Hello everyone, we just wanted to give a quick update on what is going on with the UND Nickname process. Rob Port (SayAnythingBlog) wrote an article this week discussing a possible trademark complication that could arise if the RoughRiders nickname is chosen. A letter was sent to UND on behalf of the owner (a UND alum) of the RoughRiders USHL hockey team. According to the letter the RoughRider name “has pending intent-to-use filings for other uses of the RoughRider name in several sporting contexts; and that it intends to continue to use the name and protect its licensing rights of that name”. Port also reminds us that Karl Goehring, President of the UND Nickname Committee, stated that he wasn’t “certain what the state’s legal rights would be when using the Northstars name”. Two of the options that have been included in the vote for the nickname may not actually be viable options and yet Kelley decided to include them and deny stakeholder’s the right to vote on the use of the North Dakota nickname. Article can be read here: https://sayanythingblog.com/entry/pro-hockey-team-warns-und-over-using-roughriders-nickname/ Also, the UND Student Senate passed a resolution 15-4 in favor of being able to vote on UND/North Dakota. In the resolution they state their responsibility to represent their constituents (something Kelley has decided time and again not to do), that polls by UND Student Government and the Grand Forks Herald have shown overwhelming support of the North Dakota nickname option (68.27% and 71%, respectively), and that the best way to represent the student interest is to support the inclusion of the “North Dakota” nickname in the final voting process. Resolution can be found here: http://www.grandforksherald.com/sites/default/files/Student%20Gov%20Nickame%20UNDNoDak%20Resolution.pdf If you wish to address your concerns, here are some people that you can contact: • President Robert Kelley (UND President) robert.kelley@UND.edu • Matt Kopp (Student Body President) matthew.p.kopp@my.und.edu and sgpresident@und.edu • Kathleen Neset (SBHE Chair) K.Neset@ndus.edu • Don Morton (SBHE Vice Chair) Don.Morton@ndus.edu • Nick Hacker (SBHE Member, UND Alumni) nicholas.hacker@ndus.edu • Brett Johnson (SBHE Member, current UND student) brett.johnson.6@ndus.edu • Kevin Melicher (SBHE Member) Kevin.Melicher@ndus.edu • Mike Ness (SBHE Member) mike.ness@ndus.edu • Kari Reichert (SBHE Member) Kari.Reichert@ndus.edu • Greg Stemen (SBHE Member) greg.stemen@ndus.edu • Emma Tufte (SBHE Member) emma.tufte@ndus.edu • Eric Murphy (SBHE Member, Associate Professor at UND) Eric.Murphy@ndus.edu If you have any questions, concerns, ideas, you can e-mail us at UNDnickname@gmail.com. Thanks everyone and let’s keep fighting to make sure this process is done correctly!