Bemidji State University celebrated three major anniversaries in 2019. The anniversaries included the 50th anniversary of the Hobson Memorial Union, the 50th anniversary of women’s athletics at Bemidji State and the 10th anniversary of the Sustainability Office.

50 years of student leadership at the Hobson Memorial Union

Logo for 50 years Hobson Memorial Union 1968-2018
The student union was built in 1967. At street level, in the Upper Union, is the beautiful Beaux Arts Ballroom. This versatile space can serve as a lecture hall seating 600 or a banquet room for up to 450. The building was dedicated to C.V Hobson on May 1, 1972.

Dr. Claude Vivian “Mr. Conservation” Hobson was born in 1884 in Kansas. He was raised and educated on the prairies of Nebraska. Hobson completed his A.B. in science at Doane College and his Masters at the University of Nebraska. Dr. Hobson went on to complete his doctoral work at Iowa, Columbia and the University of North Dakota where he received his Doctorate in Education and Psychology.

A man reaching out, touching, and looking at a sign for the Bemidji College Forrest in 1947He came to Bemidji State University in 1931 and started as a science supervisor in the Bemidji Teachers’ College Lab School for children. He began teaching college classes in 1938 as a professor of geography and conservation and retired in 1962. Dr. C.V. Hobson is credited with creating the School Forest concept and actively campaigned for the passage of the School Forest Law, which was passed in 1949. BSU acquired the forest in 1948 for academic and recreational use by the university and community.

In the middle level of the Upper Union, you’ll find the administrative offices of the Hobson Union staff and the home of our Student Activities, Clubs & Orgs and Student Senate. The campus coffee shop, ecoGrounds, is located in the Terrace Lounge.

In the Lower Union, you’ll find the BSU Bookstore, Einstein Bagels, the Lakeside Food Court, the Crying Wolf Room and many other conference spaces.

50 years of Women’s Athletics

Celebrating 50 years, Bemidji State University Women's Athletics 1969-2019

BSU will also celebrate the 50th anniversary of women’s athletics.

A group of pioneering women were responsible for bringing women into the forefront of athletics. This trio of women included: Dr. Marjory Beck, Dr. Ruth Howe, Betsy McDowell and Dr. Pat Rosenbrock. These women took the initiative and lead the change in women’s athletics by developing varsity teams and serving as a charter member of the first women’s athletics conferences in the country, the Minn-Kota Conference, in 1969-70.

The celebration of women’s athletics will continue throughout the year with individual sport alumni weekends and will continue through the culminating family weekend and golf tournament in August of 2019.

10 years of Sustainability

Bemidji State University logo over the word "Sustainability" and the Ojibwe word "Ganawendakamigaawigamig"Additionally, Bemidji State will celebrate the 10th anniversary of Sustainability at BSU. The

The Sustainability Office serves as a facilitator in BSU’s commitment to sustainability, acting through staff, students, faculty and administrators. Their goal is to maintain a more ecologically and economically sustainable campus community. The office is responsible for the education, communication, planning and management of environmental issues on campus.