UMD’s incoming freshman class this fall was its largest in three years—a positive situation for recent arrival Charles Nies to step into. The Minnesota native became UMD’s leader in mid-2024 after an academic career in California and elsewhere. He plans to spread the word to potential students: that UMD offers a university experience while providing greater opportunities for hands-on learning and internships. UMD’s research is important to the state of Minnesota, Nies adds, citing the university’s work on freshwater health and the use of robotics in health care. In other words, “We’re more than Division I hockey.”