Valley City State University (VCSU) is an institution of higher learning in Valley City, North Dakota, part of the eleven-member North Dakota University System. Founded in 1889 as a territorial normal school, VCSU offers four-year degrees in a number of fields in five academic divisions and graduate degrees in Education delivered wholly online. The music and education programs are NASM and NCATE accredited, respectively. The campus has an average annual attendance of approximately 9,000. The school's athletic teams are called the Vikings and participate in the Dakota Athletic Conference. Since 1996, the purchase of a laptop computer has been included with tuition and fees for students attending VCSU. Valley City State University's athletic teams are nicknamed the Vikings and compete in the Dakota Athletic Conference. Current sports that are offered are football, volleyball, men's and women's basketball, men's and women's golf, baseball, and softball. VCSU is the only institution within the North Dakota University System to accept employee tuition waivers for online classes.