News

Class of 2020 Gets Their Commencement

“Welcome back to campus. Welcome back to that commencement ceremony you couldn’t have in 2020. Welcome back for that in-person event you deserve,” said SJU Transitional President James Mullen in his welcome to the CSB and SJU classes of 2020 for their unique celebration on Sept. 11, 2021.

Roughly 425 graduates returned to campus, along with more than double that many guests. “This is the first time a lot of you have been back on either of these campuses since hurriedly packing your bags in March 2020,” said CSB Transitional President Laurie Hamen. “A lot has changed since then. But I can tell you with confidence that the heart of Saint Ben’s and Saint John’s remains the same.” The warm, sunny, September day included a joint commencement ceremony held outdoors in Clemens Stadium at Saint John’s, followed by a reception and celebration on the Mall at Saint Ben’s.

“In the 19 months since campus closed, and we were sent home in the middle of March of our senior year, we’ve changed,” said CSB student speaker Lauren Simonet. “We went from brighteyed undergrads with a few months of college (still to come) to navigating a postgraduate and pandemic-wrought world as young adults, waving a resume in hand. But we did it. We graduated!”

Saint Ben’s Shines in College Rankings

Once again, the College of Saint Benedict is well positioned in national rankings by a number of respected publications and organizations.

Washington Monthly

CSB was ranked No. 18 this year by Washington Monthly and SJU No. 49 among liberal arts schools. CSB rose from No. 31 and SJU from No. 60 in the Monthly’s 2020 findings. Washington Monthly ranks liberal arts colleges – four-year institutions that award almost exclusively bachelor’s degrees and that focus on arts and sciences rather than professional programs – based on their contribution to the public good in three broad categories: social mobility, research and promoting public service.

U.S. News and World Report

CSB rose slightly to No. 92 in the 2022 U.S. News and World Report rankings of liberal arts schools. That was an improvement of four spots from the magazine’s 2021 placement. Meanwhile, SJU checked in at No. 105, a slight drop from its 2021 ranking (No. 102).

College Factual

Among 63 colleges in Minnesota, College Factual ranks CSB No. 3 and SJU No. 5 this year. On a national scale, CSB was ranked No. 107 and SJU No. 142. CSB’s ranking puts it in the top 4.2% of the schools in the country examined by College Factual, while SJU’s ranking is in the top 5.5% of the schools. College Factual’s analysis looked at 2,576 schools in the United States to determine which were the best in terms of overall quality. Its ranking methodology focuses on over 20 different objective factors (such as graduation rate, post graduation earnings and a school’s average expenditure per student) to make this determination.

Zippia

Zippia, a career website, found that SJU was once again the best college for employment placement in Minnesota in its 2021 analysis, with a 95.16% job placement rate. It was the fourth time in five years that SJU earned the top spot in Minnesota. For the third year in a row, CSB was second in the state with a 94.88% placement rate. Using the Department of Education College Scorecard data, Zippia searches for the college in each state with the highest listed job placement numbers 10 years after graduation.

Progress in Earnest

Toward Strong Integration

Since 2019, the Boards of Trustees of the College of Saint Benedict and Saint John’s University have been working together toward “strong integration.”

The term applies not to a merger or acquisition, but to what CSB Transitional President Laurie Hamen calls “a new and, we think, national model of governance in higher education that allows institutional autonomy and brings deeper collaboration between institutions. We’re getting ahead of the competition and setting a model that will earn national attention.” The three most visible effects will include:

• a framework of two boards of trustees made up of the same individuals • a single president serving both institutions • a significantly streamlined and integrated administrative culture

Some of those changes require approval from our accrediting board, the Higher Learning Commission. In November, we received that approval and are now able to begin the national search for a single president – with the intent to have that person in place in summer 2022.

0 and 5 Alums Converge for Special Fall Reunion

On Saturday, Oct. 2, Bennie and Johnnie alums from class years ending in 0 and 5 gathered together to reclaim the Reunion experience that COVID tried to deny them.

The numbers were smaller than a typical Reunion, the schedule was very different and many of our traditions shifted to accommodate new and different opportunities. But what was as true as ever were the smiling faces and enduring connections that draw this community together. Bennies from the class of 1970 celebrated their 50th Reunion at a special luncheon. And 2020 Distinguished Alumna Award winner Mary Kramer ’85 received her award before an appreciative audience of Bennies, Johnnies, families and friends. (Decade Award winner Angela Guentzel ’10, Benedictine Service Award winner Carrie Crook ’95 and S. Emmanuel Renner Award winner Kathy Kurvers Henderson ’85 were all unable to attend.) Next summer, alums from class years ending in 1 and 6 will celebrate their Reunion on July 8-10, after 2 and 7 alums gather on the regularly scheduled weekend of June 24-26.

Alvino Arrives as New VP for Marketing/Communication

After a nationwide search, the College of Saint Benedict and Saint John’s University introduced Katie Alvino as the new vice president for marketing and communication on Aug.1.

“Katie’s experiences in collegiate and corporate marketing are going to make her a valuable asset for CSB and SJU,” said Laurie Hamen, CSB transitional president. Alvino recently served as the director of marketing and retail operations for student affairs at the University of Minnesota. Prior to joining the UofM in 2016, Alvino worked for International Dairy Queen as director of product and brand marketing for Blizzard, Treats and Cakes. “As we create a unique national model of collaboration between Saint Ben’s and Saint John’s, Katie will be a critical partner in developing brand recognition and communicating our tremendous story of excellent student outcomes,” said Hamen.

Introducing New Alum Board Members

As of July 1, 2021, fifteen new Bennie alumnae have accepted roles on the Saint Ben’s Alumnae Board and begun their two-year terms.

The mission of the Alumnae Board is to foster and strengthen the life-long relationship between the alumnae and the college, to connect, energize and promote Bennies and to support the mission of Saint Ben’s as the premier Benedictine college for women in the country.

Leandria Albury ’21

Nassau, Bahamas

Paola Popoca ’20

Bloomington, Minnesota

Noelle Gunderson Elliott ’03

Minneapolis, Minnesota

Kathryn Enger Enke ’05

Monticello, Minnesota

Emily Berg ’18

Corcoran, Minnesota

Danielle Purcell Lohbeck ’06

Edina, Minnesota

Ellen Newkirk ’13

Minneapolis, Minnesota

Sarah Gorman ’19 St. Paul, Minnesota

Katie Frazier Boettcher ’12

Maple Plain, Minnesota

Madeline Beard ’20

Chanhassen, Minnesota

Sydney Robinson ’19

Las Vegas, Nevada

Cate Condon de la Rosa ’91

Eden Prairie, Minnesota

Ginny Reuter ’76

Rice, Minnesota

Linnea Louis Finney ’97 Minneapolis, Minnesota

Nancy Opstad Weldon ’92

St. Joseph, Minnesota

New Trustees Join CSB Board

Edward J. Bonach (SJU ’76)

Edward is the retired CEO of CNO Financial Group (formerly Conseco) in Carmel, Indiana. He currently serves on the Board of Directors for Mutual of Omaha and is a member of the Audit and Investment Committees of the board. After his retirement in 2017, the City of Indianapolis declared Dec. 5, 2017, Edward Bonach Day, and Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb awarded him with the Sagamore of the Wabash – the highest distinction in the state of Indiana. His two children, Ann-Marie ’01 and Edward (SJU ’03) are both CSB/SJU alums. He and his wife Peggy currently live in Plymouth, Minnesota.

Mary Lynne Dombovy ’77

Dr. Mary Dombovy is a physician specializing in neurology, physical medicine and rehabilitation. She is employed at Rochester Regional Health System in Rochester, New York, as both chair and vice president of the neurosciences service line. She earned her M.D. from Mayo Medical School in 1981 and a master of health systems administration from Rochester Institute of Technology in 2001. In 2013, she was the winner of one of 14 Presidents’ Awards at the CSB Centennial All-School Reunion. Mary and her late husband Michael Johnson have three grown children. She currently lives in Webster, New York.

Maria Stanek Burnham ’01

Maria is a language arts teacher at Sauk Rapids-Rice High School in Minnesota and earned her master’s degree in curriculum and instruction from the College of St. Scholastica. She is the past president of the CSB Alumnae Board and served for two years on the Board of Trustees in an ex-officio capacity for that role. Now she serves with full voting status. Marie and her husband Jay have two children and live in St. Cloud, Minnesota.

Jen Kocourek ’92

Jen is the current president of the CSB Alumnae Association Board of Directors. She works as a senior category marketing manager for digital imaging at Patterson Dental in St. Paul. She has previously worked at Sun Country Airlines, Target, U.S. Bank, Northwest Airlines, Carlson Marketing Group, Carmichael Lynch and Gage Marketing Group. Twice before, she has served on the Alumnae Board – 1994-95 and 2003-04. She was a key volunteer with the CSB Annual Giving rebranding project in 2008, served on the Presidents’ Circle Committee in 2012 and was an AllSchool Reunion Ambassador in 2013. Jen’s father, Edward Kocourek, is a past CSB Trustee (1983-97 and 2000-08) and former board chair.

Shields Armada Named 2021 Entrepreneur of the Year

On Tuesday, Oct. 19, six CSB and SJU alums were recognized for their entrepreneurial spirits by the Donald McNeely Center for Entrepreneurship at their annual Entrepreneur of the Year Awards.

CSB Alumnae Entrepreneur of the Year Gina Shields Armada ’97

After graduating from CSB, Gina Shields Armada began her professional journey at Andersen Consulting (now Accenture), where she worked for nearly a dozen years, primarily in the health care vertical. In 2008, she joined MHC Software to lead product management for the company. Over the next 10 years, she served in additional roles across marketing, sales and operations until she was named CEO of MHC in 2019. Within the last two years, she has overseen MHC’s acquisition of three companies as the team continues to expand its insightdriven workflow and content automation solution offerings for customers across the globe.

Other winners recognized this year included: 2021 SJU Alumni Entrepreneur of the Year

Chris Coborn ’81, chairman, president and CEO of Coborn’s Inc.

2021 CSB/SJU Social Entrepreneur of the Year

Kurt Vickman ’94, social entrepreneur, real estate developer and cultural developer – founder of Good Grocer

2020 CSB Alumnae Entrepreneur of the Year

Jennifer Dugan Roth ’91, CEO and cofounder of GrowthMode Marketing

2020 SJU Alumni Entrepreneur of the Year

Dennis Carlson ’86, chairman and CEO of WeDriveU

2020 CSB/SJU Social Entrepreneur of the Year

Angela Untiedt Jerabek ’90, founder and executive director of BARR Center®

New Multicultural Center Opens in Murray Hall

Murray Hall received a thoughtful renovation and a brand-new entrance this fall with the construction and opening of the new CSB/SJU Multicultural Center.

The student-centered space allows a place for underrepresented students to conduct meetings, programming or simply hang out. A conference room equipped with state-of-the-art technology has been added as well. “If you’re walking around and, for whatever reason, don’t feel represented on campus, we want you to come to that space and know that you are welcome,” said Malik Stewart, director of multicultural student services. The new center also provides a new option for cultural clubs to hold programming or club meetings. Reinvigorating cultural clubs on campus is one of Stewart’s goals for the year. He used the Asia Club as an example. The club promotes Asian culture in formal and informal settings and in the context of Benedictine values and multiculturalism on both campuses. But, given the impact of COVID-19, “Only seniors would have experienced the Asia Club,” said Stewart. “It was a big club at one point.” The Multicultural Center is also an important hub for international students, given the specific requirements they face. “Aside from navigating culture shock and a different educational system, they’re also navigating the immigration system,” Stewart acknowledged. “It’s definitely a step in the right direction,” said Godgift Iteghete ’22. “It creates a space for the conversations that need to be had.”

Recap for a Record-Setting Give CSB Day

On Wednesday, Oct. 20, nearly a thousand donors raised their lights together in a grand collective effort to help today’s Bennies shine on. The result went far beyond this year’s $500,000 goal for an incredible $572,393 given toward Saint Ben’s scholarships in a single day. That’s the largest Give CSB Day in CSB history.

As in past years, a key component of Give CSB Day success was the collaboration with 20 leadership donors to establish a tremendous pool of matching gifts. That allowed alumnae, parents, friends, faculty, staff and even students to make gifts on Give CSB Day knowing their contributions would be doubled.

Watching more than half a million dollars roll in to support the scholarships that make a Saint Ben’s education viable for many students made a pretty exciting day for the CSB Annual Giving team. They set up shop in the Gorecki Fireside Lounge and stayed busy all day long. “I wish everyone could have been with us to witness the students who stopped by our table and asked what we were doing,” laughed CSB Director of Annual Giving Maggie Weber Utsch ’00. “Every single student was genuinely grateful and in awe that all these people were lining up to give and support them.”

Give CSB Day 2021 by the numbers

• $572,393 raised through 817 total gifts from 805 donors* in 24 hours • Largest single gift: $30,000 • Most common gift amounts: $100 (175 gifts) and $50 (138 gifts) • Average gift size (overall): $380.22

* 12 donors chose to make more than one gift.

CSB Announces Varsity

Lacrosse Program, to begin play in spring 2023

The College of Saint Benedict is starting a varsity lacrosse program to begin play in the spring of 2023.

The Bennies will become the fourth NCAA Division III women’s varsity lacrosse program in Minnesota, and the program will bring the number of varsity sports CSB offers to 12.

CSB Athletic Director Kelly Anderson Diercks said that the Bennies intend to apply for membership in the Midwest Women’s Lacrosse Conference, which includes three Minnesota schools (Northwestern University, Augsburg University and Hamline University), Cornell College and Wartburg College in Iowa and Lake Forest College and Monmouth College in Illinois. The sport continues to grow in popularity, both within the state and nationally. More than 3,800 high school girls participated nationally in lacrosse during the 2020-21 season, and there are currently more than 290 Division III women’s collegiate programs across the nation. There are 95 high school girls’ lacrosse teams in the state, according to the Minnesota State High School League.

Dierks Brings Passion and

Experience to Saint Benedict Athletics

BY | LEAH RADO

Kelly Anderson Diercks started her tenure as CSB’s athletic director on July 1.

She joined the CSB Athletic Department after an impressive tenure at Augsburg University in Minneapolis, where she served as an associate athletic director and senior woman administrator. Diercks was chosen as the department’s leader for her vision for the department, her experience in an athletic administration role and her knowledge of the value of women’s athletics.

Prior to her role at Augsburg, Diercks served as the assistant director at the MIAC where she led the 25th Anniversary of Women’s Athletics Committee and served as part of an event management team for MIAC Championships from 2006-08. She is a member of Women Leaders in College Sports, the National Association of Division III Athletic Administrators, and the College Sports Information Directors of America.