COLLABORATION FOCUSES ON STUDENT SUCCESS: THE NURSING PROGRAM AT SCSU
St. Cloud State excels in a broad range of academic programs that benefit from interaction with regional employers who advise and consult with faculty, provide internships, field experiences and jobs to students before and after graduation. Our collaborations and partnerships help keep our academic programs, like SCSU’s Nursing programs, responsive and relevant in this time of rapid social, demographic and technological change.
FROM THE PRESIDENT
4 An SCSU president for a time like no other: Dr. Robbyn Wacker NEWS
9 Professor co-authors publication in prestigious science journal
10 Opendorse allows SCSU studentathletes to build their personal brands and receive compensation
11 Dr. Larry Dietz named interim president effective July 1
12 Historic season for SCSU’s women's soccer program
FEATURES
14 Focused on discovery: Reimagining the Honors College
18 Collaboration focuses on student success: SCSU Nursing programs are essential for the region’s success
24 Changes in Admissions, enrollment provide new opportunities for modern students
27 #OurSCSU — Celebrating SCSU community: Jestine Ware uses passion for writing to help her community (Pg. 28); SCSU Women’s Women’s Center director looks to maintain, expand strong community of support (pg. 32)
ALUMNI NEWS
35 Class notes on scsu.mn/ourscsu
BY MARSHA SHOEMAKER
AN SCSU PRESIDENT FOR A TIME LIKE NO OTHER DR. ROBBYN WACKER
As she shared her vision for SCSU’s future at her 2018 inauguration, 24th President Robbyn Wacker talked about legacy, aspiration, purpose, courage, resilience and adaptability. Those words would take on deep significance as ongoing realities troubling higher education and a dreadful pandemic would make hers a presidency of extraordinary challenge and change.
After arriving at St. Cloud State University in 2018, she met with students, faculty, staff, alumni and high school and community leaders to listen and learn what the University was doing well and where it needed to do better to meet the region’s evolving needs.
“Those conversations also included identifying and addressing the challenges we were facing, as we all knew it was time to reimagine St. Cloud State so we could address those challenges head on,” Dr. Wacker said.
SCSU’s difficulties were clearly evident. Every year since 2010, enrollment numbers dropped due to a smaller pool of college-age individuals opting for higher education, compounded by intense competition among hundreds of universities both within the state and nationally for a diminishing number of students. Add those stories of doubts about the value of a college degree, and the picture was clear: SCSU must chart a bold new course to be in step with how our student pool and our world are evolving. Simply “tinkering around the edges” would not be sufficient in addressing the challenges facing SCSU head on.
Steven McCullar, director of SCSU’s higher education doctoral program,
observed: “From the beginning this was not the most attractive presidency to assume. President Wacker came into it showing character and bravery. She saw a lot of opportunity where others didn’t.”
Under her leadership the campus turned its attention to identifying what SCSU would be in the future and how it would change to address the needs and challenges to come. Faculty, staff and students came together to proactively shape SCSU’s future to ensure that it remains a thriving and relevant institution. Their efforts created an innovative strategic framework named It’s Time.
“We were ready to build on a foundation of strength and move forward with big, positive changes,” President Wacker said.
STRATEGIC FRAMEWORK
The It’s Time strategic framework charted a bold path for St. Cloud State to be a new type of university, designed to recognize and build upon institutional innovation, forward-thinking research, teacher-scholars, strengthening distinctive academic programs — all while identifying new ways to serve students and extending the University’s reach to become the institution of choice for a wide range of students.
It’s Time combines the best parts of a public university education — access, affordability, a rich network of alumni and business relationships — with a strategic
focus on a personalized student experience and a direct connect to career preparation experiences.
“As I reflect on those initial discussions surrounding It’s Time, for me, it was exciting because it provided us with a clear vision upon which we could build and reimagine our initiatives,” said Michelle Schmitz, former executive director of SCSU’s Career Center.
While acknowledging initial hesitations from some, Schmitz highlighted the positive impact of It’s Time on her strategic planning amidst financial constraints.
“It provided much-needed direction during a period where we were all challenged to accomplish more with fewer resources,” she said. “It spurred a renewed commitment from the campus to explore innovative approaches, fostering stronger partnerships with academic departments and local businesses. These collaborations have greatly enhanced our ability to prioritize personalized student support services.”
The work the campus had begun on It’s Time before COVID upended life as we knew it helped administrators, faculty and staff mobilize to accelerate changes that would allow the University to continue
She saw a lot of opportunity where others didn’t.
– STEVEN MCCULLAR, DIRECTOR OF SCSU’S HIGHER EDUCATION DOCTORAL PROGRAM
delivering education to students from a virtual ghost-town campus in the wake of the March 13, 2020 shutdown. No one knew how long the situation would continue or when/if there would be an end to the complications and turmoil it brought.
“Through the pandemic she still continued following through with the plan for moving forward while dealing with the new challenges,” McCullar said. “I think that’s pretty remarkable. It would have been easy to lose sight of her mission.
“I don’t think any president was prepared to shut down a university then restart it — there’s not a president’s handbook for that,” added McCullar.
FOCUSED ON STUDENT SUCCESS AND A VIBRANT UNIVERSITY
As the University rapidly adjusted to COVID-19, it only accelerated and affirmed the It’s Time work, especially the importance of personalizing the student experience, meeting students where they’re at and making education more equitable. Under Dr. Wacker’s leadership and in partnership with Vice President of Strategic Enrollment Management Jason Woods and his team, SCSU doubled the number of advisors and implemented the Huskies Student Success Adviser model, which infuses advising with success coaching to address the whole student.
Knowing how important it is for a
I believe students felt empowered and valued by her approach. She ensured that every student felt heard.
– MICHELLE SCHMITZ, FORMER EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF SCSU’S CAREER CENTER
5 university to have faculty who are outstanding teachers and scholars in their field, Dr. Wacker also made sure supporting their work was a top priority.
President Wacker came on board just as SCSU was launching its first comprehensive fundraising campaign in 20 years. This campaign surpassed its initial fundraising goal by $7M, and its success is already having a direct and long-lasting impact on the current and future students at SCSU. Additionally, in partnership with Vice President of Advancement and Alumni Engagement Nic Katona, Wacker established annual alumni gatherings in Minnesota, Florida, Arizona, Texas, Washington D.C., at our Alnwick Castle location in the UK and in Kathmandu, where Wacker and Associate Vice President for International Studies Shahzad Ahmad met with over 25 alumni, many of whom have children coming to SCSU.
“Our alumni, 131,000-plus strong in Minnesota and across the globe, are incredibly important to SCSU and it was important to start a concerted effort to connect with our alumni,” she said.
With Dr. Wacker’s leadership, St. Cloud State University is staying ahead of upcoming education needs as is evident in the most recent program offerings. SCSU offers online certificate programs in cannabis education, the first of its kind in Minnesota. More than 300 students have enrolled in the program since its launch last year.
As another example of innovation, the Herberger Business School faculty is offering an accelerated online MBA program to meet the educational needs of adult learners. The program brings high quality instruction to the flexibility of the online environment — a need for working adults who are balancing work and life responsibilities while still advancing their careers. In 18 months since this program was started, it has enrolled 400 students.
In support of the It’s Time focus on faculty scholarship, Wacker assisted faculty creation of institutes and centers that further the mission and outreach of the University. This included the Linda ’74 and Richard Offerdahl Autism Discovery Center, which provides a true
Arslan Malik recently finished his second term as SCSU student body president. Born in Pakistan, he moved to Dubai, United Arab Emirates at age 7, came to St. Cloud State University from there in 2019 and joined Student Government a month later.
Working closely with President Wacker has given me a unique perspective on her innovative and student-centered approach, which has notably propelled the University through some of its most challenging yet transformative periods, such as the COVID-19 pandemic.
President Wacker’s vision for SCSU, encapsulated in the It’s Time strategic framework, has been a beacon of innovative thinking, which not only emphasizes the importance of inclusivity and diversity but also redefines higher education to better serve the needs of students and the community Her efforts to ensure that SCSU remains a vibrant part of the St. Cloud community, such as leading the University beyond its 150th year with renewed commitment to student success and community engagement, are especially commendable
Her dedication to student success is evident through her frequent interactions with students and her regular attendance at Student Senate meetings. President Wacker’s approachability and willingness to engage in dialogue has fostered a culture of open communication and collaboration across our campus. This has not only enhanced our educational experience, but it has also made us feel valued and heard.
Her achievements in navigating SCSU through the pandemic with bold and decisive actions underscore her commitment to the health and well-being of the student body and the larger University community. Under her leadership, SCSU has maintained its academic excellence while adapting to the changing landscape of higher education.
On a personal note, as the student body president, I have found President Wacker’s leadership to be profoundly inspiring. Her ability to listen to and genuinely consider student feedback has been a testament to her student-centered approach. It’s been an honor to work with her and witness firsthand her unwavering dedication to enhancing the student experience at SCSU.
I look forward to seeing how her legacy will continue to influence St. Cloud State University and its students for years to come.
training clinic and resource for parents and families; the Center for International Disability Advocacy and Diplomacy that created training modules for employees in the hospitality industry to better serve persons with disabilities and the Center for Cultivating Community & Environmental Sustainability, which will use our longstanding Community Garden as a focal point to educate and expand knowledge about sustainable agriculture.
President Wacker will be remembered for her sincere interest in and commitment to the welfare, success and engagement of every student.
“President Wacker consistently displayed a genuine eagerness to engage with, support and connect with students,” Schmitz said. “I believe students felt empowered and valued by her approach. She ensured that every student felt heard, which not only energized them but also fostered a sense of authenticity in their interactions.”
SCSU’S N0. 1 FAN
Social media was a way Wacker personally connected with Husky Nation. Those on social media became familiar with her golden retrievers Zoe and Kemmer when she and spouse Jani Malkiewicz first arrived in Central Minnesota. We grieved with her when they passed and delighted in the antics and tricks of their new young ‘treivers, Mady and Kizy.
Her enthusiasm for SCSU and its students also came through in President Wacker embracing all things Huskies. She was unabashedly their number one fan.
“During President Wacker’s time at SCSU, we have seen continued support both through her leadership and her presence at our events,” said Director of Athletics Holly Schreiner. “She has a true understanding of the time and dedication it takes to compete at this level and has always been our top supporter. Her genuine desire to see us succeed has been inspiring.”
She also worked with her leadership team to build a sense of community and she started Winterfest in 2022, an outdoor campus celebration each December. She was overheard saying, “It’s Minnesota! Let’s celebrate winter!”
President Wacker took her pride into the community, building connections that would benefit students.
St. Cloud Mayor and ’81 graduate Dave Kleis also appreciated the “town and gown” partnership President Wacker sustained through her presidency. “Robbyn and I became friends when she arrived and continued through the challenges of COVID and the
ensuing issues no one could have expected,” he said.
One significant community partnership is with Granite Partners CEO Rick Bauerly, a private investment and holding company in St. Cloud that became the premier sponsor for the Power in Diversity Leadership Conference and Diversity Job for the first time this year.
Her genuine desire to see us succeed has been inspiring
– HOLLY SCHREINER, DIRECTOR OF ATHLETICS
“We are grateful for the impact that St. Cloud State University has in our region and across the state and appreciate President Wacker’s stewardship for the past six years, including navigating COVID, balancing challenging budgets, expanding experiential learning and supporting programs for student success,” Bauerly said.
Wacker is quick to credit many members of the institution for the strides that been made.
“The successes we have experienced has been realized because we have an outstanding group of academic leaders, faculty and staff who were committed to implementing our new, bold vision.”
In fall 2023, new enrollment numbers made it apparent It’s Time was having a positive impact. Vice President for Strategic Enrollment
Jason Woods issued this welcome announcement: “After four years of careful planning and implementation efforts we have done it! We have accomplished the first year over year headcount increase since 2015. As of October 4, our overall headcount is 10,134 Huskies strong.”
Wacker is also proud of the diversity at St. Cloud State University, and she sees that diversity as a tremendous asset to our students and our community. Under her leadership, SCSU now welcomes students from nearly 100 different countries who attend school alongside students from Minnesota and across the county. “The community has benefited from international connections through the University,” Mayor Kleis said.
And with over 25% of our students being students of color, SCSU is a university of rich diversity which focuses on ensuring that everyone feels welcomed and has a sense of belonging.
For the future, “I wish for St. Cloud State that it will continue to be the vital, thriving, relevant institution that it always has been — alert to the needs of students, communities, business and education — and always evolving to be a force for positive change, adapting and responding to the changing world around us. I am grateful to have met so many incredible faculty, staff and alumni who care deeply about this institution and so many students who are ready to make a difference in the world.”
GO HUSKIES!
Dr. Robbyn Wacker
President, St. Cloud State University
Managing editor
Zach Dwyer
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SCSU STUDENTS IMPRESS AT MODEL UNITED NATIONS
BY ZACH DWYER
When asked to define what Model United Nations is, you get some pretty entertaining answers from St. Cloud State University students in the Political Science 395 course:
“Cosplaying as countries.”
“Political nerd improv.”
“Professional yapping.”
No matter what your definition of Model UN is, SCSU students had a tremendous showing at this spring’s MinneMUN 2024, the collegiate Model UN conference hosted by the University of Minnesota.
SCSU was awarded Outstanding Delegation, and students brought home awards for Outstanding Delegate in the Third Committee, Best Delegate and Outstanding Delegate on the Korean Crisis Committee and Honorable Mention on the Crime Commission.
Political Science Professor Dr. Linda Butenhoff taught the three-credit Model UN class last semester, preparing students for a grueling four days of debates.
The competition places students in either the United Nations general assembly or a committee, giving them a specific country to roleplay.
First they research how their chosen country would respond to a specific topic, which could vary from international issues like equitable education or digital privacy rights. Students write a paper on their country’s stance and what resolutions they would want to see passed. This gives students valuable background for debate
It has been exciting to be around this group of students who have so much energy and positive attitude.
– DR. LINDA BUTENHOFF, POLITICAL SCIENCE PROFESSOR
topics in the three-hour sessions of Model UN.
Dr. Butenhoff has been very impressed by her students’ depth of research and preparation for Model UN, seeing them instantly gel as a group and help each other put together position papers, speeches and resolutions.
“It’s an in-depth, interdisciplinary application of research into a country,” said Chantal Oechsle, a political science major and student in the Honors College. “I came back into school as a transfer student after taking 14 years off to raise a family … I’d been volunteering in politics in my spare time, and I discovered politics lights my soul on fire. Model UN was a no-brainer for me, because not only does it create that distinction on your resume, but it’s an opportunity to break from the traditional drudgery of politics and have a lot of fun.”
Tarek Alduri, a political science and international relations major, knew that he had to get involved once the class was announced for the spring.
“I come from a big debate background, so being able to take the context of all these countries and debate from not my own perspective, but a totally different
perspective that I may not agree with … was a big draw,” Alduri said.
The immersive experience made students feel like they were real United Nations delegates. Freshman Mya O’Connell has a strong interest in international relations, and Model UN was a perfect pairing of her passion and future career plans.
“I’m planning on going to law school and being a lawyer, so I should get the practice in right now of making my public speaking skills better,” O’Connell said. “I always had a fear of it, but this made me more confident.”
The sessions get intense, with students making alliances with total strangers in efforts of lobbying their goals. This builds bonds with classmates and people they may have just been arguing with for hours.
“Not only do I feel closer with the other 13 students (in our class), but even during the convention, I feel like I made a family with each and every delegate,” said Spenser Norling, a junior who is double majoring in geography and planning & community development.
Of the 14 students participating from SCSU, only one had ever competed in
Model UN prior to the March event. Mohamed Jama graduated in the spring with a degree in global business management, and he had always wanted to get involved in Model UN but never sought it out.
He credits Dr. Butenhoff for pushing him to take the class in his final semester.
“When I was playing my character, I could go anywhere with it; it helps you be creative and you learn a lot about history,” Jama said.
He was a part of a crisis committee staged in the era of the Korean War, playing a women’s rights advocate before facing an untimely demise. Other committees involved Star Wars, Paul Bunyan and more. Model UN isn’t just for people into politics; it’s for everyone and anyone.
Dr. Butenhoff praised Provost Abbey Zink for making SCSU’s participation a reality by supporting the class and helping fund the team’s travel to Minneapolis via bus.
“We got second overall, and we beat a lot of people who have been doing Model UN for 3-4 years,” Spenser Norling said. “Dr. Butenhoff prepared us really well for the experience in terms of background of the countries, how resolutions are made and the role playing we did beforehand.”
And with a year of experience under their belts, expect big things out of SCSU’s Model UN team in any future endeavors.
“It has been exciting to be around this group of students who have so much energy and positive attitude,” Butenhoff said. “I feel lucky to be their instructor.”
SCSU PROFESSOR CO-AUTHORS PUBLICATION IN PRESTIGIOUS SCIENCE JOURNAL
By Zach Dwyer
Biology Assistant Professor Angela McDonnell recently co-authored a publication in the prestigious science journal Nature titled “Phylogenomics and the rise of the angiosperms.”
“Having a publication in a journal like Nature, which spans all of science, is kind of a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” McDonnell said. “I feel really grateful to have amazing collaborators and colleagues that also want to work with me.”
McDonnell worked on the project throughout the pandemic, meeting on Zoom with other scientists from around the world. A total of 279 scientists worked on the paper, which now presents the most up-to-date understanding of the flowering plant tree of life. The DNA of over 9,500 flowering plants were sequenced during the project.
“We estimated family trees for hundreds of different DNA regions, and my role in it was to assess the conflict among those regions … trying to assess how different pieces of DNA tells different stories and why that might be,” McDonnell said.
This helped produce the final flowering plants phylogeny, which is a representation of the evolutionary history. The findings will have a major international impact on the study of flowering plants moving forward.
“One thing I’ve learned in my education and growth as a scientist is the more you get into something, the more you realize that you don’t know,” she said. “We’ve uncovered some interesting relationships within the plant tree of life … it will contribute to a better understanding of the process of evolution broadly.”
After years of hard work, McDonnell said it feels surreal to finally share the comprehensive study for the world to learn from.
“This work will influence how basic plant science is taught to students at all educational levels,” Biology Chair Matt Julius added. “We are exceedingly fortunate to have someone with Dr. McDonnell’s intellect and talent on our staff.”
NAME, IMAGE AND LIKENESS PROVIDES UNIQUE OPPORTUNITY FOR SCSU STUDENT-ATHLETES
By Mitchell Hansen ’17
The world of college athletics is constantly changing throughout the country and on all levels of competition, and the same is true at St. Cloud State University for its student-athletes.
Among the latest changes introduced to the college athletic landscape includes the NCAA adopting guidance governing student-athletes’ Name, Image and Likeness (NIL), a policy that went into effect in 2021. This allows student-athletes to build their personal brands and receive compensation for the first time ever.
Before the policy went into effect, student-athletes and their programs were subject to penalization by the NCAA if found to have received any form of compensation during their time as a college athlete. But now, NIL allows student-athletes the freedom to do so — within NCAA rules and guidelines — which provides a new Husky Experience for athletes at SCSU.
“The new NIL opportunities have really changed the way we are able to position our student-athletes,” SCSU Director of Athletics
Holly Schreiner said. “Instead of restricting what they do and not allowing them to benefit from their success and achievements, there is now a platform, if students choose, to promote themselves and benefit financially from it.”
Like with other college athletes, NIL allows Huskies to use their name, image and likeness in a variety of ways, including promoting their own business, promoting or endorsing a corporate entity, conducting campus clinics, making appearances, signing autographs and more.
SCSU student-athletes can now make compensation, either in-kind or monetarily, for engaging in NIL activities and are allowed to enter into legitimate NIL agreements with representatives of athletics interest — also known as boosters — as long as the agreement doesn’t include one of the restricted areas within NCAA rules.
As part of NIL, SCSU student-athletes may enter endorsements or NIL activities with sponsors of the University or entities that
St. Cloud State University's 131,000+ alumni are an important part of #OurSCSU community — a community of bold thinkers, influencers, change makers and leaders in the region, around the country and the globe. We are committed to keeping our alumni informed and involved with their alma mater, and want to do so in a way that works best for you. We always welcome your feedback, and invite you to do so through our 2024 Alumni Survey.
2024 SCSU ALUMNI SURVEY
compete with sponsors of the University. Only those who are non-SCSU employees can compensate or arrange compensation to a current or prospective intercollegiate student-athlete for their name, image or likeness.
“We have to remember that NIL deals are not a get rich quick opportunity for most student-athletes, especially those at the Division II level,” Schreiner said. “While there are opportunities, not all opportunities come with a price tag that is life changing. But for those students who are able to make the connections and are willing to put in the time, NIL opportunities are a great way to enhance their scholarships and make some extra money on the side.”
In an attempt to assist student-athletes in building their personal brands, SCSU announced ahead of the 2023-24 season a partnership with Opendorse, the industry leader in NIL. The partnership includes the Huskies Marketplace, which serves as SCSU’s official NIL marketplace for student-athletes and is available to view at opendorse.com/scsu-huskies.
This new and accessible platform offers Huskies fans, brands and sponsors a single, streamlined platform to easily find, pitch, book and compensate SCSU student-athletes for their NIL services.
Through the partnership with Opendorse, student-athletes at SCSU have full access to the company’s all-in-one NIL platform, which provides best-in-class compliance, content and education tools.
This proven partner will help student-athletes navigate this new aspect of the intercollegiate experience, further enhancing their experience as a Husky.
LARRY DIETZ NAMED INTERIM PRESIDENT
The Board of Trustees of the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities has named Larry Dietz to serve as interim president of St. Cloud State University (SCSU). The appointment will be effective beginning July 1, 2024.
“I am pleased that Dr. Dietz has agreed to come out of retirement and lead St. Cloud State University as interim president for the next two years,” said Scott Olson, chancellor of Minnesota State. “Larry’s extensive knowledge and experience in public higher education are the perfect combination for SCSU at this time, and I am confident that under his leadership, the University will move forward to serve its students and employees successfully, the Central Minnesota community and the entire state.”
Dr. Dietz served Illinois State University as president from 2014 until his retirement in 2021. As president, he advanced the vision established for the University in Educating Illinois and the Campus Master Plan in consultation with shared governance groups. Under his leadership, the University added and refined many undergraduate and graduate programs, received approval for a new College of Engineering, stabilized enrollment while increasing the diversity and retention of all students, forged relationships with stakeholders in business and industry, enhanced relationships with state leaders and completed a comprehensive campaign raising over $181 million. He managed a budget in excess of $480 million and worked with a faculty and staff of 3,600.
He also served Illinois State University as vice president for student affairs from 2011 to 2014, a role in which he served as key advocate for over 20,000 students and provided leadership on university-wide strategic planning and long-range financial planning initiatives. He was also a tenured associate professor from 2011 to 2021.
Previously, he served Southern Illinois University Carbondale as vice chancellor for student affairs and special assistant to the chancellor from 2006 to 2011, and as vice chancellor for student affairs and enrollment management and special assistant to the chancellor from 2000 to 2006. In these roles, he managed a budget of over $68 million in personnel, program and operating expenses and a staff of over 500. He was also a tenured associate professor from 2000 to 2011.
He served the University of Missouri-Kansas City from 1985 to 2000 in various capacities, including as vice chancellor for student affairs and enrollment management from 1998 to 2000 and associate vice chancellor for student affairs and enrollment management from 1995 to 1998.
SCSU.MN/SURVEY24
He also served Iowa State University from 1972 to 1985 in various capacities in financial aid administration and in the office of the vice president for student affairs.
He holds a bachelor’s degree in political science from Southern Illinois University Carbondale and a master’s in college student personnel and a doctorate in higher education administration from Iowa State University.
HISTORIC SEASON PAVES A BRIGHT FUTURE FOR SCSU WOMEN'S SOCCER PROGRAM
BY MITCH HANSEN ’17
We look forward to breaking more records.
– SCSU JUNIOR RHEANA ZERNA
In 2023, the St. Cloud State University Women’s Soccer program continued its journey of improvement to reach new heights. A wave of fresh recruits and committed returners cemented a championship standard for the team. The Huskies broke records, set new standards and put together the best season in program history.
Right out of the gate in the 2023 season, the Huskies impressed on their way to a 13-3-2 regular season record, ending the conference schedule with a record of 10-22 and 32 points. Over the regular season, the Huskies tallied the best five-game start (4-1), best 10-game start (7-2-1) and best 15-game start (12-2-1) since 2000.
In early November, SCSU put a bow on a dominant and historic regular season by defending their home field at Husky Stadium to capture their first-ever Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) regular season championship title.
The dominance of the Huskies continued beyond the regular season, carrying the success into the NSIC playoffs. SCSU hosted the conference tournament in St. Cloud for the first time in school history. The team advanced to the semifinal round of the NSIC Tournament for the first time since 2019 and for the fourth time in program history.
Following that conference tournament run, SCSU heard its name called during the NCAA Women’s Soccer National Selection Show as they earned the third seed in the NCAA Central Region. That at-large bid was another record-breaking achievement, marking the first appearance in the NCAA Tournament in program history. SCSU’s season concluded in the national tournament, amassing a 14-5-2 record while setting a new record for total number of wins in a season.
“This season reflects the evolution of the program at SCSU. The people who paved the way for us started the journey that we are on,” SCSU head coach Gretta Macdonald said. “The University’s investment to advance our program by adding a full-time assistant coach to our staff in 2021 has played a pivotal role in creating our success. With this investment, our staff
has worked to elevate the student-athlete experience and expand our recruiting efforts. The 2023 team is a special group that has helped change our program forever. This future SCSU Hall of Fame team will be remembered for their commitment to the process and embodying a championship culture.”
AWARD-WINNING CAMPAIGN
The team’s historic success was recognized by the NSIC and NCAA. SCSU had an NSIC league-high eight players earn AllConference honors, four of whom were named to the first team (sophomore Ellie Primerano, sophomore Brooke Quam, freshman Ana Spaine and junior Rheana Zerna) and four named to the second team (freshman Jaylee Strickland, junior Gracie Parsons, freshman Linsey Trapino and freshman Grace Olson). In addition, Quam and Olson received NSIC All-Tournament Team honors, Trapino was named NSIC Freshman of the Year and Macdonald was named NSIC Coach of the Year.
The 2023 team is a special group that has helped change our program forever.
– SCSU HEAD COACH GRETTA MACDONALD
“The 2023 season was an amazing experience, we were out there winning game after game and kept improving,” junior Rheana Zerna said. “Practicing as hard as we played and pushing each other helped us win the NSIC for the first time ever, and we look forward to breaking more records.”
Nationally, Primerano, Quam and Spaine earned NCAA D2CCA AllCentral Region Team honors while four Huskies were recognized by the United Soccer Coaches All-Central Region Team (Primerano, Quam, Trapino and Zerna). These accolades were a testament to the success and hard work put forth by the entire Women’s Soccer program all year long.
“Last season was definitely one to remember; I had so much fun with my teammates, and our strong success created an unbreakable family bond. That is what I look back on and cherish the most,” freshman Jaylee Strickland said. “Qualifying for the NCAA Tournament, winning our conference and putting together a record-breaking season meant so much for our program. We worked together for months on end and came together to achieve a like-minded goal; that made us who we were.
“I’m looking forward to coming back together next season to do just the same, and having that cohesive chemistry carry over from last season,” Strickland continued. “It’s really exciting to think about all we are going to be able to accomplish together.”
The historic 2023 season generates excitement for 2024 and beyond, as the team turns their focus to welcoming the next wave of recruits. The defending NSIC champions are ready to build off their success.
The future is bright for SCSU Women’s Soccer.
“A sincere thank you to all who supported our pursuits in 2023. It takes a village, and we appreciate everyone’s efforts,” Macdonald said. “We’ve accomplished great things together and set a new standard for the future of our program. We hope everyone can take a moment and appreciate everything we did in 2023. We are excited to build on this season and look forward to the possibilities ahead.”
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BY ZACH DWYER
Reimagining the SCSU Honors College FOCUSED ON DISCOVERY
Jennifer Cavalli had a unique view on Honors when she interviewed to be the Executive Director of the newly-established Honors College at St. Cloud State.
“Honors is for everyone: it’s about motivation, drive and dedication,” Cavalli said. “Past academic performance is not the most important thing. Engagement with one’s community, the motivation to take risks with learning … that type of intellectual curiosity carries a lot more weight.”
That viewpoint, combined with the support from Deeann Griebel ’76, serves as a foundation for reimagining what Honors looks like at SCSU. Griebel, an alumna of SCSU’s previous Honors program, made a gift to SCSU to support the University’s strategic initiatives within the It’s Time framework. Her gift was used to assist in transforming the program into a robust Honors College.
It was the idea of building something new that first drew Cavalli to St. Cloud.
“What a unique and rare and exciting opportunity to build from the ground up,” she said about the opportunity. “I’d been reworking and redesigning programs … the thought of not having to deconstruct first was a big draw for me.”
Cavalli was first introduced to Honors at Pacific Lutheran University, serving as a faculty fellow in their International Honors Program. She also worked with resident assistants in the living learning community and taught first year experiences.
Cavalli later moved on to teach in the History Department at the College of Charleston in 2016, where she began working within Honors straight away. College of Charleston had a more established Honors College than she had previously been exposed to, and Cavalli found herself and her students got the most out of her Honors-focused classes.
“It really made me a convert to thinking about a different approach to classroom learning,” Cavalli said. “I found my professional voice really fit that smaller seminar style. We were able to do some really amazing things with the curriculum, and the last three years (there) I moved into an administrative role in student engagement.”
Honors is for everyone: it’s about motivation, drive and dedication.
– JENNIFER CAVALLI
Those experiences prepared her for the big challenge facing her new role at SCSU: how do you move from an Honors program that only served part of a student lifecycle to envisioning what an Honors college looks like for the full lifespan of a student?
CULTURAL SHIFT
Creating such a significant shift is no easy task. But Cavalli’s background as a first-generation transfer student makes her aware of how essential it is to create a community that can accommodate students from different backgrounds.
“Honors colleges can’t take themselves too seriously; the most important key to being successful is to see itself as partners and helpers to faculty, staff and especially students.”
This mindset allows faculty to explore and experience new things, serving as an incubator for discovering new ideas. One example is Honors piloting a few AI-focused courses next year to create an exploratory space for learning.
“We have so many gifted, talented faculty that aren’t only interested in what they do, but they also are interested in students and learning more,” Cavalli said. “Honors can and should be the place for that.”
It’s essential to think that way in an era when the landscape of higher education is constantly shifting.
When a curriculum speaks to all the different stages of a student’s learning cycle, it lets them explore further and deepen their learning in subjects that matter to them.
“Honors colleges really are about the mentoring we give to students; it’s where we reframe the specialized learning they do in their majors,” Cavalli said. “How do they think about it and communicate details to audiences that aren’t specialized? That’s a professional, transferable skill.”
The idea that Honors courses are more challenging is a common myth that Cavalli is eager to dismiss.
The courses aren’t inherently more difficult or require extra coursework, but they instead rely on an interdisciplinary approach that can benefit students for the future.
“We have so many talented students who just need the extra resources or extra attention … it’s amazing what people can do when they feel someone has invested in them,” Cavalli said.
FORMING COMMUNITY
Professor Jason Lindsey focuses on political theory, specializing in politics of Russia and the Soviet Union while teaching at SCSU the past two decades.
In Fall 2022 he added a new title: Honors College Faculty Fellow.
Olivia and Amelia Travis embrace after a race.
From left, Executive Director Jennifer Cavalli meets with an honors student.
Photo by Steve Woit ’75
As a faculty fellow, Lindsey is reassigned part of his time to teach in the Honors College and be on a committee that works on the college’s curriculum. Lindsey is serving a three-year term and hopes as the college grows there will be more faculty fellows from a wide range of units and departments across campus.
Lindsey was an undergraduate at the University of Alabama when he was first introduced to an Honors program at the collegiate level. At a large school of over 30,000 students, it was his path to building a sense of community.
“The Honors program became my home; I met people in the first-year Honors classes that I would see in my senior year,” Lindsey said. “It was where I connected with a lot of people.”
SCSU is trying to replicate that feeling with their co horts of students and the Honors Living Learning Community, and Lindsey hopes these strides can create a more well-defined community on campus to serve Honors students. This could better support students from their first year all the way to graduation.
POSITIVE FUTURE
“Those students on campus tend to become the nucleus for other things happening; Honors students tend to be some of the most active and engaged,” he said. “We’re hoping that connects to other organizations and groups on campus.”
“It extends beyond residential students to be a place where our commuter students and transfer students feel they have a space they belong,” Honors College Executive Director Jennifer Cavalli added.
Honors focuses on connecting with different majors and students across campus, including a focus on interdisciplinary approaches in the introductory course Honors 101. Whatever field of study a student pursues, this helps them think about how their field connects with others down the road.
The new curriculum also includes a student completing a final project to set them ahead in their careers post-graduation.
“We want there to be some final experience or product that they develop in their major, and that gives them an initial product in their portfolio coming out of their undergraduate years,” Lindsey said.
A more inclusive vision of the Honors College also caters to transfer students and non-traditional students at SCSU.
“We’re hoping they’ll have more of a connection to St. Cloud State as an alumnus when they finish,” Lindsey said about students’ experiences. “We hope students will go out in the community and talk about what they got from it.”
Eryn Bloom is one of those students already spreading the word on what benefits Honors can provide.
Bloom is from the St. Cloud area and is a third-year student double majoring in hydrology and earth sciences. She entered the Honors program right out of high school, introduced to it at orientation in August of 2021.
“They described it for driven students; if you’re someone who wants to take advantage of opportunities, this is a good way to get started,” Bloom said.
Bloom stayed in the Honors Living Learning Community her freshman year, growing close with her fellow hallmates. Having that friendship and Honors academic support were huge aids in helping guide her through the start of her college experience.
She now serves in a new role as an Honors ambassador, helping with recruitment at events, giving tours and answering questions. One of her main initiatives is programming events for the Honors Club and working to start a competitive trivia team.
Bloom works in Case-Hill Hall as an undergraduate assistant director, and she noted other ambassadors are also very involved on campus.
“I see (Honors) becoming a community where people know it’s a good way to get involved on campus and it’s an in for opportunities,” Bloom said. “I’m excited to see what comes out of student research initiatives and community involvement. We want the meaning of the Honors College here not to just be the smartest
From left, Dr. Jason Lindsey is currently serving a threeyear term as an Honors College Faculty Fellow.
students but the most thoughtful, most dedicated and most involved in the community.”
A successful Honors college includes community partnerships and support. Honors worked with TRIO, Multicultural Student Services and the Career Center to put on an enrichment series last fall. Support from Griebel made these program enhancements possible, including the continuation of an annual trip to allow first-year students opportunities to explore Minnesota, which started in 2021 through her encouragement and support. Other opportunities included working in the SCSU Community Garden and visiting St. Cloud’s Munsinger Gardens.
The Honors College provides academic and social support, including a student success coach housed in the Honors College to work with students throughout their entire college journey.
Bloom found it valuable to move with the same core of students through classes. While Honors used to be mainly focused on freshman transition, the new vision includes customizable aspects throughout the entire college experience.
Students entering the newly-established college are only one year into their journey, but early signs of progress are evident.
While Bloom already completed the former version of the program and won’t graduate until 2026, she sees a bright future ahead for the Honors College.
“There’s solid leadership over there that have great minds and visions,” she said. “Dr. Cavalli got here only (last summer), and she’s already done so much. This amount of change in such a short amount of time makes me feel so positive. Everything they want to see implemented will happen.”
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Huskies unite! Reconnect with old friends, create new memories and relive the nostalgia at #OurSCSU Homecoming 2024. Follow us on social media leading up to Homecoming as details are finalized and announced.
St. Cloud State’s Homecoming is the University’s biggest red and black celebration of the year, with special events for students, families, prospective students, alumni, community members and more.
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Graduates of classes ending in 4 or 9 are encouraged to celebrate their reunion this year!
COLLABORATION FOCUSES ON STUDENT SUCCESS
St. Cloud State excels in a broad range of academic programs that benefit from interaction with regional employers who advise and consult with faculty, provide internships, field experiences and jobs to students before and after graduation. These collaborations and partnerships help keep our academic programs responsive and relevant in this time of rapid social, demographic and technological change. Nursing is just one of the many examples of how campus and community collaborations are mutually beneficial. It produces graduates well prepared to excel in career fields critical to the well-being of our region’s communities because they have been immersed as students in hands-on, real-world learning experiences.
SCSU Nursing programs are essential for the region’s success
BY MARSHA SHOEMAKER
The SCSU Nursing Program provided me with more clinical hours than any other nursing program in the state, which was really helpful in gaining confidence and knowledge as a new graduate nurse.
– JESSICA IMRIE
Jessica Imrie had good, practical reasons for choosing St. Cloud State’s nursing program: she could commute from home, get financial support from the hometown nursing home where she’d been working part-time and be part of a highly competitive, hands-on learning experience. But most importantly, she believed her training would be the gateway to a myriad of career opportunities in the healthcare field. Her rewarding career path has proved her instincts were right.
“I chose nursing because it would open many doors,” Imrie said. “I knew the endless possibilities. Nurses can be in administration, provide bedside care, educate, be involved with informatics, etc. I knew nursing would also allow me financial security and freedom in my professional choices.
“The SCSU Nursing Program provided me with more clinical hours than any other nursing program in the state, which was really helpful in gaining confidence and knowledge as a new graduate nurse,” Imrie continued, who went on to be an emergency care nurse at Fairview Northland in Princeton, earn a Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) Education from St. Catherine University and come full circle back to St. Cloud State to teach third-semester nursing students.
Many of Imrie’s beneficial clinical hours were completed at CentraCare St. Cloud Hospital.
“As a five-time Magnet designated and teaching hospital, they considered students’ educational levels and needs,” Imrie said. “The precepting nurses take students under their wings and help to mold them into effective, efficient and caring nurses. My professional growth and identity have flourished because of my undergraduate experience, guidance and cultivation at SCSU, which I now have the privilege of providing nursing students daily.”
Cloud State University offers
Jessica Imre, SCSU Nursing Assistant Professor.
Photo by Zach Dwyer
We have very dedicated faculty and staff who encourage and engage nursing students to become pivotal members of the healthcare community.
– ROXANNE WILSON, INTERIM DEAN AND PROFESSOR OF NURSING AT ST. CLOUD STATE UNIVERSITY
SCSU’s nursing program has been highly competitive since it was launched in 2004, when only 25 students could be admitted twice a year. Now every fall and every spring 45 new students are accepted into the traditional R.N. program, with unlimited capacity for the online bachelor’s program. Nursing remains one of the most in-demand career fields in the state.
“When I applied to SCSU’s nursing program, there were between 150 and 200 applicants,” Imrie said. “It was very competitive. As we expanded to two start dates, the program is able to accept many more students.
“SCSU’s nursing program and faculty helped me become a professional nurse,” she added. “The program and faculty taught me to be a critical thinker, provide high-quality patient care and use clinical judgment in every healthcare-related encounter. “
HIGHLY RANKED AND REGARDED
Positive experiences such as Imrie’s are the reason why this past year, St. Cloud State University’s nursing program was ranked as the number two bachelor’s public program in Minnesota by RegisteredNursing.org., a leading resource for the nursing industry. The ranking values how effectively a program supports students in their journey toward licensure and beyond. SCSU was also ranked as the No. 3 school overall for all programs in the state.
The evaluation process considers various factors, including past and present first-time NCLEX-RN pass rates, which consistently are at the top of the state. SCSU was noted for its advanced simulation labs and special emphasis placed on applied clinical learning, preparing graduates to innovate in future patient care. Students have options for learning in the clinical settings of hospital inpatient and emergency room care, home care, clinics, public health, international nursing, hospice, mental health sites, elder care and more.
SCSU’s Department of Nursing also recently launched an accelerated online Registered Nurse to Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree, which supports part-time and full-time degree completion.
“We are honored to be recognized as one of the top bachelor’s prepared nursing programs in Minnesota,” said Roxanne Wilson, interim dean of the College of Health and Wellness Professions. “We have the top first-time Board of Nursing pass rates of all the bachelor’s nursing programs in the Minnesota State system. Our graduates find jobs at CentraCare, Allina, Fairview, Essentia, Mayo, Health Partners, rural sites and throughout the entire country and world.
“We are proud of our program faculty, clinical sites and students for putting in the
ST. CLOUD STATE MAGAZINE
Photo by Steve Woit ’75
Jane Bagley works with a nursing student. Photo by Steve Woit ’75
Our students stand out in the knowledge, critical thinking and respected professionalism from a solid academic foundation provided by SCSU.
–
JANE BAGLEY, SCSU DEPARTMENT OF NURSING CHAIR AND ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR
hard work to create excellence in local and global health,” Wilson continued. “We have very dedicated faculty and staff who encourage and engage nursing students to become pivotal members of the healthcare community.”
“Our nursing program continues to demonstrate academic and clinical excellence,” Department of Nursing Chair and Associate Professor Jane Bagley said. “Being named one of the top nursing programs in Minnesota exemplifies the commitment to learning of each of our students.”
It’s not uncommon for Bagley to hear from employers how SCSU’s pre-licensure graduates truly stand out in the workforce.
“Our students stand out in the knowledge, critical thinking and respected professionalism from a solid academic foundation provided by SCSU,” Bagley said.
CENTRACARE PARTNERSHIP
A key strength of the program is the extraordinary saturation of clinical hours SCSU nursing students have, much of that time with CentraCare. Nursing graduates finish with 2,016 theory hours and 914 clinical hours.
“Having students immersed in the clinical setting is integral for the development of essential nursing skills and overall competence,” Bagley said. “We have a very strong collaboration with CentraCare; about 80 percent of SCSU pre-licensure graduates go on to work with CentraCare. Every one of our nursing students will complete a rotation with St. Cloud Hospital.”
It was an extension of that already vital partnership for which St. Cloud State’s nursing program received a significant gift of $1 million from CentraCare to help launch collaboration with the University of Minnesota to develop a Doctor of Nursing Practice program to fill critical rural needs.
This cooperative effort resulted in a DNP program with the degree awarded through the University of Minnesota. The first cohort of four students graduated in May 2024.
Three of the four are graduates of SCSU’s traditional licensing/RN program and will be well prepared to give much-needed advanced health care to underserved communities in the region.
All learning experiences during the doctoral program are with CentraCare.
“While the role of our Department of Nursing is peripheral, we look to the program as a recruiting tool to attract students to our nursing programs,” Bagley said.
As one of the three St. Cloud Stateeducated RNs among this first graduating cohort, Wyatt Orth also will be taking his career to a new level.
“The nursing program at SCSU equipped me with all the necessary skills to be successful as a new graduate RN in the critical care setting at CentraCare,” Orth said. “After serving numerous rural communities, SCSU and CentraCare presented an ideal opportunity for me to return for my DNP, allowing me to give back to the community I call home.”
Orth said support from all partners in this significant new training ground for advanced health care practitioners in rural Minnesota has been exceptional.
“The seamless integration between CentraCare, SCSU and my current nurse practitioner program has fostered a positive educational experience,” he said.
SCSU has been focused on providing Central Minnesota with highly trained nurses for decades, and they will continue to evolve as options like accelerated courses and DNP programs grow.
Bagley said it is a vital role for the success of the community.
“Our nursing programs are essential in providing a pipeline of essential health care workers within and throughout the region.”
NURSING REMAINS AS ONE OF THE MOST IN-DEMAND CAREER FIELDS IN THE STATE OF MINNESOTA.
We’re trying to meet (students) where they are, with a process that’s more simplified.
– MICHAEL HANNA, ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR OF ADMISSIONS AND TRANSFER STUDENT RECRUITMENT
Changes in Admissions, enrollment provide new opportunities for modern students
When Associate Admissions Director John Brown came to St. Cloud State University in 2006, he said so many new high school graduates were applying, that the University couldn’t even serve all of the students who wanted to attend.
“The campus had enjoyed years of just going gangbusters,” Brown said. “We had waiting lists, and housing was full to overflowing.”
But in 2015, the tide turned, and St. Cloud State experienced its first fall enrollment decline since World War II. The trend continued until this year, when the University began fall semester with its first enrollment increase in 10 years.
What caused the dip, and why is SCSU seeing rising enrollments now?
“The biggest thing is demographics,” Brown said of the decline in 2015. High schools in Minnesota, the traditional source of SCSU’s new entering freshmen, are graduating smaller classes, a phenomenon across the world caused by the declining birth rates and numbers of births in the 1980s and ’90s.
In addition, smaller percentages of high school seniors are deciding to enter college right after graduation. Reasons given include the cost of going to college and questions about the value of a college degree.
The National Student Clearinghouse Research Center has reported that the rates of new high school graduates choosing to go to college have steadily declined in the nation over the past decade,
BY MARSHA SHOEMAKER
with an “unprecedented” decrease during the pandemic. And while land grant and flagship universities like the University of Minnesota have not been affected as much, regional universities like St. Cloud State have been particularly hard hit. Competing institutions in surrounding states have stepped up their recruiting efforts in our neighborhood.
That makes the celebration of increased enrollment numbers this fall all the more significant. It means that the University’s response to troubling declining enrollments that President Robbyn Wacker faced when she assumed the presidency in 2018 — the creation and implementation of It’s Time strategic framework — is having the intended impact.
SERVING A WIDE VARIETY OF STUDENTS
Under Wacker’s leadership, the University took a hard look at the realities and the possibilities concerning admissions numbers for SCSU and virtually all U.S. regional universities.
The result was the implementation of a new mindset: implementing “It’s Time” measures campus-wide to effectively attract and serve a new mix of students.
A new administrative division headed by Vice President for Strategic Enrollment Jason Woods was created, with specialized admissions teams to recruit and serve undergraduates, transfer students, international students, veterans and dual enrollment students.
Dual enrollment students take SCSU classes through Postsecondary Enrollment Options — or PSEO, the state program which funds high school students who take classes for credit on 64 participating Minnesota campuses; or through the Huskies in High School program through which high school students learn from SCSU faculty who go to their schools.
“I strongly believe that President Wacker’s leadership is a huge reason why we see this rise in new students,” said Michael Hanna, associate director of undergraduate admissions and transfer student recruitment.
Transfer students currently make up 45 percent of SCSU’s student population. Because of the focus It’s Time put on individualized student support, transfer students and non-traditional new students are experiencing easier access to the application and entry process.
“Most students who come to our office now were not born 18 years ago,” said SCSU Executive Director of Recruitment & Access Maria Wright, referencing how the new normal for students entering St. Cloud State is different from the days of potential students — most freshly graduated from high school — applying to St. Cloud State in earlier generations.
An example is Jaden Newsom, one of the 1,000 new transfer students entering St. Cloud State each year. When she looked around for a place to earn a bachelor’s degree, meeting with SCSU Admissions and touring the campus helped her decide.
“I knew then that SCSU was for me, and even as an out-ofstate transfer student, it was much more affordable than my other options,” said Newson, who had considered transferring to a private school after beginning her higher education journey at a community college in her native Illinois.
“When it comes to success for transfer students, we truly take a holistic and individualized approach that aligns with our It’s Time framework at St. Cloud State,” Hanna said. “This may mean we are communicating with them for two to three years before they transfer to SCSU, or it could mean we are trying to get them enrolled the week before the semester starts.”
SCSU makes the transfer process easy. According to Hanna, the University has significantly shortened the turnaround time for application and transcript reviews.
“We’re trying to meet them where they are, with a process that’s more simplified,” he said.
Newsom wants to be a middle school teacher, and she has found that the University’s education program, with its hands-on approach and early exposure to classroom teaching experiences, was the right choice to help prepare her for that future. As a junior transfer student, she has completed clinical hours at an area middle school and is a volunteer basketball coach. Her experience working at the SCSU Library also allows her to contribute to the University’s environment in a positive way.
A SCHOOL OF OPPORTUNITY
Emma Bast, currently a standout student in SCSU’s Department of Mass Communications, is part of another significant segment of the evolving mix of students.
She became an undergraduate at St. Cloud State after completing several courses through dual enrollment opportunities. Currently more than 2,500 high school students are earning credits and invaluable, hands-on experience in SCSU classes, and a growing number are choosing to continue at the University after graduating from high school with a good start on college credits.
For Bast, the entry point for becoming a PSEO student at St. Cloud State was the onset of COVID, when her high school went to distance learning. Attracted by the free credits and the lure of more interesting learning opportunities than her small high school afforded, she dove into PSEO.
“When COVID hit, I decided to go 100 percent distance learning,” Bast said. “Because I didn’t know where I would go after high school, I went with St. Cloud State. It had more flexibility, was close to home so I could take classes in person and was a university so if I transferred, the credits would be more likely to transfer properly, especially out of state.
“The PSEO team at St. Cloud State helped me figure out how to register for classes, get books, what classes I should take and got me comfortable with being at the college campus,” she added. “They were kind of life savers when it came to classes.”
After her first semester in dual enrollment, she got involved with the University Chronicle student newspaper and KVSC, the campus radio station.
“I ended up loving the Mass Communications world, and as I was touring other schools and talking with other colleges, I started to realize that all the things I was doing at KVSC and the Chronicle I wasn’t going to be able to do until I was about to graduate college there, if at all because of the transfer credits,” Bast said.
“Armed with that knowledge, already having a support team at the college of PSEO advisors, academic advisors, professors in the Mass Comm program and friends I had made along the way, I decided to stay, and I am incredibly glad that I did because I will be graduating with many years of real world experience.”
The upward trend in students choosing SCSU is that of students who are intentional in their approach to college, looking at ways to keep costs down while fitting classes into their individual lifestyles and work schedules.
“SCSU is trying to look at how we provide individualized experiences,” Wright said. “We tailor conversations to their concerns, and we want to show students that SCSU can be a good fit for them.”
“We want them to think, ‘I can see myself on this campus,’” she continued. “Guiding students better toward their goals matters. They may come back to us for graduate school or start and stop and come back. We’re building trust with students so they come back.”
With summer upon us and campus preparing for the return of students this fall, I am reminded of a quote I’ve grown to appreciate:
“Change is inevitable. Growth is optional” — author John C. Maxwell #OurSCSU is a symbol of the strength of our community, and as St. Cloud State University enters a season of change, we are confident that tenacity and innovation will continue to advance our University.
While change can be difficult, it affords new opportunities for growth and success. Change and innovation has led to an increase in enrollment at SCSU for two consecutive semesters, stabilizing our recruitment and putting us on a positive path forward. There may be decisions made that some might not agree with, but what unites us as #OurSCSU community is stronger than these differences. As SCSU progresses through this moment of transition, we need to come together to maximize opportunities, embrace new realities and adjust for the greater good of our
THE FUTURE OF ST. CLOUD STATE REMAINS BOLD AND BRIGHT
students, community and University.
We are confident in our direction moving forward. We are thankful for past leadership and look forward to the new voices and insights that will join #OurSCSU community. Strategic decisions at SCSU have allowed us to focus on elevating our academic distinction by building on the institution’s strengths, while responding to changing student interests and needs. We are adapting to a new generation of students by investing in initiatives to enhance student engagement and provide an individualized approach to student success.
We are working to reengage our alumni, donor and friend community and increase the impact of your time, talent and philanthropic support. We have made progress, but there is more work to be done.
Rest assured, SCSU is committed to Minnesota — nearly 80 percent of our students call Minnesota home. We have also responded to interest in SCSU outside our great state by extending our playing field
across the U.S. and the globe. St. Cloud State has reestablished itself as a higher education institution of choice, and that will not change.
I am mindful #OurSCSU community has experienced a fair amount of change over the years.
The possibilities that come with embracing change are endless! I appreciate the feelings you have for SCSU — good or bad — but know that each of you are part of what makes SCSU great. We are committed to you, our students and the future of St. Cloud State University. We ask you to join us on this next part of our journey; we are excited for what’s to come.
To help shape our path forward, we want to hear from you. I invite you to participate in the SCSU Alumni Survey today at scsu.mn/survey24.
Get involved and stay proud of #OurSCSU, as we remain bold, innovative and focused on the future of St. Cloud State.
Go Huskies!
Nicholas Katona Vice President, Advancement & Alumni Engagement
BY COLLEEN HARRISON
JESTINE WARE
Alumna takes passion for writing and uses it to help her community
St. Cloud State University alumna Jestine Ware ’15 is an editor and writer by trade. While she first made her mark writing children’s books that centered around historically underrepresented communities, she now also uses her skills to advocate for those in her own community.
She said her education and professional journey as a writer is “a winding path,” starting with her undergraduate degree and then earning a Master of Arts in English from SCSU. From grad school she went into children’s publishing, but Ware found the publishing house she worked out of in Los Angeles reminded her far too much of the movie “The Devil Wears Prada.”
“I found it wasn’t really feeding my need to help the Black and Brown community and to work with young people who are kind of struggling, so I ended up working as a volunteer grant writer — which was basically a full-time job — on top of doing magazine editing,” Ware said. “It became my life.”
She now works as director of development and communications for South Suburban Pads, an organization that works to “prevent and end homelessness in Chicago’s south suburban area by empowering homeless individuals to create a sustainable future through emergency shelter, affordable housing solutions and supportive services.”
“It’s a whole community effort to help alleviate and end homelessness in the south suburbs of Chicago, which actually has about 50 percent of Chicago’s homeless population in it. There’s
I hope to bring awareness to issues that communities of color are facing.
— JESTINE WARE
not a lot of funding for the suburbs, because people think ‘suburbs,’ they think ‘rich,’ and that’s not the case. There’s not many resources for folks out here,” Ware said. “I’m really working to raise awareness, raise funds and support the development of an organization that’s doing really good work. I’m really enjoying it, and what I learned at SCSU, I’m actually using all the time, every day.”
She credits working in The Write Place during her time at SCSU as well as a number of her courses, professors and SCSU connections with many of the tools she uses in her job. Design ele ments, making things easier for viewers or readers, rhetoric for grant writing and using an “emotional toolkit” in writing to encourage donors to support the organization’s efforts are resources she first learned at St. Cloud State. She also uses a number of those skills in her writing and editing career that she maintains outside of her nonprofit work.
“I helped so many students who came through there, and I learned a lot about myself and
One of Ware’s favorite projects, shown left, is “Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls: 100 Real-Life Tales of Black Girl Magic.”
In addition to working on the “Rebel Girls” children’s books, Ware has also written longer versions of the stories for accompanying podcasts.
my writing and it was kind of like doing writing therapy sessions with folks,” Ware said. “I really was passionate about working with students at the writing center and making sure that they would pass, and I got really invested in certain students who would just come back every time and request me specifically, who needed a lot of help, and it was really rewarding to see folks just be so shocked that they could graduate after not having done super well their first couple of years at the school.
“The skills I learned working at the writing center, working with students; I also use with editing clients, with authors, with people’s work that I read to try to help them create the best work
that they can,” she continued.
Ware is still passionate about helping others, whether it’s through helping people find resources needed in their communities or making others feel included and accurately represented in creative media.
“I hope to bring awareness to issues that communities of color are facing. The publishers that reach out to me typically do so because they want me to write specifically from my experience. I’ve written lots of things about pride and about folks and their immigrant experiences, and just all different types of marginalized experiences and trying to represent them as best and with as much dignity as you can,” Ware said. “I hang out with youth who are experiencing homelessness and talk to them about what their stories are and I write the story up and I send it out to donors. I do the same thing when I’m writing about someone famous as I do when I’m writing about someone who’s not famous, in just approaching everyone with dignity and respect when you’re working on their story.”
Some highlights from her career in children’s literature so far have been “Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls: 100 RealLife Tales of Black Girl Magic” and “Rebel Girls Celebrate Pride: 25 Tales of Self-Love and Community,” as well as a number of podcast scripts for longer versions of those books, among others.
SCSU alumna Jestine Ware ’15 is director of development and communications for South Suburban Pads as well as a freelance editor and writer.
What I learned at SCSU, I’m actually using all the time, every day.
— JESTINE WARE
The majority of Ware’s freelance writing is children’s literature.
Ware also has two books of historical fiction in the works: one that flips time periods between the Woolworth’s counter sit-ins of the 1960s and the present with Black Lives Matter, and a story that follows a girl experiencing the ACT UP movement during the AIDS crisis and exploring her own path as an activist.
At times, Ware has had to fight for stories to be published or to receive credit and fair compensation in the publishing world.
“Negotiating for and advocating for yourself is really important in publishing — especially when you’re a person of color and your work is not being recognized,” she said. “When everyone is consuming media all the time, it can be hard to realize the value and the effort that it takes to create things. It’s not just an AI-generated thing.”
More often than not, Ware’s experiences both in the nonprofit sector as well as the publishing world cross over and mirror each other. It’s her hope that, through both of her career paths, more communities that historically haven’t had a voice will have their stories shared accurately and in a dignified way that will have a positive impact for generations to come.
“I can draw on my own experiences in my organizations that I was working in — Black Youth Project 100, Assata’s Daughters, now I’m kind of getting involved in another group that’s an offshoot of both of those that’s called South Side Nature Play that one of my friends from Assata’s Daughters started just to get Black and Brown kids outside and playing and in nature and in safe spaces together to play and hang out and just be in the natural world like we were dispersing seeds,” Ware said. “Both things, for me, are about supporting my community and making sure folks are safe and whole and well and that our stories are told accurately.”
JENNY NEUHARTH
Alumna rebuilds her life bigger and better following harrowing injury, memory loss
The year 2020 was one of change for most of the world and literally life-altering for SCSU alumna Jenny Neuharth.
Scan the QR code to read the full story:
BRET HEDICAN
Retired NHL player starts business to commemorate life’s big moments
From St. Cloud State University, to the NHL and beyond, it has been quite the journey for Bret Hedican.
Scan the QR code to read the full story:
SEAL DWYER
Breaking down barriers and creating space where everyone can thrive
Alum Seal Dwyer’s mission is to give hope and healing a home in central Minnesota for the LGBTQIA+ community.
Scan the QR code to read the full story:
KARA COWELL
Recent graduate looks to continue advocacy in grad school and beyond
Kara Cowell, a Huskies Swim and Dive team standout and Women’s Center champion, credits her time as a student worker for fueling her passions as a change maker and leader.
Scan the QR code to read the full story:
BY COLLEEN HARRISON
DR. HEATHER BROWN
SCSU Women’s Center director looks
to maintain,
expand strong community of support
We want to work with others to help enact a better world for everybody, and we can’t do that if we don’t know what they want to tell us.
— DR. HEATHER BROWN
Dr. Heather Brown started as director of St. Cloud State University’s Women’s Center in July 2023, but her career in social justice started much earlier.
The only child of a single mother, Brown grew up watching how her mom seemed to face more challenges than other single-income families where fathers were the sole earners.
“My mother was one of the hardest-working people I knew, and as I was growing up, I saw how hard she struggled and how many challenges she faced and I had a lot of questions about why,” she said. “Why was it that she was struggling so hard, and why was it that people who knew what she had experienced didn’t want to help her or didn’t try to smooth the way for her? Of course, when I was younger I didn’t understand the environmental context of things, and I just really wanted to figure it out.”
That led to Brown studying gender issues in religion, and becoming a first-generation college graduate after earning a bachelor’s degree from Lake Forest College, master’s from Harvard Divinity School and educational doctorate from Northern Illinois University. Her doctoral dissertation was on the connection between weight and learning in college-age women. She started her career working for community-based organizations serving immigrants and refugees, particularly women and young people. She then worked in higher education administration with a focus on research development and grant writing for different institutions, before serving as executive director of the Women + Girls Research Alliance at University of North Carolina Charlotte for several years. She then worked in publishing for some time, copy-editing and working in peer review journals before starting at SCSU.
“I really missed working with women,” she said. “It’s been my passion since I was about 16 years old, and so I really wanted to get back into that.”
Throughout her career, Brown said she has worked in the intersections of sup-
Dr. Heather Brown is the SCSU Women’s Center Director.
porting people in making the best possible choices they can to give themselves the best possible opportunities, but also understanding many are existing within systems that may or may not be supportive of what someone wants to do and how they can do it. She has worked to advocate for the removal of barriers that would stand in the way of personal hard work, personal choices and personal pursuits.
“You can be the smartest person in the world, you can have as many degrees as possible — but if you live within a system that says ‘We don’t want you to succeed because of your race or how you look or what your gender is,’ you can keep hitting that wall until your well of resilience is dry, and no one should have to put up with that, because it will kill you eventually,” Brown said. “So that’s how I came to be very passionate about supporting women and supporting people who are struggling within sort of systemic challenges that stand in the way of their own personal success.”
CORE OF SUPPORT
Since starting at St. Cloud State, Brown said she has found an “amazing core of support that’s already here.” She credits the staff already in place at the Women’s Center, as well as impassioned student employees, with making the Center an important resource for the campus and community and a great environment in which to work.
“I felt really comfortable coming into a place that’s already really doing good things, and it’s about trying to figure out what avenues we maybe haven’t explored and how to expand what’s already here,” she said. “Of course, I’ve brought a little bit of my own passion in, and we did a really nice presentation last fall on the intersections between weight-learning and gender in higher education.
“One of the issues we see around weighted learning is that if you don’t feel like you belong, you’re probably not going to stay and you’re definitely not going to complete your education. I want to see if
The Women’s Center had an event celebrating and discussing A Bar of Their Own, the first women’s sports bar in Minnesota and the fourth in the U.S.
there’s a way to bring co-curricular support that scaffolds what goes on in the classroom to help promote that sense of belonging — to improve people’s experience and sense of ‘I’m a part of this campus, and I’m wanted here and I’m welcome here.’”
Brown is proud of the variety of valuable events the Center has been putting together. It hosted a panel of eight SCSU women student-athletes, called “Playing for Her,” where panelists shared their experiences as girls and women in sports, what it meant to be an athlete and how it has affected their leadership and their community service.
“The energy was tremendous. It’s about sharing those experiences about how your lived experiences as a woman can really change the world, and not only just your immediate world and what you do yourself, but how you influence others and how you share that information and how there’s this ripple effect,” Brown said. “It really builds on — we know the cliché, and it’s a good cliché: if you educate a girl, it educates her whole community — and we saw the same thing (at the event). Those women were sharing their wisdom and their experience, and people were nodding their heads and you knew they were going to take what they were hearing and just keep spreading it out, which is really tremendous.”
Other events that have taken place or are planned for the future since Brown joined SCSU have included an event celebrating the first women’s sports bar to open in Minnesota and the fourth in the United States, the history of midwifery and how it relates to reproductive choice and health care, and an event entitled “Wearing Your Crown,” which is an opportunity for Black and Brown people to come together and discuss racism they’ve experienced against natural hair in school or in the workplace in the hopes of realizing they’re not alone and giving them resources to advocate for positive change.
A RESOURCE FOR ALL
When talking about her future plans for SCSU and the Women’s Center, Brown said it’s important for her not to say that she has goals.
“Playing for Her” was an event where panelists shared their experiences as girls and women in sports, what it meant to be an athlete and how it has affected their leadership and their community service.
Women’s Center staff played integral roles in getting legislation passed that made it mandatory for all school bathrooms serving students in grades 4 through 12 to be furnished with free menstrual products. The mandate will also apply to all colleges and universities within the Minnesota State system as well as the University of Minnesota campuses.
“This is actually something I did in my interview, because they asked me to lay out what my vision is for the Women’s Center, and it’s actually not up to me,” she said. “It’s really up to us as a group, so what I will say is an important thing for me to do is to start learning and hearing from the people we should be serving and that we do serve about what it is they need and what they’re interested in.
“Consent is super important in the work that we do. We talk about it in terms of sexuality and of physical relationships, but it’s also important in other types of interactions as well — we don’t want to impose our vision of what the world should be. We want to work with others to help enact a better world for everybody, and we can’t do that if we don’t know what they want to tell us.”
With legislative issues surrounding reproductive rights, access to gender-affirming care and other forms of health care being discussed across the nation, Brown said it’s been a concerning time for many individuals, and certain states’ legislation is impacting where students decide to find higher education.
“We’re hearing through news stories that students are making choices now to go to schools in states that do support reproductive choice, that offer protections — and even students who may come from families who are considered sort of anti-abortion are saying ‘I’m concerned about going to a place where those rights have been taken away, because if they take away the rights to reproductive care access, what’s next? So I would rather not go to a place where I have no idea what the future’s going to hold,’” she said. “We certainly see the same thing with people who are struggling with trans health access — they’re coming to places where they can receive the support and care they need. So there’s a lot of energy around being welcoming and openly supportive, and keeping focus on advocating for everyone within the community so that people aren’t being targeted with really dangerous and harmful policies and procedures.”
For Brown, it’s important people on campus and in the community know the SCSU Women’s Center is meant to be a resource for all. The Center offers period and safer sex supplies, pregnancy tests and fun buttons designed by students.
“We try to have a lot of joy here and we work very hard,” Brown said. “We work on things that sometimes feel very life and death, and it’s super critical to help people exist and how they make good choices for themselves and their families. But we try to have joy and we try to have fun, and if someone wants to bring us an idea, we are happy to talk about it and maybe we can make it happen.”
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