BISMARCK, N.D. - The State Board of Higher Education appointed board member Pam Kostelecky to serve a three-year term on the state's Centers of Excellence Commission during a Thursday conference call meeting.

Kostelecky is president and general manager of Sax Motor Co. in Dickinson, N.D., and Bowman, N.D. She is president of General Investment Corporation, a real estate and leasing company also located in Dickinson. Kostelecky was appointed to the SBHE in October 2002 and re-appointed to a full four-year term beginning in July 2005. She is the immediate past president of the board.

The Centers of Excellence initiative was created by Gov. John Hoeven and the 2005 Legislative Assembly with input from the Department of Commerce and the North Dakota University System. An economic development center of excellence is a hub of research and development around which related businesses expand and dynamic new businesses cluster.

The six-member commission works to enhance the state's economic development efforts by putting research and investment decisions in the hands of industry and higher education representatives. $20 million was appropriated for the centers for the 2005 - 07 biennium; $30 million in additional funding is planned for future biennia.

The commission includes three representatives of the Economic Development Foundation and three SBHE members. Kostelecky replaces Dr. Richard Kunkel whose term on the board ended June 30, 2006. Other SBHE members serving on the commission are John Q. Paulsen, board president, and Bev Clayburgh, board vice president.