GRAND FORKS (AP) - New University of North Dakota President Robert Kelley says the acrimony surrounding the debate over the school's Fighting Sioux nickname disturbs him and one of his goals is to alleviate some of that anger.

"Universities, by definition, need to embrace many ideas," said Kelly, who officially became UND's president Tuesday. "They need to be very inclusive of all the differences in our society. What gives me the deepest discomfort is when I see deep divisiveness within a university community.

"I value the differences in ideas and differences in our cultures and our ethnicities. the things that when brought together create our society," he said. "What I find uncomfortable is when the society begins to fragment around an issue, when you start getting to the point where you can no longer converse about an idea. That's uncomfortable for all of us."

Under a settlement with the NCAA, UND has three years to win approval of the nickname from the state's major Sioux tribes.

North Dakota University System Chancellor William Goetz has said he plans to form a committee to address the issue. Kelley said Goetz has not asked him to serve on the committee and he thinks he could best serve the university in other ways.

"I'll certainly expect to be engaged in that conversation going forward," he said. "And I'll certainly expect to be part of whatever final resolution is reached by the state board and the chancellor's office. I think my role will be as thoughtfully and wisely as I can prepare the university for one resolution or another.

"I think one thing I'll do in the coming months is to emphasize the UND brand," Kelley said. "We have deep traditions and we'll move those traditions forward, but they may have a new name, a new nickname."

Information from: Grand Forks Herald, http://www.grandforksherald.com