Student Engagement

On April 22nd, 2026, the Congress of Student Organizations, in conjunction with the Office of Student Engagement and Volunteer Network, hosted the 22nd Annual Bison Leader Awards.

The Bison Leader Awards is an opportunity to celebrate the accomplishments of student leaders and their respective student organizations. Being involved on campus in some manner is a pivotal part of the college experience, and while some might have the opportunity to compete as part of an athletic program, perform in a theater show, or assist in a research lab, many find their place to belong in a student organization. There are nearly 6800 students, or almost 50% of the student body, listed as members of a student organization at NDSU. It is through these clubs that students can find people with similar interest, they can compete and present at conferences, participate in service opportunities, and for many find a place to de-stress.

With over 260 student organization selecting the winners from the nominations received is always a challenge, and this year was no different. The selection committee for the Bison Leader Awards reviewed close to 100 nominations for 11 different categories. While we wish we could have awarded all of the nominees the awards, the committee selected the following winners.

• Collaboration of the Year – Society of Women Engineers and the Institute of Industrial & Systems Engineers for their Resume and Mock Interview Night
• Social Program of the Year – The Filipino Student Association for the Filipino American Festival
• The Unsung Hero Award – Brayden Frank from the Alpha Tau Omega Fraternity
• Most Improved Student Organization of the Year – Letters of Love
• The Community Impact Award – Society of Women Engineers
• New Member of the Year – Lucia Ferguson with the Kappa Delta Sorority
• Educational Program of the Year – Kappa Delta Sorority with the Ellie Helm Flag Football Tournament
• New Student Organization of the Year – Women in Architecture Collective
• Advisor of the Year – Maggie Latterell with the Blue Key Honor Society
• Student Leader of the Year – Sierra Nagle with Saddle and Sirloin
• Student Organization of the Year – National Residence Hall Honorary

In addition to the awards given by the Congress of Student Organizations, Volunteer Network recognized some of the organizations that have given back to the community.

This year, students logged 5,647 individual acts of service in myNDSU, which equated to 22,339 hours of service conducted by our students. Every hour of service done by a volunteer not only helps an organization but also saves them money based on the national average for what a service hour is worth. Our students helped the organizations they volunteered with save over 777,000 this year.

Each year, Volunteer Network reviews the service hours submitted and recognizes them as part of the Bison Service Challenge, which recognizes student organizations that have the highest number of hours per member. The winners of the Bison Service Challenge for an:

• Academic Organization – the Nursing Student Association of Bismarck, with an average of 3.49 hours per member
• Non-Service Organization – Bison Robotics with an Average of 10.42 hours per member
• Service-Based Organization – Blue Key National Honor Society, with an average of 24.05 hours per member
• Fraternity and Sorority Life – Alpha Tau Omega Fraternity with an average of 25.37 hours per member

In addition to the Bison Service Challenge, the Volunteer Network recognizes student groups for their philanthropic and service efforts, and this year, they gave the following awards:

• Philanthropy of the Year to the Blue Key National Honor Society for the annual Homecoming Show. The proceeds are going to the NDSU Goods for the Herd Food Pantry, raising a total of $5,000.
• Service Project of the Year to the Student Association of Nutrition and Dietetics for their work hosting a food drive for the Red River Children’s Advocacy Center, generating over 866 items

If you are part of one of the organizations above, thank you for all that you have done to improve life on the NDSU campus and in the community. If you see a member of one of these organizations, please congratulate them for their hard work.