Saint Mary's Newsroom

Campus Connection

An update from the president to alumni and parents

Biology and biochemistry students present at regional meeting

Saint Mary’s biology and biochemistry students presented at the Beta Beta Beta National Biology Honor Society District Meeting, held in conjunction with the Minnesota Academy of Science’s Winchell Undergraduate Research Symposium on April 24. The virtual meeting featured students from 14 regional colleges and universities presenting their original STEM research. Cole Van Houten was awarded second place for the BBB Frank G. Brooks oral presentation. Van Houten (biology), MacKenzie Waters (biochemistry), and Delaney Wolf (biochemistry) won the MAS Judges’ Choice Awards for best presentations. Other science students who presented were Graham Lorsung and McKenna Gaalswyk.

Concerts on the plaza this weekend

Bring a picnic and celebrate the end of the semester with live music this weekend: Concert Band, noon, Saturday, May 1, and Jazz groups, 3 p.m., Sunday, May 2.

All faculty, staff, and students are invited to both of these performances. Please wear masks and stay socially distanced or in your pods.

Eddie Phillips Scholarship for African-American Men

Saint Mary’s University is one of five recipients of the Minnesota Private College Fund’s Eddie Phillips Scholarship for African-American Men for the 2021-2023 cohort.

Students must meet the following criteria:

Be an African-American male
Have sophomore status as of spring 2021/junior status as of fall 2021 — confirmed by registrar via transcript
Demonstrate financial need by either qualifying for Minnesota State Grant or Pell Grant
Have a GPA range of 2.0 to 2.9 (exceptions can be made) — must confirm GPA prior to selection
Be on track for a four-year graduation — must be confirmed by registrar
Be available to participate in ALL required program activities — including the entire summer course (12 weeks, once a week starting June 2, 2021, at the University of St. Thomas, Minneapolis campus)
Be motivated to succeed

If you meet the criteria and are interested in the opportunity, please contact Alisa Macksey at amacksey@smumn.edu to set up a meeting.

MBA student using coursework in director’s role with Midwest Medical Examiner’s Office

By Tom Brandes

One of the reasons Shane Sheets sought Saint Mary’s University’s accelerated MBA program is because his personal and professional life can also be described as accelerated.

In addition to juggling a family, being engaged, completing his degree in August, and serving his second term serving on the Green Isle (Minnesota) City Council, he has a busy work schedule, and was recently promoted.

Sheets serves as the director of the Midwest Medical Examiner’s Office in Ramsey, Minn., which conducts death investigations in 29 counties in Minnesota and western Wisconsin and is responsible for performing autopsies to determine the cause, manner, and circumstances surrounding the death of an individual. The office operates under Anoka County.

“My job is to provide strategic management to a team of forensic pathologists, forensic technicians, medicolegal death investigators, and other medical professionals who work as a team to honor those who have died by providing scientific, consistent, and compassionate investigation into the circumstance of death,” says Sheets. “I also manage the business functions for our agency, including contract negotiations.”

The job is unique in terms of the knowledge, skills, and abilities required to perform the essential functions. His role involves customer relations, disaster planning, project planning, dealing with highly confidential information, and leading a team in multiple locations across the state.

Being an effective communicator is also a critical skill because Sheets’ job requires interaction with the public, appointed and elected officials, medical personnel, funeral home staff, and members of law enforcement on a daily basis. Sheets appreciates that each day is unique and when his phone rings, he never knows what it will bring.

“My undergraduate degree is in criminal justice, and I have various certificates in medicolegal death investigation, supervision of police personnel, and supervision and management credentials from the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension,” adds Sheets. “I chose Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota due to its nationally recognized MBA program, affordability, and catered courses that coincide with my professional goals and busy work schedule.”

Sheets strongly believes that education is one of the greatest investments a person can make in their future. He credits his studies at Saint Mary’s University for helping him gain a competitive edge with advanced business knowledge at a time when the workforce is extremely competitive.

As he begins his last semester in the accelerated MBA program that he began just over a year ago, Sheets enjoys the networking abilities and like-minded professionals he’s met through his coursework. Despite the fact that the coursework is primarily online due to the pandemic, he appreciates how Saint Mary’s has designed the program to mirror in-person learning in terms of connecting with peers and building relationships.

“I’ve learned critical skills in each of my courses, but Employment Law, Project Management, Executive Communication, and Quantitative Decision Making stand out as the courses where I will use the most material in the workforce,” says Sheets. “Saint Mary’s has helped me gain a well-rounded business education that will help me improve operations in the office.”

Sheets is putting his newly learned skills to work in an office that performs more than 1,000 autopsies annually and has had to deal with increased overdose and mental health calls since the start of the pandemic a year ago. Despite wanting to be an astronaut while growing up, Sheets says this is the next best job for him.

“We are the voice of the deceased, and each staff member here plays a key part using their skills, hard work, respect and due diligence to provide answers to the families and loved ones of those who cannot speak,” adds Sheets. “It’s an honor to be a part of this extraordinary organization.”

No change to mask policy

You may have seen that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has put out updated guidance on the use of masks in outdoor spaces. The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) is currently reviewing this new information. However, university policy regarding masking and social distancing has not changed. Due to our highly residential setting on the Winona Campus, masks and social distancing continues to be required of all students, faculty, and staff, regardless of their vaccination status. The university is erring on the side of caution to ensure the safety of our community, especially as we look forward to commencement.

Our strong community remains — an invitation to share your experiences

All of us here at Saint Mary’s University would like to thank you and offer a huge congratulations for making it through this past year. The COVID-19 pandemic changed many aspects of your living and learning experience, yet you remained steadfast and resilient in your efforts to maintain normalcy.

Students should be proud of all the hard work you’ve put into your coursework and in following the everchanging COVID-19 guidelines that have been set forth. Faculty and staff should be proud of the hard work you’ve put into adapting to all that COVID-19 has brought to your work. When new challenges arose, you met them with great enthusiasm and creativity.

Here are a few examples of how each and every one of you persisted:

You diligently wore your mask as you worked and studied on campus and beyond..
At the College, you participated in regular COVID-19 testing to ensure safety for yourself and your teammates.
At the College, you sacrificed visiting friends and family on the weekends to reduce the risk of spreading the virus.
At the College, you participated in and helped host the more than 350 events that took place this year, including tie-dye nights, movie nights, hikes, bonfires, and TedTalks, to name a few.
At the Schools of Graduate and Professional Programs, you adapted to the rigors of online learning while juggling work and taking care of your families..

Although there were a few setbacks, we applaud your efforts and ability to make this a memorable year.

To commemorate, we’d like to invite you to share your experiences of the past year so we can accumulate various voices and create a collection of how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected the Saint Mary’s community.

As I reflect on the year, I am reminded of comments from Kris Shepard, our Outstanding Male Senior Student, at the luncheon for the finalists for the Outstanding Senior awards last week on the Winona Campus. He spoke about the “silver linings” we have all experienced throughout this year. For me personally, one silver lining has been you, our students, who persevered and persisted amidst the many trials and tribulations of this pandemic, doing so with evident care, compassion, and empathy for each other. I also count all the employees of the university as my other silver lining. Faculty and staff alike worked countless hours to ensure that you, our students, could have a successful experience. You are all my inspiration and my cause for hope.

THANK YOU again for all your hard work this year. We are proud of each and every one of you and grateful that you’re part of the Saint Mary’s community.

Together, we are Saint Mary’s.

Lasallian Catholic formation and educational opportunities, summer 2021

Greetings colleagues,

While many of the Lasallian Catholic Mission Formation Programs have been postponed due to COVID-19, two such programs will be offered virtually this summer:

The Lasallian Social Justice Institute

You can find information on this year’s program at lasallian.info/programs-events/lsji.

The following current Saint Mary’s folks have participated in this program: Erin Mae Clark, Rachel McGee, Paul Christensen, Larry Price, Karen Sorvaag, Joseph Tadie, and Mary Louise Wise. I am sure these colleagues would be happy to have a conversation about their experience with the LSJI.

We can sponsor 2-4 participants for this program this summer.

Collegium: A Colloquy on Faith and the Intellectual Life

You can read more about it at collegium.org/annual-colloquy. There, you will find a brief description and overview of the program, as well as other specifics under the tab “2021 Colloquy.”

In the past few years, Saint Mary’s participants included Matt Nowakowski, Mark Barber, Jimmy Bickerstaff, Pat Calton, Derek Jackson, Tycho DeBoer, and Joseph Tadie. I am sure they would be happy to chat with you about their experience of the Colloquy.

We can have two participants for this program this year; ideally, someone from the Winona Campus and a person from Twin Cities or Rochester campuses.

I invite all full-time staff and faculty to consider applying to participate in one of these programs.

I want to make the application process as simple as possible by using this form. Please fill it out and return to me via email at rsmith@smumn.edu. Consideration for participation in these programs will include such things as years of service at Saint Mary’s, contributions to and anticipated “takeaways” from the program, representation across the university and its various units, and so on.

Please return your application to me no later than 5 p.m. on Wednesday, May 12, 2021.

Feel free to email me at rsmith@smumn.edu for further information, clarification, or amplification of any of the above.

All the best.

Brother Robert Smith, FSC, Ph.D.
Senior vice president for university initiatives and special advisor to the president

In the news

Here are some of the ways Saint Mary’s has been featured “in the news.”

John Tschida’s return as the women’s fastpitch coach garnered some attention including: the Star Tribune, WKBT TV, the Pioneer Press, and the Winona Daily News. (We’ve alerted them to the typo in his name.) A number of national softball Facebook pages also picked up the story.

The Winona Daily News also shared our story about alumnus Jake Mencacci working for the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Our upper division Music Industry faculty member, Brett Huus, is credited as the Master Audio and Mixing Engineer on this project, featured on “No More Pipeline Blues (On this Land Where We Belong) featuring Bonnie Raitt and the Indigo Girls. Read more in Rollingstone.

The Winona Daily News featured Saint Mary’s and Winona State collaborating to clean up the downtown.

9th annual International Symposium on Lasallian Research

Saint Mary’s University is looking forward to hosting the 9th annual International Symposium on Lasallian Research on its Twin Cities Campus. Given the fact that it was necessary to cancel the symposium last year, there is a strong desire to gather in person this year. All who can safely attend the 2021 symposium at Saint Mary’s on Friday through Sunday, Oct. 1-3, are welcome!

For those who cannot attend this year, we encourage you to engage with other Lasallian educators in your region as you are able to do so. We are requesting that each region prepare a recorded video presentation providing an update about how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected the schools in your region and what your current circumstances may suggest regarding research needs and possibilities. We plan to post these on the symposium website. More details and consultation about this process will be available to you via the contacts below. We already look forward to the 10th symposium in 2022 at which time we hope to be able to host a truly international gathering.

The theme for the 2021 symposium is adopted from the recent Declaration following the 45th General Chapter:

The Lasallian Education Mission: Challenges, Convictions, and Hopes

Like the Declaration itself, it is our hope that this theme will “motivate and guide our educational work toward the future in response to the needs and challenges of today’s world.” We note our dedication to this mission. This symposium should highlight the contributions that Lasallian higher education is making toward these goals. With this gathering, we also recognize and celebrate our commitment to association and acknowledge how challenging this has been during a pandemic. Please consider joining us even if you are not submitting a proposal.

The call for proposals for the 2021 symposium is now open. Submissions can be focused on theoretical research and/or practice. Proposals may fall under the broad theme of the symposium or more specifically, the following categories:

Leadership and character
Inclusion and human dignity
Science, health, and sustainability
Lasallian education and pedagogy

Proposals should include a description of the paper of approximately 250 words. In addition to your name and contact information, the proposal should also include your institutional affiliation. Proposals should be sent as soon as possible; the deadline for submission is Tuesday, June 15. Notifications of acceptance will be sent no later than Thursday, July 15.

Proposals, as well as any questions regarding the call for proposals, should be directed to Jack McClure, Ph.D., and Michael Hahn, Ph.D., at ISLR@smumn.edu. Student presentations are encouraged, but we suggest that students work with a faculty facilitator/mentor.

The registration fee structure for the 2021 is as follows, which includes meals during the symposium:

$300 for individuals at institutions in the U.S.
$200 for individuals at institutions outside of the U.S.
$150 for students (undergraduate and graduate)

Lodging is not included in the registration fee. Symposium participants are encouraged to book directly with Minneapolis Marriott City Center.

The aim of the 2021 symposium is to bring together Lasallian educators from around the world as well as a range of disciplines to celebrate community, share research, and explore questions of importance. We particularly welcome proposals from teachers and other practitioners.

The 2021 symposium is planned as an in-person event. We will continue to follow safety protocols related to the COVID-19 pandemic and follow guidance from the Minnesota Department of Health.

Register now

Visit International Symposium on Lasallian Research for more information.