Celebrating the Sciences

But success spans all academic areas

It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to clearly see this issue is about the sciences, an area that has excelled here for more than half a century.

Saint Mary’s was one of the first universities to require undergraduate research; our alumni say when they get to graduate school, they’re a step above the competition. In fact, I just interviewed an alumna who said when she got to graduate school, she was able to waive several courses because of the quality of the courses she had already taken at Saint Mary’s.

Clearly the undergraduate campus location — with the proximity of Gilmore Creek; the bluffs and their bountiful habitat, and the nearby Mississippi River — has always been an environmental biologist’s dream classroom. When we acquired what is now our Rochester Campus and its surrounding restored wetlands, we expanded our students’ environmental study opportunities.

How many alumni have stories of spending their summers doing research on the river? Our faculty have always involved students in their research, and — as a result — many students have had their work published while undergraduates. (Mark Leonard B’19 talks about this, beginning on page 16.)

Additionally, each year, the university’s GeoSpatial Services employs dozens of students, involving them in important research that shapes the future of our environment. (See page 12.)

Alumni also aid in providing research opportunities for our students in many ways. One of our generous benefactors, Betty Kabara, has made fighting cancer another part of her life’s work. Because of this, our students have the opportunity each summer to work in cancer research at the Kabara Cancer Research Institute at Gundersen Lutheran Health System. (See more on page 4.)

Our new undergraduate nursing program, currently in only its second year, with 30 enrolled students, is likely to more than double next fall — with 60 students already committed and a cap of 80 students. Just one of the things that sets Saint Mary’s program apart is the fact our students are admitted as nursing students as they begin as first-years. So they’re able to take full advantage of a rich undergraduate experience and be part of the nursing program throughout their four years. (See our cover story on page 13.)

And students in our 3+2 physician assistant program with Mayo Clinic School of Health Sciences are now completing their fourth year, just one year from setting out into the world as PAs. They not only are learning from the best in the nation, they are also setting themselves up for amazing job placements, and they’re doing it all in just five years. (See the journey of one of our students, Britney Blacker ’23 on page 8.)

Saint Mary’s renowned science programming includes psychology at the graduate and undergraduate levels. (Chazz Robinson B’16 shares how his psychology degree led to his career on page 18.) One of our graduate alumni (and current Psy.D. students), Quincy Guinadi M’20, has been elected to a nationwide role with the American Psychological Association of Graduate Students. (She and several others who are either excelling in the sciences or helping Saint Mary’s excel in the sciences are mentioned on pages 20-21.)

Also at the graduate level, our Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) program typically has a waiting list, as our adult learners know the course is exactly what they need to excel in their careers. The DNP, formally our nurse anesthesia program, has made a name for itself in the industry. (See page 6 for an entrepreneurial alumna success story.)

The list goes on.

Next issue, I hope to showcase alumni and students in business, marketing, communication, and technology — another growing area with abundant success stories at both the graduate and undergraduate levels.

As always, we’ll continue to celebrate all of our alumni, in every issue, because regardless of their academic areas of study, they’re accomplishing amazing things.

For now, let’s celebrate the sciences — the areas of study that help us make sense of the universe, cure diseases, feed the world, learn sustainable farming practices, study behavioral and mental processes, and much more. Our alumni are out making a difference in the world in many ways. That’s what’s worth celebrating.

Deb Nahrgang Saint Mary’s Magazine Editor

... being chosen to do this was exciting, and I know that what I’m doing is going to a bigger purpose …