Craig Schmich
Graduate School Student Message
Craig Schmich is the son of Paul and Becky Schmich.
He graduated from Lincoln High School in Lincoln, California, where he finished with a 2.0 GPA and an uncertain future. After high school, he attended junior college but faced academic dismissal twice. Rather than giving up, he made the decision to turn his life around. He went on a major health journey, losing over 150 pounds, and worked hard to return to college athletics and academics with a new mindset and purpose.
After restarting his education, he went on to earn a 3.5 GPA and was named to the VPAA Honor Roll twice. He also earned NSIC All-Academic Team honors three times between 2022 and 2024 while competing as a collegiate athlete. He completed his bachelor's degree at Minot State University and is graduating with a Master of Science in Sports Management.
Outside of school and athletics, he has always found ways to give back to the community. In Lincoln, he coached youth baseball for kids ages 10-14 and served as a high school baseball coach for three years. He also coached youth basketball and two seasons of middle school basketball. Since moving to Minot, he has continued his involvement in youth sports by coaching baseball for three summers, giving private lessons to young athletes in the community, and serving as the Graduate Assistant for the Minot State University baseball program.
He credits his success to the many people who supported him along the way-family, friends, coaches, professors, and mentors-who believed in him during the toughest times. His journey has shaped him into a determined, disciplined, and passionate person who is excited to make a lasting impact in the world of college athletics.
He enjoys spending time with family and friends, staying active, coaching, and helping young athletes grow both on and off the field. Today, Craig is proud to be graduating with a master's degree - something he once thought would never be possible - and is excited for what's next in his coaching career.
Emmett Espino
Undergraduate Student Message
Emmett Espino is from Fairfield, California. His journey can be described as diverse, as he was homeschooled for most of his upbringing before attending Armijo High School. Growing up in the North Bay Area, he had a lot of different experiences. While his path to higher education was unique, it shaped his discipline, independence, and ability to adapt. These are qualities that carried over into his college years at Minot State University.
At MSU, football was a huge part of his life. He was fortunate to serve as a team captain and lead our team to the winningest season in NCAA history. He is proud to say he left it better than he found it, as they have a lot better in store for them. During his career, he somehow managed to be the only player he knew of to get a sack and give up a sack in the same game. He was fortunate enough to play both sides of the football. This gave him a lot of versatility as an athlete and as a person. The football experience taught him the value of leadership, perseverance, and teamwork. It wasn't just about playing the game, but it was about bringing people together, setting a standard, and pushing past limits they didn't even know they had.
Beyond football, he found other ways to get involved on campus. For four years, he served as MSU Life entertainment director, organizing events that brought energy and excitement to the student body. That role allowed him to connect with different people, think creatively, and learn how to manage large-scale events. These skills will benefit him no matter where his career takes him. He also took on a leadership role in student government, serving as the vice president of finance. That position gave him hands-on experience in budgeting and decision-making at an organizational level.
Academically, he graduated cum laude with a Bachelor of Science degree with majors in Finance and Accounting. Numbers didn't always make sense to him, but when dollar signs were attached, they did. He enjoyed the challenge of accounting. His goal is to build a career in either finance or accounting, where he can apply what he has learned and continue growing.
But above all, his biggest accomplishment isn't a title, an award, or a position - it's simply starting something and finishing it. Whether it was football, leadership roles, or his education, he committed himself to each endeavor and saw it through. That mindset will stay with him no matter where life takes him.
He is excited for what's ahead, and is grateful for the experiences, challenges, and people who have shaped his journey so far.
Dr. Veronica Pinnick
Alumni Speaker
Veronica Pinnick is a proud Minotian and North Dakotan. She graduated from Minot High School in 2000 and earned a Bachelor of Arts with a major in Chemistry from Minot State University in 2004.
Following graduation, she attended Texas A&M, where she completed a doctorate in analytical chemistry in 2009. There she learned how to build scientific instruments to study the chemistry of materials, on her home planet, Earth.
Upon completing her Ph.D., Pinnick had offers from major companies around the country including a lucrative offer from tech giant, Intel. Instead, she took a shot at a postdoctoral fellowship at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in Baltimore, Maryland. It was there that she had a chance to work on the development of a mass spectrometer for another planet - Mars. The work Pinnick conducted on a highly advanced mass spectrometer for NASA eventually led to her being hired full time at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in 2011.
Since then, Pinnick has led many science and engineering teams to explore the solar system. Her projects have ranged from Earth-observing satellites like the Plankton, Aerosol, Ocean Ecosystem (a.k.a. PACE, launched in 2024) to a rotocraft copter called Dragonfly, set to launch to explore Saturn's moon Titan in 2028. She is also passionate about technology development, working on robotics for Mars and ocean worlds like Jupiter's moon Europa and Saturn's moon Enceladus. She is still very much looking forward to the launch of her first mission, the Rosalind Franklin Rover to Mars in 2028!
Pinnick speaks proudly and passionately about her work and that of her fellow scientists.
"I take education and public outreach seriously and take every opportunity I can to spread the word about what we scientists and engineers are doing with your tax dollars," she said. "We are doing such amazing science, such amazing engineering, and honestly, awe-inspiring exploration that I can hardly help snapping up every opportunity I can to be an ambassador to the public. I want you to be as excited about what we're doing as we are."
Currently, Pinnick is an Integration and Test Manager at NASA Goddard Space Center in Greenbelt, Maryland.
Tim Mihalick
State Board of Higher Education Speaker
Tim Mihalick, chair of the State Board of Higher Education, was appointed to fill the remainder of an open term vacated by a previous member. Mihalick was also appointed to a four-year term.
Mihalick is a senior vice president at First Western Bank & Trust, responsible for business development and facilities. Prior to that, he was part of IRET and its affiliated companies for over 36 years before his retirement, serving as the president and CEO during his last eight years at IRET. Throughout the years, he has been involved in numerous civic organizations dedicated to Minot's betterment. He is a current member and past chair of the MSU Board of Regents and a past board member of Trinity Health and the Minot Family YMCA.
An Ohio native, Mihalick attended Minot State University and obtained a Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration in 1981. During his college career, he played football for four years and participated in track for two. He was inducted into the MSU Athletic Hall of Fame in 1995 and received the MSU Alumni Golden Award in 2014.
Mihalick and his wife, Laura, have been married for over 40 years and are both committed to civic engagement. Laura, who also attended MSU, is a past member of the Minot Public School Board. The Mihalicks have two adult children living in Minot.
