UND President Robert Kelley, who was at the board meeting, said he believes the board action probably seals the fate of the Fighting Sioux nickname and logo.
"I think it does," he said shortly after the meeting adjourned. "I think it's about as close to a final resolution as we can hope it to be."
For the university to gain tribal approval by October, "it needs to be a binding 30-year agreement, and I'm very doubtful that can be achieved," he said.
"I'm trying now to get my mind around all the issues that have to be on the table as we move forward, and in many ways I'm looking forward to the planning that's to come with the transition. We need, for example, to find a way to acknowledge a deep tradition" with the Fighting Sioux nickname and logo.
"And we need to acknowledge a lot of people, including Ralph and Betty Engelstad, who made such a great investment in our university.
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"But time changes," Kelley said. "And it's time for the university to move on."
