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NDSU and North Dakota agriculture have been a part of the Joe ’51 and Norma ’23 (Skunes) Peltier family for generations.
Story by Micaela Gerhardt | August 23, 2024
(Photo by Kensie Wallner)
Families often pass down heirlooms — wedding dresses, recipes, letters, and jewelry. A watch, a quilt. Perhaps furniture. Beyond these traditional familial keepsakes, Keith Peltier ’75, ’77, Jeff Peltier ’76, Suzette Peltier ’79, and Betty-Jo (Peltier) Wilson ’83 inherited a belief in North Dakota agriculture.
Their late father, Joe Peltier ’51, was active in the creation of the Northern Crops Institute (NCI). He also served as chairman of the North Dakota Crop Improvement Association, the first chairman of the North Dakota Sunflower Council, and a member of the North Dakota House of Representatives and State Board of Higher Education. He modeled the kind of tenacity that turns belief into action.
“You don’t have to boil the ocean or solve the problem, as long as you’re moving a solution forward,” Betty-Jo recalls her father saying. “You can apply that yet today,” she added. “NDSU’s got a lot of goals, you know, and as long as you’re moving toward that goal, you’ll be successful.”
(Photo courtesy of the Peltier family)
This belief and work ethic has catalyzed recent growth at NDSU. The Joe and Norma Peltier Vice President for Agriculture, an endowment supporting a key leadership position, was awarded to its inaugural recipient, Greg Lardy ’91, in the spring of 2024. The Peltier Complex, a state-of-the-art agricultural products development center, opened its doors in the summer of 2024.
“We want to see NDSU and the state of North Dakota continue to grow,” Jeff said. “This is one facet of helping make that happen, but it’s a team effort to make it all happen, so it’s not just a building — the [Peltier Complex] is a foundation.”
Keith, Jeff, Suzette, and Betty-Jo were raised in Arthur, North Dakota, which became the family locale in 1882 when early settler Joseph Arthur (J.A.) Burgum purchased land southeast of Arthur for $2 an acre. Later, he met and married Jessamine (Slaughter) Burgum, the first female student to enroll at North Dakota Agricultural College (NDAC), now NDSU.
In 1906, a group of forward-thinking farmers filed the Arthur Farmers Elevator for incorporation, one of whom was J.A. Burgum. By 1923, he and Jessamine had purchased the controlling percentage of shares.
Keith, Jeff, Suzette, and Betty-Jo spent many summers working at the elevator, which was later managed by their father. Keith and Jeff were charged with cleaning grain bins and bagging seed while Suzette and Betty-Jo helped with bookkeeping and office work.
As they grew older, Keith, Jeff, Suzette, and Betty-Jo decided to pursue degrees at NDSU, following in the footsteps of their father, Joe; grandmother, Marjorie (Burgum) Peltier ’39; and great-grandmother, Jessamine.
Their parents, both teachers by trade, had instilled the value of an education, but attending NDSU was never a requirement.
“The education and experience I got at NDSU, you know, we can compete with anybody in the country and anybody in the world, really,” Keith, an NDSU Foundation Trustee, said of the possibilities he sees at NDSU and across the state. “We’re just as smart and as capable … North Dakota holds a backseat to nobody.”
It’s what the Peltier family has always known: to take pride in where they are from and to move something forward for the benefit of their community. Joe passed away in 2014; in his memory, Norma made a significant investment in both the Complex and endowment. She earned an honorary doctorate from NDSU in 2023 and passed away in 2024.
(Photo courtesy of the Peltier family)
“I was thinking about it, you know, ‘Why North Dakota?’ and really, our parents were proud of where they [lived],” Suzette said, reflecting on her family’s decision to invest in these agricultural initiatives. “Had they been born in Montana, this story would be about Montana. They both grew up in North Dakota and they both grew up in agriculture. It was there from the beginning, so it was there for us.”
A Partial Family Tree
From the first female student at NDAC (now NDSU) to the four siblings — all alumni — who are carrying on the family mission to move NDSU agriculture forward.
Jessamine (Slaughter) Burgum (enrolled in 1891) and Joseph Arthur (J.A.) Burgum
Marjorie (Burgum) Peltier 1939 and Joseph C. Peltier
Joseph C. Peltier 1951 (BS educational administration) and Norma (Skunes) Peltier 2023 (honorary doctorate)
Keith Peltier 1975, 1977 (BS zoology, MS agricultural economics) and Cathy Peltier 1977 (BS home economics – education)
Jeff Peltier 1976 (BS agricultural mechanization) and Anne Peltier
Suzette Peltier, MD 1979 (BS microbiology) and Jon Thorpe
Betty-Jo (Peltier) Wilson 1983 (BS computer science) and Wade Wilson 1983 (BS computer science)
Joe and Norma Peltier Vice President for Agriculture
Greg Lardy, inaugural holder of the Joe and Norma Peltier Vice President for Agriculture endowment, has agriculture in his blood. He grew up on a farm and ranch near Sentinel Butte, North Dakota, with four younger brothers. Greg’s parents, who were 4-H leaders and supporters of the local chapter of Future Farmers of America, shaped his decision to pursue a career in agriculture, even when, during high school, he observed the farm economy suffering through high interest rates, foreclosures, and years of drought.
“Growing up on that ranch really instilled several key values. One is, you know, my family had a deep faith, and they knew that no matter what the hard times were, you’re going to get through them,” Greg said. “That’s been something that I would say has been very important to me and my current role too — faith that no matter what challenges you’re going to face, there will be opportunities to work toward a greater good and get through the difficult times.”
Keith met Greg during his time serving on the State Board of Agricultural Research and Education. He and his family admire Greg’s strong Christian values, even-keeled attitude, and North Dakota roots.
“I got to know Greg before he was the vice president of everything,” Keith chuckled. “He showed a great presence and maturity on how to handle things. Then, when the opportunity came for us as a family — and my mother contributed most of the [gift] financially — to be able to endow that position and have Greg be responsible … we knew we were entrusting our gift to a really great guy, and he would use it to the best of his ability.”
Greg considers himself a student of leadership, learning from books and courses as much as from “being in the trenches and taking responsibility.” While his office is based on campus, Greg spends significant time gaining understanding from North Dakota commodity groups, Research Extension Center advisory boards, and all 53 county Extension offices about how NDSU can help address the current needs of farmers, ranchers, stakeholders, and the industry.
“From my standpoint, I’m just incredibly privileged to serve in a role where I can make a difference,” Greg said. “It gives you an opportunity to really connect with what I think the true land-grant mission is, which is service to the citizens of the state.”
27 Years at NDSU
Greg earned his BS in animal and range sciences from NDSU in 1991. After earning his MS and Ph.D. in animal sciences, he returned to NDSU where he has worked for 27 consecutive years.
Named faculty and leadership endowments provide strategic, perpetual funding for the holder of the position. In accordance with donor intent, Greg plans to implement a stronger leadership development program for employees and to enhance efforts around student recruitment in the College of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Natural Resources.
Peltier Complex
NDSU’s land-grant mission of teaching, research, and outreach is at work in this premier facility for agricultural innovation and product development in food, cereal, and meat sciences.
Teaching
Preparing future generations of agriculturalists who will be poised to meet consumer and industry needs.
Research
Creating space for scientists to collaborate and optimize end-use quality of regional agricultural commodities.
Outreach
Helping domestic and international customers utilize regional agricultural commodities through educational programming.
The Peltier Complex opened its doors in summer 2024 (Photo by Kensie Wallner)
North Dakota is the country’s 11th largest agricultural exporting state, according to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative. With a population of approximately 779,094 people, North Dakota’s agriculture industry produces more than its residents can consume. As a result, most of the state’s products are exported to places with higher populations in the U.S. and abroad.
“Trade is important for North Dakota — it’s critical for our economy,” Keith said. “The more we can make the products we produce here valuable, the better it is for the state and for everyone included.”
North Dakota Leads in Ag Exports
Wheat
$1.5 billion
State Rank: 1
Soybeans
$1.4 billion
State Rank: 9
Other oilseeds and products
$765 million
State Rank: 1
Corn
$421 million
State Rank: 11
Feeds and other feed grains
$309 million
State Rank: 11
2022 data (U.S. Trade Representative Report)
A good deal for everybody — that would have made the late Joe Peltier proud. His values and many accomplishments in agriculture were the inspiration behind the Peltier family’s investment in the facility. In addition to being an educational space for NDSU students, faculty, and staff, the Peltier Complex will bring the NCI, North Dakota Trade Office, USDA laboratories, and NDSU researchers under one roof, promoting greater collaboration to add value and expand the market for northern-grown crops.
“It’s multipurpose as it should be, because NDSU isn’t just about teaching — it’s about working with the community and businesses,” Jeff said.
Keith, Jeff, Suzette, and Betty-Jo remember the days when domestic and international consumer groups would visit NDSU and make a stop at the historic Arthur grain elevator, followed by lunch at the Peltier home, which was prepared by their mother, Norma. Today, consumer groups will experience a new kind of hospitality within the Peltier Complex.
“International guests are going to see that we’re very serious about what we do here and how we view our commodities as one of the premier suppliers around the globe,” Greg said.
A new facility provides a critical foundation for teaching, research, and outreach, but it’s people who saw a vision for the Peltier Complex and brought it to fruition. The North Dakota Legislature, agricultural commodity groups, benefactors, and the Peltier family came together to invest in the continued impact of North Dakota agriculture.
“You look at the things the Peltiers have been involved in — they’re incredibly generous,” Greg said. “They’ve been strongly rooted in the state for many generations, and the things that the family has done to benefit agriculture but also local communities, and the fact that they continue to invest in family-based businesses throughout the state, just points to a strong belief in the future of what North Dakota and what the agriculture industry really means to them.”
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