board; and member/chair of the Duluth School Board.

A St. Paul native, she lived in Duluth for 11 years and has family ties to Silver Bay and the Iron Range. She attended UMD for two years and graduated from the University of Minnesota Twin Cities campus with a bachelor's degree in political science, journalism and speech communication.

As Director of External Affairs, Sue will provide leadership and administrative oversight to a newly created unit consisting of media and public relations, community relations, government relations, marking and communication, publications and photography. This cabinet-level administrative position will be responsible for providing leadership, counsel and strategic direction to me as well as to the campus community.

I would like to thank the members of the Search Committee (Tricia Bunten, Development Office; Mary Cameron, Human Resources; Mark Emmel, Lion Hotel Group; Betty Greene, Finance and Operations; Lucy Kragness, Chancellor's Office, Chair; Jim Riehl, Swenson College of Science and Engineering; Mimmu Salmela, KUMD; and Dan Tomhave, Admissions) for sharing their time and their expertise working on this important search. Sue received strong support from the committee members, as well as from the broader UMD community. Please join me in welcoming Sue to campus.