Dr. John Hoffman Officially Inaugurated as BSU & NTC President

The past three months have been an incredibly busy time for Dr. John Hoffman, the new president of Bemidji State University and Northwest Technical College, and on Friday he was officially recognized with an inauguration ceremony.

“It was more emotional than I was expecting, but I really appreciate how the planning team made the inauguration an inclusive event,” said Hoffman, “It was amazing to me that it was about the community of people.”

Chrissy Downwind, the executive director of BSU’s American Indian Resource Center, also gave Hoffman a traditional medallion made especially for him at the ceremony.

While the day was certainly a time of celebration, President Hoffman is already looking towards his and BSU’s futures, and is already setting goals he’d like to see accomplished.

“Job one needs to be enrollment,” explained Hoffman, “We’re going to start our work on growing our enrollment by increasing our persistence rates, and eliminating our equity gaps. As we see more students achieving their goals, that alone increases our enrollment, and helps us in terms of our budget.”

Following the inauguration was a reception where BSU staff, students, and alumni all had a chance to meet the new president.