Former NDSU president Jim Ozbun will be among the honorees at the Upper Great Plains Transportation Institute’s annual awards banquet Oct. 6. The banquet honors individuals who have made significant contributions to the transportation industry in the region.
Additional honorees include Neal Fisher, administrator of the North Dakota Wheat Commission, and Twin Cities agribusiness leader John Case. Five scholarships also will be presented to undergraduate students at the event.
Fisher will receive the Agrey Award, the highest award given by the Upper Great Plains Transportation Institute.
Fisher has served as administrator since 1998. He previously served as deputy administrator and as a marketing specialist with the Wheat Commission. Fisher has served as chair of the institute’s advisory council since 2006 providing guidance and leadership for programs and initiatives.
The award is named for John M. Agrey, a pioneer, innovator and advocate for transportation who worked for more than 30 years with the North Dakota Public Service Commission.
Case, a long-time leader in agricultural marketing, finance and management, will receive the lifetime achievement award. Case is a consultant on projects related to finance, grain procurement, agricultural markets and railroad investments. He was previously CEO and president of the Kellogg Commission Co. and Kellogg Commodities in Minneapolis. He served in a similar capacity with the Atwood Kellogg and Atwood Commodities division of ConAgra Inc. He is a 45-year member of the Minneapolis Grain Exchange.
The Lifetime Achievement Award recognizes an individual who has had a distinguished career in a transportation-related field.
Ozbun will receive the Chairman’s Award, which recognizes an individual for contributions to transportation research, education and outreach at NDSU and contributions to the viability of the Upper Great Plains Transportation Institute.
Ozbun served as NDSU president from 1988 to 1995 and supported the Upper Great Plains Transportation Institute as it diversified from its agricultural roots to a broader focus on freight and personal mobility.
Ozbun and his wife, Sonja, are retired and live near Dickinson, N.D., where they ranch and raise registered Hereford cattle and registered quarter horses. During retirement, Ozbun continues to be active with Boy Scouts and Rotary International.
The Institute also will present five scholarships to undergraduates at the event. College of Business students Steven Firth and Jonathan Roswick will receive the Paul E. R. Abrahamson Transportation Scholarship, which is awarded to students who demonstrate interest in the transportation and logistics of agricultural commodities and processed agricultural products. Funding for the $1,500 scholarships is provided by the Mountain-Plains Consortium as a part of the U.S. Department of Transportation Department’s University Transportation Centers Program.
Civil engineering students Jared Loegering and Kathryn Garceau will receive the Transportation Engineering Scholarship, which is awarded to students who have an interest in transportation and display academic excellence. Funding for the $1,500 scholarships is provided by the Mountain-Plains Consortium as a part of the U.S. Department of Transportation Department’s University Transportation Centers Program.
Kathryn Garceau will receive the Charles E. Herman Scholarship, which is presented to a transportation student who demonstrates academic achievement with a preference to women and minorities at NDSU. Funding for one $2,000 scholarship is provided by the Charles E. Herman Scholarship Endowment Fund.
For more information on the banquet, visit www.ugpti.org/awards.