Saint Mary's Newsroom
Campus ConnectionAn update from the president to alumni and parents
Lasallian Volunteers recruiting for next year
Lasallian Volunteers is still recruiting volunteers to serve during 2020-21. The next application deadline is Monday, April 20, and if spots remain open after that, another deadline will be set for May or June.
This is a challenging and overwhelming time for many, and Lasallian Volunteers recognizes that post-graduate plans may be changing, so don’t miss out on this opportunity to deepen your Lasallian mission through faith, service, and community.
You can tag/follow Lasallian Volunteers on social media via Instagram (@lasallianvols), Twitter (@LasallianVols), and Facebook (@LasallianVolunteers).
Student Senate minutes
Student Senate continues to meet via Zoom at 7 p.m. on Tuesdays. Below you’ll find Student Senate meeting minutes from the April 14 meeting:
Updates in response to extended ‘stay-at-home’ order
Saint Mary’s continues to respond to and anticipate the impact COVID-19 has and will have on our community and take appropriate action. In light of the decision made by Governor Tim Walz to extend Minnesota’s “stay at home” order through Monday, May 4, and to continue safeguarding the well-being of our students, faculty, staff, and communities, the university has made several important decisions.
Summer term 2
All courses scheduled for summer term 2 (June 29 to Aug. 23) will be held online.
Events
All events through the end of July 2020 have been suspended, including the June commencement for our Schools of Graduate and Professional Programs on our Twin Cities Campus and Reunion Weekend on the Winona Campus. We will continue to explore opportunities to reschedule these events and will be contacting key stakeholders for input in the coming weeks.
Campus and building closures
Campuses and buildings will remain closed, and all but essential staff will continue to work from home through Monday, May 4, in accordance with the governor’s executive order.
Summer workers on the Winona Campus
The university is suspending all summer student work opportunities. Exceptions may be possible in cases where students do not require housing or food service. Interested students should contact Cardinal Central at cardinalcentral@smumn.edu or 507-457-6655 for additional information.
International travel programs
We have made the difficult decision to cancel all Saint Mary’s sponsored international travel programs through the fall, including the London Semester Program and any affiliated fall semester study abroad programs. Undergraduate students had been notified earlier to make alternate plans in the event this program was canceled. Discussions are being held to potentially combine this year’s London class into next year’s class. The Kenya Alumni Service trip scheduled for August 2020 has been postponed until 2021.
A State of the University address is being planned for Friday, May 8, at noon, and a Zoom link will be provided in the coming days.
Writing support available
Students in the graduate and professional programs and bachelor’s completion programs can get writing help seven days a week through an online queue, as well as email and telephone appointments. Support includes help at any stage of the writing process, from understanding an assignment, to editing a final draft.
Searching for a job? Resume review and cover letter support are also available.
It’s easy to make an appointment and access the online queue. In addition to one-on-one help from writing consultants, visit The Writing Center website to access online resources on grammar, the writing process, and citation styles.
If you have questions about available services or need writing support, email write@smumn.edu.
An update on the International Symposium on Lasallian Research
Based on the current circumstances, we have made the decision to cancel the International Lasallian Research Symposium, scheduled for Oct. 23-25, 2020, on Saint Mary’s Twin Cities Campus. This was a difficult decision, as this was to be the ninth gathering since the symposium began. Given the many still unknown factors about COVID-19, its extraordinary impact on all of our institutions, travel challenges and restrictions, and a genuinely unknown future, it was best to make the decision early and communicate it widely.
Please mark your calendars for our 2021 symposium, to be held Oct. 1-3, 2021.
If you have already submitted a proposal for the 2020 symposium or are in the process of doing so, we invite you to continue your work and submit your final paper at axis.smumn.edu/author-guidelines by Oct. 1, 2020, to be considered for publication in a special issue of our online journal, AXIS: Journal of Lasallian Higher Education.
Spiritual offering
Saint Mary’s Campus Ministry continues to share spiritual offerings to provide much-needed perspective and a focus on faith in this time of uncertainty.
“Let not your hearts be troubled; believe in God, believe also in me … Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.” – John 14:1, 27
Visit Saint Mary’s Campus Ministry on Facebook.
Beckman and Mockler recognized with Engaged Campus Awards
Iowa and Minnesota Campus Compact (IAMNCC) have announced the winners of the 2020 Presidents’ Engaged Campus Awards, which includes two individuals from the Saint Mary’s community and one valuable partner organization.
This year’s awards include more than 100 honorees selected by 38 member college and university presidents. Awardees were selected for their roles as student leaders, civic leaders, and for community-campus partnerships.
“This year is a particularly important time to recognize the amazing collaborations happening between communities and campuses,” said Emily Shields, IAMNCC executive director. “The current crisis makes the important public role of colleges and universities even more evident and these examples demonstrate what’s possible.”
Online recognition will occur from April 17 to May 5 and will include video messages for and by awardees, virtual message boards, pictures, and descriptions of awardees. These will be shared on IAMNCC websites and social media.
Student Leadership Award: Emma Mockler
Emma Mockler, a senior student from Dubuque, Iowa, is a visible leader at Saint Mary’s. She is a role model for service to others as evidenced by her work as a student orientation leader, her engagement with countless mission trips, and her participation in service clubs on campus. She honed her leadership skills at a two-week conference in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in collaboration with students from other Lasallian colleges and universities worldwide. Mockler is a bright light at Saint Mary’s.
Civic Engagement Leadership Award: Dean Beckman
Dean Beckman, Communication Department chair and associate professor, constantly works to connect students with alumni in his work at Saint Mary’s, benefiting both students and alumni. He also serves as the faculty athletic representative and is the voice of Cardinal athletics. He advances the university’s mission through the civic work he does in Winona, as evidenced by his role as Harbormaster for the 2019 Winona Steamboat Days. The university appreciates Beckman’s commitment to leadership at the university and in Winona.
Community Partner Award: Habitat for Humanity Winona-Fillmore Counties
Habitat for Humanity Winona-Fillmore Counties is dedicated to eliminating substandard housing locally and worldwide through constructing, rehabilitating, and preserving homes. Saint Mary’s University students (as well as faculty and staff) have a long relationship with Habitat for Humanity and have participated in several builds throughout the years. Habitat teaches students about building community and building hope — incredibly valuable lessons for them as they grow and mature.
Learn more about all the Presidents’ Awards honorees in Minnesota and Iowa.
IAMNCC strengthens the capacity of colleges and universities to fulfill the public purposes of higher education through its network of 58 campuses. This includes educating students through community and civic learning experiences and making an impact in communities through reciprocal partnerships that address community-identified goals. IAMNCC creates partnership opportunities, supports quality programming through professional development, and promotes the importance of the civic mission.
Performance study alumnus recalls origins of working under Page Theatre’s lights
If there is a lesson Jarod Boltjes ’12 can teach all of us during these trying times, it’s the power of resilience.
After Boltjes graduated from Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota with a B.A. in performance study of theatre, he auditioned to be in James Sewell Ballet in Minneapolis.
“I was told to get more experience and come back. So here I am,” said Boltjes, who has been a member of the ballet for about a year.
Following the advice of those at James Sewell Ballet, he went on to perform at performing arts companies and ensembles throughout the Twin Cities metro area, such as Contempo Physical Dance, Twin Cities’ Ballet, Collide Theatrical, and St. Paul Ballet.
“With the audition process, you’re going to hear a hundred nos before you get that one yes,” Boltjes said. “It’s always a continuous “What’s next? And how do you want to keep going?”
Boltjes’ performing arts career began at Page Theatre as a first-year student, taking part in “The Nutcracker” by playing both Drosselmeyer and a Russian soldier. Before that experience, the Adrian, Minn., native had only done community theatre performances in school gymnasiums.
“It took finally getting under mainstage lights to say, ‘This is the place that I want to be,’” Boltjes said.
Where it all began
Before the COVID-19 health pandemic put an end to originally scheduled plans, Boltjes was set to return to Page Theatre on March 27 as part of James Sewell Ballet’s 30th Anniversary Retrospective Tour throughout Minnesota. It was recently announced that the show has been tentatively rescheduled for Friday, Sept. 18.
Jarod Boltjes and Eve Schulte appear in a promo shoto for “Opera Moves” by James Sewell Ballet.
Boltjes received several notifications from former classmates and other alumni who were planning to make the trip to Winona just to see him.
“He was a hard worker in his dance classes. He always asked thoughtful questions about movement mechanics and artistry, but he was also one of the most endearing students because of his encouragement of others in his classes and his responsiveness when dancing with a partner,” said Tammy Schmidt, Theatre and Dance assistant professor. “His gentle spirit was obvious to anyone who witnessed his dancing, which made him a beloved member of the company to audience members, choreographers, and other dancers alike.”
Schmidt met Boltjes when he was a first-year student in her ballet course pursuing a theatre minor. She saw something special in Boltjes on the stage. She encouraged him to blaze his own trail by creating his own major.
“She saw that I had a gift that I wasn’t utilizing to its full potential, so she pushed me in that direction and it stuck,” Boltjes said.
Boltjes spent almost five hours one Saturday constructing the requirements needed to complete his major with Judy Myers, Theatre and Dance Department chair and professor.
Discovering a new world
His academic journey at Saint Mary’s was highlighted by a three-and-a-half month study abroad experience at the Rose Bruford College in London and The Gaiety School of Acting in Dublin, where he would take up to five classes at a time while blogging and journaling about working with an array of highly regarded instructors.
“[Tammy Schmidt] saw that I had a gift that I wasn’t utilizing to its full potential, so she pushed me in that direction and it stuck.”
—Jarod Boltjes
When he is not working at James Sewell Ballet, Boltjes can be found teaching dance and choreography at the youth-based Circus Juventas or giving barre or yoga lessons at a local yoga studio.
He encourages aspiring dancers and performers to always know their value and worth when it comes to taking on projects or joining companies — and work on a diversified skill set that can help them find work in a variety of outlets.
“At the end of the day, you need to be able to stick up for your art and your passion,” he said. “But you also need to have multiple skills. If you go somewhere and they don’t need a dancer, but they need someone who can do costumes, lighting, or set building, having that skill set prepares you for that next opportunity … whatever it may be.”
Featured image: Jarod Boltjes dances with Chloe Duryea in Jennifer Hart’s “Bloom” during a recent performance by James Sewell Ballet, based in Minneapolis. Boltjes was scheduled to perform with the ballet company on March 27 at Page Theatre on the Winona Campus. That performance has been tentatively rescheduled for Sept. 18.
Associate professor of Art and Design featured in New York group exhibition
Lisa Truax, associate professor of Art and Design, has a piece featured in the group exhibition Craft in Contemporary Art at the Site: Brooklyn Gallery in New York. The exhibition is currently closed for viewing due to COVID-19. Truax’s piece, titled “Atoll 3, 2019,” is pictured above.
More photos of the exhibit can be found on Truax’s artist’s Facebook page.
The Rev. James P. Burns, IVD, Ph.D.
President
Saint Mary's University of Minnesota
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