Williston State College president Raymond Nadolny says he will leave his post when his current contract is up.
That will be at the end of June, 2017.
"When I interviewed for the position at Williston State, they asked me how long I was going to stay," Nadolny said. "I said three years."
But then the oil explosion took place.
"So I have been here 7 years," Nadolny said. "And I have loved every day."
But he says he has aging parents, and he's trying to be closer to family.
As for the oil industry, it has slowed down.
"It's been a real roller coaster here," said Nadolny. "I think that's the nature of an oil patch town."
Nadolny says in that time, the WSC Foundation was able to give scholarships to every graduate in the college's five county service area.
"Things like that really allowed us to take what is a world-class oil play and make it into a world class student opportunity," Nadolny said.
Nadolny points to the “Train ND” program as a huge success.
"In my first year here with 'Train ND,' we probably trained about 3000 people," Nadolny said. "Last year, it peaked at 16,000."
Nadolny says "Train ND" has a safety focus.
"That's a really critical infrastructure requirement for this community and for the state," Nadolny said.
Nadonly says he's proud of his time at WSC.
"I came to a college with a fiscal deficit, that had huge infrastructure issues," Nadolny said. "Just to have the opportunity to see all of that change, and to see all these opportunities for students -- I'm really a very proud parent."