33 minute read
SHINE PROFILES
SHINE: EMELIA LARYEA ’24
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Blending Two Worlds
MORE THAN 6,000 MILES FROM GHANA, AND ONLY 600 STEPS FROM HER SISTER,
SHE’S FOUND GUSTIES WHO ARE HER “HOME AWAY FROM HOME.” SHE’S FOUND GUSTIES WHO ARE HER “HOME AWAY FROM HOME.”
“You’re not Black until you come to America.”
Laryea learned this at the age of fi ve, when her family left their small village in Laryea learned this at the age of fi ve, when her family left their small village in
Ghana for a new life in Minneapolis. She’s lived most of her life in the States, but her Ghana for a new life in Minneapolis. She’s lived most of her life in the States, but her identity is a blend of two worlds, always shifting. “If I were to go back to Ghana I’d identity is a blend of two worlds, always shifting. “If I were to go back to Ghana I’d be an American,” she says. “Here, I’m African-American, but in Ghana, I’m not a be an American,” she says. “Here, I’m African-American, but in Ghana, I’m not a
Black American. When I’m in Ghana, I’m just a person.” Black American. When I’m in Ghana, I’m just a person.” When the plane from Ghana touched down in Minneapolis, the fi rst shock When the plane from Ghana touched down in Minneapolis, the fi rst shock to her system was physical. Not realizing the di erence between Celsius and to her system was physical. Not realizing the di erence between Celsius and Fahrenheit, she wore a tank top in the middle of winter. There were other Fahrenheit, she wore a tank top in the middle of winter. There were other key di erences. In school in the suburb of Columbia Heights, she key di erences. In school in the suburb of Columbia Heights, she found that her teachers weren’t as focused on discipline, and the bland cafeteria food left much to be desired. She followed her older sister, Abby ’23, to Gustavus. Life on the Hill has brought its own cultural changes. For the fi rst time, Laryea found herself the only Black student in a classroom. “It was very weird,” she remembers. Starting college during COVID-19 only added to the weirdness. Now, as a sophomore, Laryea has found herself a solid friend group, including many fellow Ghanaians. Laryea hasn’t visited Ghana since leaving in 2006, so meeting Ghanaian students at Gustavus o ers a rare chance to celebrate her culture with others. “It’s like you get Ghana in the United States,” she says. “It’s like home away from home.” Sometimes they celebrate in big ways, like cooking family recipes in Co-Ed or donning traditional clothing for PASO’s annual Africa Night. Other times it’s the little things that matter to Laryea—the blend of accents among her Ghanian friends, the friendly waves from across campus. “People need to feel like they belong in the space they’re in, and they need to feel like they have people they can depend on.”
For Laryea, a diverse campus community brings new ideas that heighten the liberal arts experience. “It’s really boring when you see the same kinds of people every day. When people come from all di erent places, I think it changes the whole atmosphere. You can learn from other people’s customs and then mesh them with your own.”
COMMUNITY
SHINE: MADDALENA MARINARI
How We Got Here
INFORMED BY LIVED EXPERIENCES AS AN IMMIGRANT, THIS PROFESSOR’S WORK BRINGS LESSONS FROM ITALIAN AND JEWISH IMMIGRANT HISTORY TO THE PRESENT.
In Marinari’s Italian hometown, “everyone had someone who left.” Her parents were leavers too—except they came back. After living in Switzerland, Marinari’s father had an extremely too—except they came back. After living in Switzerland, Marinari’s father had an extremely positive experience as an immigrant, while her mother struggled and felt more at home positive experience as an immigrant, while her mother struggled and felt more at home in Italy. “I grew up with these two di erent narratives about what it means to leave your in Italy. “I grew up with these two di erent narratives about what it means to leave your country.” The desire to understand her parents’ experiences planted an intellectual curiosity country.” The desire to understand her parents’ experiences planted an intellectual curiosity which led her to the United States and the study of immigration history in the U.S.. When which led her to the United States and the study of immigration history in the U.S.. When the fi rst migrant waves from Italy and Eastern Europe arrived in the U.S. in the late the fi rst migrant waves from Italy and Eastern Europe arrived in the U.S. in the late 19th century, America was already passing restrictive policies to preserve the country’s 19th century, America was already passing restrictive policies to preserve the country’s white, Anglo-Saxon, Protestant identity. Later, instead of targeting Irish and German white, Anglo-Saxon, Protestant identity. Later, instead of targeting Irish and German immigrants, anti-immigrant feelings centered on Chinese, Italian, and Jewish immigrants. Marinari’s book Unwanted (University of North Carolina Press) traces how Italian and Jewish immigrant communities endured years of discrimination in the U.S.
A path to citizenship was crucial for securing basic rights, but at the time, only “white” immigrants were eligible. “The discrimination Italians and Jews faced doesn’t really compare to immigrants of color,” she says.
That America is a nation of immigrants is declared proudly in high school civics classes, enshrined in national landmarks. In practice, however, new arrivals have faced systemic oppression in a cycle which continues today. “Sometimes I read these quotes in newspapers and I think, ‘What year is it? Is it 2022 or 1922?’” Marinari asks. Her co-directed project “Immigrants in COVID America” is documenting the impact of COVID-19 on immigrants and refugees in the United States. The results have already led to a better understanding of vaccine hesitancy among these populations, in addition to preserving immigrant voices.
Marinari shares such immigrant voices from then and now in class. The realities are shocking to many. That, she says, is where critical thinking sharpens. “We have to be comfortable with being uncomfortable.”
JUSTICE
Marinari is a key organizer of #ImmigrationSyllabus, an accessible collection of historical resources that put our modern immigration debates in context. The project’s original target audience was activists and journalists, but K-12 teachers have since latched on. Says Marinari, “It’s exciting to hear that we’re making a di erence.”
GUSTIE FAMILY ALL IN THE
GUSTAVUS WAS FOUNDED BY IMMIGRANTS, AND MANY OF ITS FIRST GRADUATES WERE FIRST-GENERATION COLLEGE STUDENTS. SIBLINGS, CHILDREN, AND OTHER FAMILY MEMBERS OFTEN FOLLOW AN INITIAL PIONEERING GUSTIE TO THE HILL. HERE ARE STORIES OF GUSTIE FAMILY, COMMUNITY,
AND PRIDE.
FAMILY MEMBERS OFTEN
MEET MORE GUSTIE LEGACY FAMILIES PAGE 20. LEGACY FAMILIES PAGE 20.
Per “Flit” Langsjoen
Class of 1943
Arne Langsjoen
Class of 1942
Odin Langsjoen
Class of 1944
Nels Langsjoen
Class of 1911
Leif Langsjoen
Class of 1947
Trudy Langsjoen
Class of 1950
Alma “Doopy” Langsjoen
Class of 1953
Ralph “Tonk” Langsjoen
Class of 1950
Sven “Beanie” Langsjoen
Class of 1948
A LEGACY OF LANGSJOENS
FROM THE FIRST CHILD OF AN IMMIGRANT FAMILY TO GO TO COLLEGE TO ALL EIGHT OF HIS OWN CHILDREN, AND MORE. IT’S A GUSTAVUS LEGACY MORE THAN A CENTURY OLD. BY RACHAEL HANEL
It all started with Nels.
He was the son of Norwegian immigrants. His parents, Peder and Gertrude, met in Dalton, Minnesota, when Peder was a hired hand on Gertrude’s family farm. The oldest of nine children born in the U.S., Nels enrolled at Gustavus in 1907 and graduated in 1911, salutatorian of a class of around 100 students. As far as is known, none of his siblings attended college.
Nels made much of his Gustavus education. After graduation, he taught and coached high school sports in Pelican Rapids, earned a master’s degree in language studies, and married Alma Matson, a first-generation Swedish immigrant. He served as president of Northwestern College in Fergus Falls. When it closed during the Great Depression, Nels and Alma returned to Gustavus where Nels would teach German, French, and Spanish.
It would prove hard to find a landlord that would rent to them; with them were their eight children: Arne, Per, Odin, Leif, Sven, Ralph, Gertrude, and Alma.
All of those children would attend Gustavus. Between 1938 and 1950, there was at least one Langsjoen child attending Gustavus. For a brief time, four of them were there together.
The legacy filters down, as several of Nels and Alma’s grandchildren, and even great-grandchildren, attended Gustavus.
Certainly Nels’ position as a Gustavus faculty member helped ease the financial burden of college for eight children. Pete Langsjoen ’69, grandson of Nels and son of Arne (who became a professor of chemistry at Gustavus), also benefited from this advantage. “But I would have gone there anyway,” says Pete. “Where else would I go?”
Pete documented the unusual family story in a book published for family
members titled Langsjoen: Building a Legacy. According to his research through the Gustavus Adolphus College Archives, including yearbooks, photos, and Gustavian Weekly articles, the eight Langsjoen kids thrived at Gustavus— athletically and academically. “Initially they were reported like anyone else. So-and-so tried out for football, or joined a certain fraternity, or was elected a class o cer,” Pete notes in the book. “But gradually the narrative changed from discussing the accomplishments of the individual to discussing the accomplishments of the family, and always in glowing terms.” There were valedictorians, editors of TheWeekly and Student Senate leaders, and a Frosh Queen. Their athleticism was legendary. Together, the Langsjoen men earned a total of 30 letters. (It would have been more if it hadn’t been for WWII.) And all six earned the Myrum Memorial Key, awarded to the senior athlete with the highest academic record. It could be argued that Gustavus athletics was built on Langsjoen e ort.
As the oldest grandchild, Pete knew many of the family stories, but not all of them. “I knew a lot of the good things, but the more I looked at it, the better it got,” he says.
When all the siblings fi nally matriculated, the Minneapolis Tribune ran a story with the headline “Poor Old Gustavus—No More Langsjoens.”
All six boys served their country during World War II, with all of their names inscribed on the Saint Peter Area Veterans Memorial. Per was part of a V-7 Naval Reserve program. When he graduated from Gustavus in 1943, he was commissioned as a deck o cer. Odie graduated from Gustavus early in 1943 and was commissioned as an ensign in the Navy. Arne entered the Army and trained for chemical warfare and also taught soldiers how to protect themselves against gas attacks. Leif and Sven were part of the Navy’s V-12 program, in which graduates of the program were commissioned as o cers. (The Gustavus campus was home to a V-12 program from 1943 until 1946. During that time, 213 marines and 739 sailors lived in Rundstrom and Uhler Halls.) Ralph graduated from high school early and joined the Navy, attending Gustavus after his service. Two of the Langsjoen brothers earned Purple Hearts.
All six of the boys— members of Phi Alpha while at Gustavus—earned advanced degrees. Arne became a chemistry professor at Gustavus. Sven (“Beanie”) joined Arne and his father as a professor at Gustavus. He taught modern languages like his dad. Per (“Flit”) and Ralph (“Tonk”) became medical doctors. Odie became a dentist. Leif became a lawyer and judge. Gertrude (“Trudie”) became a teacher and Alma (“Doopy”) worked in a variety of jobs after raising six children.
trained for chemical warfare and
Though Pete cannot say for sure what exactly contributed to the family’s success, he says it was likely a combination of things. “The kids were small then. I stu ed them all into our old Buick and we left Fergus Falls about nine that morning. We took our lunch along. We couldn’t a ord a restaurant. Mrs. Selma Larson, a friend of ours, took us to her house in Saint Peter for supper. I never appreciated a meal so much in my life.”
—GUSTAVUS PROFESSOR NELS LANGSJOEN 1911, IN A 1958 ARTICLE FROM THE MINNEAPOLIS STAR.
Nels’ children grew up during the Great Depression, which proved to be formative for the Langsjoens (as well as millions of others in America). It certainly factored into the family’s Gustavus legacy; Nels could send all eight children to Gustavus for free. The children all came of age during World War II, which made them all part of “the greatest generation.” The war, especially the V-7 and V-12 programs, also may have had something to do with inspiring confi dence in the Langsjoen boys who participated, Ross Langsjoen, son of Leif, notes. “The point of the programs was to take very young men and give them the skills and confi dence they needed to lead during wartime.”
Clockwise, from left: “Flippin” Flit ’43 was basketball team, co-captain; Sven “Beanie” ’48 (“Mr. Football) and Leif “Doc” ’47 (Weekly Sports Editor) were both in the Naval V-12 program. Trudy ’50, was Frosh Queen.
Doopy, the Homecoming Queen of Saint Peter, 1948
And there was the work ethic of their immigrant great grandparents and grandparents. Erik ’72, son of Odie, says Alma was of Swedish heritage, and the combination of Swedish (Alma) and Norwegian (Nels) placed an importance on both having fun and having a drive to succeed. Ross says he especially admired his Grandma Alma. “She worked like a dog. She had that whole brood of kids to take care of, ran the food service [at Gustavus for a time], and was very determined to do what she needed to do. She was the glue that held the outfi t together.”
Clearly Nels and Alma were good role models. “The parents had to have a lot to do with it. I wish I knew what their secret was,” Pete says with a laugh. Says Ross, “It was a special group. Their dad is the head of a language department at the college, they all are physically competitive and good at athletics, they have a desire to be special. All of that added together.” Even if there was some competitiveness, “they all did get along very well,” Pete says. The eight Gustie siblings remained close all of their lives.
Gustavus was deeply woven into the family’s fabric. Ross remembers visiting campus for homecoming and other events as a kid. His uncle, Arne, was instrumental in the planning of the Nobel Hall of Science and the entire family went to see it upon completion.
Ross also remembers meeting the legendary sculptor Paul Granlund ’52. When Ross was a boy, his Grandma Alma took him to campus where Granlund rendered a cast of his head. Ross’s grandma completed the sculpture and Ross still has it today.
Erik has fond memories of family gatherings in Saint
Six of the eight Langsjoen kids as adults
Clockwise, from left: Modern Languages professor Sven “Beanie” ’48. Arne ’42, valedictorian of his class. Odie ’44 and his future wife, Mavis McClure ’44. He graduated early to join the Navy.
Tolga and Roros, Norway
A NORWEGIAN AT A SWEDISH SCHOOL?
Peter, particularly at the Langsjoen house at 410 N. Fourth Street. (It was occupied by a Langsjoen until it was destroyed by the tornado in 1998.) He remembers his grandfather, Nels, as an “iconic fi gure” holding court. “I weaseled into sitting on his lap, and he’d feed me sugar cubes dipped in his co ee,” Erik says. He describes Nels as a consummate teacher, quiet and determined. The siblings were close and Erik was a little in awe. “All of the brothers and sisters were pretty impressive fi gures to a little kid. They were clever and glib and sure of themselves,” he says. When it came time for college, “Gustavus was the only place I wanted to go,” he says.
Pete also attended Gustavus, as did his sister, Karen ’67, and brother, Thor ’72. Karen served as the bookstore manager at Gustavus for many years. Erik met his spouse at Gustavus (a common occurance among Langsjoens). Erik’s sister, Linnea ’68, attended, as did his daughter, Maria (Mia) ’05. His son, jokingly called “the black sheep,” attended Northwestern University in Evanston, IL. Ross attended Gustavus for one year. His sister, Linda ’73, graduated from Gustavus.
Nels and his children—the fi rst two generations of Langsjoens—are long gone. The youngest, Doopy, died in November at the age of 90.
Pete still attends college reunions and frequently comes to Saint Peter to visit his sister Karen. “It’s great,” Pete says of returning to Gustavus. “Every year there’s a reason for me to come back to campus.”
So many more of Nels Langsjoen’s descendants have chosen Gustavus. It’s at least 15, according to Pete’s records and college records, including at least three that are Nels’s great grandchildren. New legacies are continuously being built.
And a family of eight children who all attended Gustavus? Like the Langsjoen siblings themselves, that’s pretty special. Skål to their father, Nels, who opened the door.
Hundreds of thousands of Swedes and Norwegians came to the U.S. between 1850 and 1930. Among them were Norwegians Peder Nilson Langsjoen and Gertrude Swenson, the parents of the fi rst Gustie Langsjoen.
Glenn Kranking ’98, professor of History and Scandinavian Studies, says Scandinavians at the time valued education. “What is striking is that [Peder and Gertrude] would send their son to a very Swedish school.” In Norway, the Langsjoen family lived near Tolga and Roros, near the Swedish border. They may have been familiar with Swedish culture. Or Dalton, Minnesota, where they settled, may have been a mixed community of Swedes and Norwegians.
The Langsjoen legacy of public service careers also correlates. “Scandinavian immigrants saw the value in public service,” Kranking says. Service remains a Gustavus core value.
BEFORE THERE WERE EUROPEAN SETTLERS southern Minnesota was home to
the Dakota for thousands of years. Throughout the 1800s, as settlers moved west, the U.S. government made and broke treaties with the Dakota. These broken promises escalated into the U.S.-Dakota War of 1862 and resulted in the forced removal of the Dakota from their homelands. We live in the shadow of this history.
Adriana Her Class of 2026
Pang Her Class of 2010 Yeng Her
Class of 2010
Amy Her
Class of 2013
Emily Her
Class of 2020
THE HER HERITAGE
WHEN THE ELDEST OF THE HER KIDS ENROLLED AT GUSTAVUS, SHE UNLOCKED THE DOOR TO COLLEGE FOR HER SIX SIBLINGS.
BY STEPHANIE WILBUR ASH
It started with Kee.
She is the daughter of Hmong immigrants Wang and Yeng Thao, refugees of the Vietnam War and a CIA-sponsored secret operation that destroyed their homelands in Laos. Kee ’06 was born in Laos. Her brother, Yeng ’10, was born in a Thai refugee camp. After sponsorship from an aunt and the Roman Catholic Church, the family of four landed in Rhode Island in December of 1987, “with nothing but the clothes on our backs,” Kee says. “A zip-up jacket—that was my coat at the time.”
A third sibling, Pang ’10, was born in the U.S. less than a year later. Their parents spent a decade working labor jobs in suburban Boston while living and parenting in a new country. “They had to do everything new—learn English, navigate driving—on top of raising three young kids,” says Pang. Not an easy task, especially when Kee and Yeng, who did not yet speak English, struggled at daycare. There were no Hmong resources there at the time, and ultimately the two were removed. More daughters would come, including Amy ’13 and Elizabeth ’19, before the parents
packed them all into two vehicles and a U-Haul and moved to southwestern Minnesota.
They settled near family, on a six-acre hobby farm outside of Marshall. “We were so happy on the farm!” says Pang. The family grew close in the country, in a community of their own making, with three more Her kids (for a total of 10, including Emily ’20) and a menagerie of family pets that included a pony named Ponius and a peacock named Kevin.
Gustavus entered their lives through Kee, who saw a fl yer about Gustavus at her high school. As a fi rst-generation prospective college student, “I knew I wanted to go to college but I didn’t know what it meant to get there,” she says. The Gustavus admission counselor who visited with her, Yvonne McGee, “we just clicked.” The feeling continued on her campus visit, with the entire family in tow. “My parents were super active participants in the college search process,” says Pang. “We had that dad with the camcorder and an opinion on every campus.”
Kee’s opinion was favorable. “There are colleges that will tell you that you are colleges that will tell you that you will fi t there and colleges that will make will fi t there and colleges that will make you feel that. I had the feeling that I could be a part of Gustavus,” she says. could be a part of Gustavus,” she says. Choosing Gustavus was the easy part. Leaving home was harder. “I remember Leaving home was harder. “I remember my mom dropping me o , and Emily and Elizabeth crying. I was terrifi ed. I had come from a community where we didn’t leave home.” Elizabeth was fi ve, and Emily, four. They cried for the entire and Emily, four. They cried for the entire two-hour car ride home.
Kee brought war-torn Laos, a refugee Kee brought war-torn Laos, a refugee camp in Thailand, suburban Boston, rural Minnesota, and a culture of resilience with her to Gustavus. “It was drilled into us as kids that if you don’t know the answer, you step up and ask.” At Gustavus, the support was there. “I remember walking into the fi nancial aid o ce asking, what do I do? And Mark Anderson ’66 [then vice president for admission and fi nancial aid] said, ‘Let’s sit down.’ I had so many friends, advisers, professors who made me feel at home. I knew if I went to somebody, they would help me.”
Yeng followed Kee. “He’s the one who left Gustavus with the most friends,” Pang says. Then it was Pang’s turn. “Gustavus was one less decision for me. Dad would get o my case!” she jokes. She, still forged her own path. “I had to say, ‘I’m not Kee.’ I got set up with a mentor. We sat down my fi rst year and mapped out all four years and a pivot plan.
“That’s not a resource we had at home,” she notes. “I couldn’t sit down with my parents and do that. We were extremely dependent on the resources that were available at Gustavus.”
For three more Her siblings, Gustavus was pretty much their foregone conclusion. “We dragged them everywhere on campus when they were little,” Kee says. “They wanted Gustavus t-shirts for Christmas.” (They got them.) “We encouraged them to look around, but ultimately they had to build their own legacy,” Pang says.
“I set out to be di erent,” Amy says. “I was like, this is my chance!” She looked
—KEE HER ’06, THE ELDEST OF SEVEN GUSTIE SIBLINGS
Above and right: Emily ’20 and Elizabeth ’19 (photographed twice on the Paul Granlund ’52 sculpture, Luna Moth Matrix) were raised on frequent visits to campus. Above: Kevin, the beloved family peacock. Below: the family hobby farm just outside of Marshall where the siblings were raised. Left, six of the nine Her women.
at colleges in urban areas, but when she got down to it, “it just became evident that Gustavus was a better fi t. I felt comfortable. I had everything I needed.” She did, however, break the mold by studying abroad. “I had to tell our parents, ‘I’m not going for fun.’ I had to give them an entire presentation.”
Elizabeth toured other schools too. “But did I apply? No,” she laughs. “Since I was little, Gustavus was the dream because I was so attached to my older siblings.” The same holds true for Emily. “I remember making a slideshow in the fourth grade about Gustavus and I had to ask how to spell ‘college’. I sent my ACT score to a few di erent places but I don’t even know why.” Pang remembers being amazed at the questions one of her younger sisters asked on college tours. Credit transfers, study abroad— they were the questions of a someone who had inherited a knowledge of how college works. “I didn’t even know those questions existed when I toured,” Pang questions existed when I toured,” Pang
Kee and Yeng with their parents in their fi rst year in the U.S.
Top left: The Her Gustie sisters with their mother at a wedding in Lakeville. Bottom left: Baby Adriana ’26 and Elizabeth ’19 with their mother at the farm in Marshall.
Elizabeth ’19 (in Gustie gear) and Emily ’20 at the sign.
says. If you’re among the fi rst in your family to go to college, “you fake it ’til you make it.”
And here they are now. Kee is a physician’s assistant working in critical care. Yeng works for the U.S. Postal Service. Pang manages a process improvement team for Pace Labs. Amy works with her as a quality analyst. Elizabeth is a pediatric nurse on a medical and surgical fl oor. Emily just fi nished her fi rst year teaching elementary school art. (The Her siblings also infl uenced a cousin’s daughter from North Carolina to become a Gustie, Anjolie Kue ’21.) In the Her parents’ living room is a framed photo of six Gusties standing at the sign, though some of the heads have had to be photoshopped in by Elizabeth because the COVID-19 pandemic has prevented them from being together for recent graduations. The last of the Her sibling crew is a sophomore in high school.
Six Gusties at the sign, yet there are seven Gustie Her siblings.
This September, Adriana, born in 2004 during Kee’s sophomore year, joins the Gustavus Class of 2026.
—PANG HER ’10
Laos
HMONG IN MINNESOTA AND AT GUSTAVUS
Hmong immigrants came to the United States, and Minnesota, from Laos beginning in 1975. The MinneapolisSt. Paul metro area is home to the largest concentration of Hmong in America, a migration spurred by the sponsorship of organizations such as the U.S. Catholic Conference and Lutheran Social Services.
The fi rst Hmong graduate of Gustavus, Chia Vang ’94, is now a professor of history at the University Wisconsin-Milwaukee. “We were refugees,” she told Gustavus history professor Greg Kaster on the College’s Learning for Life podcast. “Obviously, that’s a very di erent experience than immigrants who prepared to leave. With refugee status, people are fl eeing for their lives.” Early Hmong students helped start an organization for Asian cultures. Today, there are several orgs, including the Hmong American Cultural Outreach (HACO), which promotes unity, culture, and heritage and multicultural awareness.
MEET THE NEW LEGACIES
THE LANGSJOENS AND THE HERS ARE JUST TWO FAMILIES WHOSE MEMBERS HAVE FOLLOWED EACH OTHER TO GUSTAVUS. HERE ARE MORE. Ingrid ’21 and Reidun ’21
THE THIERHOFFS
Sven ’88 came to Gustavus as a top-ranked tennis player. He graduated from White Bear Lake High School and was an international student at Gustavus. (He and his family were German citizens; his father worked at 3M). Ruth Mason and Marianne Keswani ’53 in the International Center helped to create a sense of community for him and other international students. His tennis coach, Steve Wilkinson, and wife, Barb, became like second parents.
“I felt part of the tennis family at Gustavus and have come back many times,” Sven says. He is still involved with Tennis & Life Camps today. His son, Can ’19, who was raised in Germany, was familiar with Gustavus because of his many visits to campus for TLC. Can chose Gustavus because of that familiar feeling and, like his dad, was an international student who played varsity tennis.
Can now works in sports performance and management in Germany. Sven also lives in Germany, where he runs the brand licensing business for Endeavor/IMG. He can envision other members of his family choosing Gustavus. “I have not experienced a more positive environment for families and kids,” he says.
THE KUBISAS
For sisters Ingrid ’21 and Reidun ’21, the Gustavus legacy comes from an alumni connection. Originally from the Frenchspeaking Democratic Republic of Congo, the Kubisas moved to Minnesota in 2016. At church, they met former Gustavus President Jim Peterson and his wife, Susan. (See page 39.) The Petersons helped the sisters look at various colleges around Minnesota but Gustavus stood out. A campus tour in their native tongue showed Gustavus was the place for them. Says Ingrid, “We felt welcomed by the community since the fi rst day we visited campus.” Ingrid—a political science major with a double minor in African studies and peace studies, and Reidun—a psychology major—were the fi rst Congolese students to enroll at Gustavus. “We felt valued when [international student adviser] Je Anderson put our fl ag in the cafeteria.” Today, Ingrid is a research, education, and advocacy assistant at the Advocates for Human Rights in Minneapolis, and Reidun is working as an autism behavior technician at Fraser in Eden Prairie. The Kubisa sisters have a goal of getting more Congolese students to consider Gustavus, starting with their sister, Melysa ’25.
FIRST-FORWARD NETWORK
This initiative aims to provide guidance, direction, and resources for fi rst-generation students. It does so as students transition from high school to Gustavus, and as they navigate transition from high school to Gustavus, and as they navigate their journey through college, whether they meet the formal defi nition of fi rst-generation or simply recognize the need to fi ll defi nition of fi rst-generation or simply recognize the need to fi ll hidden academic, institutional culture, or networking gaps.
THE JAYAWARDENAS
Brother-sister pair Asitha ’09 and Mayanthi ’11 both received the Gustavus First-Decade Award. Asitha, a pediatric ENT surgeon at Children’s Minnesota in Minneapolis, also found Gustavus through tennis, through a friend of his father’s who convinced Asitha to visit. Asitha was so impressed with Steve Wilkinson and how he brought Buddhist concepts into his coaching style. “Coach Wilk is one of those people who has had the greatest infl uence on my life,” he says.
Mayanthi followed. She vividly recalls one weekend she spent visiting Asitha. She loved the energy and beauty of the campus. But, “most importantly, I remember seeing [Asitha] celebrating our culture and fi nding places where it was celebrated and I think that turned the tide for me,” she says. She is now a multi-disciplinary artist and small business owner in Durham, N.C.
Asitha hopes his children will one day choose Gustavus. “I’ve been lucky enough to have experienced a wide variety of top-ranked universities and I legitimately couldn’t think of a better place for my daughters,” he says.
Asitha ’09 and Mayanthi ’11 Anthony ’24 and Jesús Hernández THE HERNÁNDEZES
A fi rst-generation college student, immigrant, and Army veteran who attended public colleges, Jesús Hernández Mejía knew little about Gustavus growing up in Butterfi eld. His son, Anthony ’24, knew quite a bit more. He worked in the Caf while in high school, and attended Tennis & Life Camps. And his dad works here as Dean of Financial Aid. The fi nances were on Jesús’s mind as Anthony chose a college. For Anthony, “it’s more like I picked a school and my dad happens to work here. Sometimes it’s like we’re not even on the same campus.” (They do grab lunch on Fridays.) Jesús says the key factor for fi rst-generation and immigrant siblings is support from Gustavus. “How does the fi rst sibling feel they are treated? If that fi rst sibling feels like they got the support they needed, the other siblings will feel like it’s a good fi t for them.” That includes academics. “Our professors do a phenomenal job of going the extra mile,” he says. And it includes fi nancial aid. “Prospective students know the same opportunities their sibling had will be applied to them as well.”
GUSTAVUS LEGACY AWARDS
These awards, which help reduce the cost of Gustavus, are given to students whose siblings are current students or alumni, or whose parents or grandparents are Gustavus alumni.
In response to the Gustavus Acts Strategic Plan, the College awards 50 of these each year to students with high academic achievement who have fi nancial need. A four-year commitment of $3,000 per year is awarded to the student in their fi rst year and remains with them all four years. Like more than 400 endowed scholarships (supporting more than 1300 students), Heritage Scholarships are named by their donors.
