Saint Mary's Newsroom

Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota will introduce an all new dining program on the Winona Campus beginning fall 2020 with expected completion of all projects in summer 2021. Chartwells will offer new meal plans for residential and commuter students, creating greater value and satisfaction through available choices. Saint Mary’s retail dining program will be revitalized in summer 2020 to expand options and improve the overall quality of dining offerings on campus.

View program updates and new meal plan options

We’ve updated our terminology to align with best practices in dining services; blocks are now called meal exchanges.

To select your meal plan, complete the appropriate form by 4 p.m. Friday, July 31:

• Returning residential students
• New residential students
• Commuter students

Currently, all residential students are defaulted to the Essential 19 meal plan and billed accordingly on their account. This is a placeholder until the meal plan selection process is completed. Adjustments will be made after Saturday, Aug. 1.

Not sure which plan is right for you? Take our meal plan assistant survey to find out.

Campus dining for fall 2020

As we prepare to welcome you back to campus this fall, we are doing so with your safety and well-being in mind. Shared spaces, including the dining room, will have posted occupancy limits. A maximum of 200 people can safely eat in the dining room at one time with new social distancing guidelines. Once capacity is reached, students will be encouraged to eat at other locations, including outside or other spots in the Toner Student Center, or take a to-go container back to their residence hall.

Questions? Contact Student Life at studentlife@smumn.edu.

Dr. Lamin

Sylvester Lamin, Ph.D., core associate professor in the Master of Social Work (MSW) program, was recently elected as an at-large representative to the board of directors for Minnesota Social Service Association (MSSA). He serves on two committees, including the Public Policy and Advocacy Committee, and the Conference and Education Committee.

MSSA supports the health and human service profession through education, advocacy, and member benefits. Today, MSSA represents more than 3,100 health and human service professionals from nonprofit, for-profit, and government agencies. Its members work in all areas of human services including mental health, chemical health, aging, children’s services, unemployment, homelessness, and more.

Dr. Lamin also recently published an article with Consoler Teboh, Ph.D., associate professor in the Social Work Department at St. Cloud State University. The article, “Acceptance and Inclusivity: An Islamic Artforms Perspective,” is in the Journal of Mental Health and Social Behaviour.

He also reviewed the book manuscript for publication and did the digital resources, including test bank questions, class activities, discussion questions, and quizzes for each chapter, in “Social Welfare Policy in a Changing World,” by Shannon Lane, Elizabeth Palley, and Corey Shadainah published by SAGE Publishing.

Plans for fall 2020 course delivery in Saint Mary’s Schools of Graduate and Professional Programs (SGPP) are taking shape. The university has decided to offer a majority of its SGPP courses online with some specific programs being offered on-ground. Courses being offered on-ground include those courses in the DBA program and select courses in a few graduate programs. Program directors are continuing to assess the needs of faculty and students and adjust accordingly.

Students should check the FA20 course schedule in the student portal at student.smumn.edu — or check with their program directors — if they have any questions about fall academic delivery.

The decision to continue with online courses was made to avoid potential disruptions to the learning experience in the wake of COVID-19 and to promote safety and well-being of our more than 5,500 non-residential adult learners. Saint Mary’s is actively working to prepare to transfer the handful of in-person courses to online experiences, should additional stay-at-home periods be implemented.
Building on its longstanding tradition of personalized online learning, Saint Mary’s continues to support and enhance the online learning experience by offering a newly developed faculty online instructor certification series. This four-week course will continue to provide faculty with online teaching skills and prepare them to deliver an enhanced student experience informed by best practices in online education. Additionally, a new student course is in development to continue to support students and provide best practices for their success in an online course environment.

All SGPP faculty, regardless of delivery modality, are dedicated to providing quality educational activities and opportunities. Program directors and faculty continue to be available to meet and advise students virtually during this time of remote delivery, and look forward to the continued academic success of our students.

We are committed to helping our adult learners fulfill their academic, career, and life goals and are working to ensure their academic experience exceeds their expectations.

Dear Cardinal,

I hope you’re having a safe and healthy summer. I’m sure you have many questions as we are heading into fall, and you are beginning to think about returning to campus. I would like to update you on progress being made, so we can begin to answer some of your questions.

I have been working with a group of dedicated student leaders for the past few weeks as part of the Fall Reopening 2020 Committee. Thank you to this group for their dedication to the process.

First, I would like to introduce you to the COVID-19 planning website, Steadfast and Resilient.

Since this website is being regularly updated as decisions are being made, this is the place to go to find answers to many of your questions. We also created an online form for you to use in helping us plan for the fall. If there are questions you believe should be addressed in future communications from me or the university, or that you believe should be included on this website, please fill out the form and let us know.

Student committee members expressed to us that you are looking for more direct guidance. Moving forward, I (and other administrators on the Winona Campus) promise to communicate with you on at least a weekly basis to discuss and share what is happening within various areas. For example, I will be able to update you on the following areas:

• Overall university safety policies
• Food service
• Campus safety
• Classrooms and academics
• Gostomski Fieldhouse (athletic and recreational)
• Residence halls
• Wellness Center (health and counseling)
• Tutoring and Writing Center
• Access Services
• Policies and procedures
• Fine arts
• Clubs and organizations
• Campus Ministry
• Quarantine and isolation procedures
• Other areas of interest highlighted by each of you

Although this fall may look and feel a little different, we are committed to providing you with a wonderful student experience. We appreciate your patience as we navigate these unprecedented times. Together, we will find solutions to make your fall successful. Stay safe and remember, together, we are Saint Mary’s.

Tim Gossen, Ed.D.
Vice President for Student Affairs

Students and administrators have been meeting together for the last three weeks to discuss possible fall reopening plans for the Winona Campus. Tim Gossen, Ed.D., vice president for Student Affairs, is chairing the committee along with various administrators and student leaders.

The charge of the committee is to share information on what is being planned for fall 2020, to listen to the student leaders regarding concerns and questions they and their classmates may have, to share changes to the campus that are occurring because of COVID-19, and to encourage committee members to share with their friends what is being discussed during these meetings and to come back to the next meeting with a summary of what they are hearing.

Meetings have been and will continue to be held weekly, for one hour, via Zoom.

“We are very excited to have these students and their classmates return in the fall,” Dr. Gossen said. “We have been busy planning, but a number of things still need to be addressed. Having student voices involved is a key component to the planning.”

Thank you to these dedicated students for their time and dedication to ensure reopening in fall is as smooth as possible:

• Jillian Alekna, Student Activities Committee executive board
• Kendall Archer, Student Senate president
• Clare Bath, tutor
• Jasmine Benavidez, First Generation Initiative
• Gabriel (Gabe) Bickerstaff, resident assistant
• Crystal Chavez, First Generation Initiative
• Caroline Cummings, orientation leader
• Elizabeth Duellman
• Angelyssa Figueroa, First Generation Initiative
• Sarah Fowler, Student Activities Committee president
• Jake French
• Mary Furlong, Student Senate executive board
• Bridgette Hegarty, resident assistant and orientation leader
• Tommy Hill, Student Athletic Advisory Committee executive board
• Raekwon Livingston, First Generation Initiative
• Edgar Medina-Ortiz, First Generation Initiative, tutor, and peer learning assistant
• Tara Nikolich, Student Athletic Advisory Committee vice president
• Nicole Noreen, Student Senate executive board and peer minister
• Enitan Onayiga, First Generation Initiative and orientation leader
• Claire Patterson, Student Athletic Advisory Committee president
• Luke Pauly, tutor
• Marcos Pedroza, Student Senate executive board
• Amanda Pohlman, peer minister
• Noah Reinhardt, peer minister
• Kris Shephard, orientation leader
• Destiny Walker, Student Senate executive board
• Elijah Williams, Student Senate executive board and resident assistant
• Delaney Wolf, tutor

The university is continuing to assess the needs of students and adjusting accordingly. Students who are at high risk are invited to fill out this form by Saturday, Aug. 1. Online components will be offered for students who need special accommodations. All courses will be designed and taught in ways that allow students who must be quarantined, or who must shift to fully remote learning, to continue to complete the course.