The University of North Dakota (UND) has received a $5 million gift from alumni Dan (’90) and Jolene (’98) Mikkelson in support of student scholarships, the Grand Forks Herald reports.

The gift will fund scholarships at the university and includes $2 million allocated to UND hockey student-athletes, $1 million for those in the UND football program, $1 million for those in UND women’s athletics, $500,000 for Nistler College of Business & Public Administration, and $500,000 for the occupational therapy program in the School of Medicine & Health Sciences.

Dan Mikkelson serves as the Edgewood Real Investment Trust board chair and Jolene spent 20 years as a pediatric occupational therapist at Altru. According to a UND release, their son, Tommy, is a Special Olympian, and the couple were inspired to give partly by their son’s interactions with student-athletes.

“It’s heartening to see how the new generation, having grown up with special needs kids in their classrooms, is more accepting and inclusive,” Jolene Mikkelson told the Herald. “This shift is crucial, and I’m excited about the future. Supporting UND allows us to contribute to this progress and give back to a community that has given us so much. It’s incredibly fulfilling to know that our gift will help future students achieve their dreams.”

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