Presided over a very successful run of Bison athletics, including two NCAA football championships and four women's basketball national championships...Participated in the move of football to the Fargodome and also in the establishment of the Ellig Sports Complex...The couple met at NDSU and was married in 1959...Jim earned bachelor's and master's degrees in agriculture at NDSU before moving to North Carolina State, where he earned a doctorate in plant physiology and soils...His career as a university professor and administrator took him from Cornell to Minnesota, Kansas State, Washington State, and finally back to NDSU in 1988 as president...Sonja expanded her role as a full-time homemaker to be the hostess for thousands of people who were invited to the president's home, including student-athletes and their families and fans...The couple retired in 1995 to a small cattle ranch in western North Dakota where Jim raised Hereford cattle and quarter horses and Sonja became an avid gardener...They have two children and six grandchildren.