Valley City State University will hold its 116th Commencement ceremony on May 10.
During the 2007-2008 academic year, 172 undergraduate and 19 graduate students completed their programs of study.
The commencement address will be delivered by Doug Burgum, former chairman and CEO of Great Plains Software and former senior vice president for Microsoft Corporation.
Burgum joined Great Plains in 1983 when the company was a small start-up. He led its rapid growth through an initial public offering in 1997 and its acquisition by Microsoft in 2001. From September 1980 to March 1983, he worked as a consultant at McKinsey & Co. in its Chicago office. He currently serves on the board of directors for SuccessFactors and is a partner with Arthur Ventures. He is a principal in the Kilbourne Group, a development company investing in the revitalization of downtown Fargo. Burgum established the Doug Burgum Family Fund which focuses its charitable giving on youth and education.  He holds an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business and serves on the school’s advisory council, and he holds a Bachelor of University Studies degree from North Dakota State University. He lives on the Red River near Fargo with his three children.
Commencement will be held at 10 a.m. on May 10 in historic Vangstad Auditorium.

For full story, see Tuesday's edition of the Valley City Times-Record.