Morgan Olsen started working as executive vice president, treasurer and chief financial officer at Arizona State University mere months before the Great Recession in 2008, which meant the school had to reinvent its budget.
"Our focus the entire time was to make sure we were looking at student success with that laser focus, that everything we were doing was to ensure we didn't have a negative impact on the student experience," Olsen said.
As a candidate for UND's presidency presenting at a forum Tuesday, Olsen said his focus at UND would be the same.
"We're all here for that reason, the students and to ensure they succeed at the highest levels and rates possible," he said.
Olsen is one of six candidates visiting UND's campus throughout February and March. Minot State University President Steven Shirley visited campus earlier this week, and former Minnesota Rep. Mark Kennedy is scheduled to visit Wednesday through Saturday.
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UND is working on a plan to reduce its budget after the state's revenue forecast fell short. Olsen said he realizes a change in leadership could be worrisome and working with stakeholders would be important moving forward.
"You want someone who is an effective advocate," he said. "You have to be able to talk to people from a variety of walks of life in a way that's accessible to them. I think that's an incredibly important part of the job."
At the forum, Olsen brought up his interest in several UND initiatives, including unmanned aerials systems, relationships with Native American communities, engineering and energy research, the School of Entrepreneurship and rural health.
"The thing that keeps coming back to me is the tremendous potential the University of North Dakota has," he said.
Olsen said ensuring student success would involve developing a shared vision with clear goals and measuring success with metrics.
"The other thing I would mention is it's important to be decisive with decision-making," he said.
Olsen was born in Fargo, grew up in Bismarck and earned bachelor's and master's degrees from UND. His wife, Beth, who also is a UND graduate, was in attendance at the forum.
When asked about his leadership style after the forum, Olsen said he is a data-driven, analytical person who values teamwork.
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"Everybody you bring on your team, the goal should be that he or she is smarter than you are because that's what makes a great team," he said. "I think I've had the opportunity to do different things in different places around the country, and that would help me in bringing in new ideas and different approaches to doing things, but I also understand North Dakota. I'm from here."
Olsen said he values fine arts, the humanities, research and a good graduate studies program. He also said he didn't know enough yet about the North Dakota University System and the State Board of Higher Education but would like to work on mutually beneficial partnerships.
"My vision for the University of North Dakota would be to get acknowledged publically and uniformly as the top university in at least the five-state region, and I think that's absolutely very possible," he said.
The next president will replace Ed Schafer, a former North Dakota governor who is serving as UND's interim president until June. Former President Robert Kelley retired in January after leading the school for 7 1/2 years.
Some were critical of the climate on campus toward the end of Kelley's tenure. When asked about how he would deal with conflict, Olsen said working with people could be challenging, but he valued honesty.
"Being able to work through disagreements and conflicts in a constructive way where people come away with respect for each other is always the goal," he said. "It's probably not always possible for everybody to be happy all the time, but at least the effort should be made to understand each other."
The UND Presidential Search Committee plans to forward at least three finalists for the president position to the SBHE in March, as the board has hiring authority.
A previous version of this article reported an incorrect job title for candidate Steven Shirley. This article reflects the updated information.
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