NEWS
Saint John’s welcomes Michael Hemesath as 13th president In July 2012, Michael Hemesath began his official post as the 13th president of Saint John’s University. “I am delighted that Saint John’s University has chosen Dr. Hemesath as its president,” said MaryAnn Baenninger, president of College of Saint Benedict. “His background and qualifications are stellar. More importantly, he has high aspirations for Saint John’s, as I do for Saint Ben’s. I believe that together our leadership will guarantee a bright future for CSB/SJU.” Hemesath graduated summa cum laude from Saint John’s in 1981 with a degree in economics and received his master’s and doctorate in economics from Harvard University. He was on the economics faculty at Carleton College since 1989 and served as faculty president since 2009. Before Carleton, he was on the faculty for two years at Tufts University in Medford, Mass. His wife, Elizabeth Galbraith, teaches in the religion department at St. Olaf College, and they have a son, Cameron. Hemesath is the first lay president elected to a full term in the 155-year history of the institution. Saint John’s President Michael Hemesath ’81 and Saint Ben’s President MaryAnn Baenninger
CSB alumna recognized as entrepreneur of the year Margaret Murphy ’90 was selected as the 2012 CSB Entrepreneur of the Year by the Donald McNeely Center for Entrepreneurship serving CSB/SJU. Murphy is president and chief operating officer at Olson, an award-winning advertising agency in Margaret Murphy ’90 Minneapolis, Minn. Murphy had her first taste in business when she started a fast food restaurant at the age of 17. After receiving a MBA degree from the University of St. Thomas, she began her career at Carlson Marketing, where she was the youngest recipient of the company’s top honor for customer service. She then moved to Denali Marketing in 2007, growing the firm to more than $20 million in revenue. Olson, Murphy’s current workplace, acquired Denali in 2010. The CSB Entrepreneur of the Year Award recognizes a Bennie who exemplifies the ideals of entrepreneurship while practicing Benedictine values in the workplace and in her life. Also recognized this year were Cary Musech ’80, founder and CEO of Tonka Bay Equity Partners, as SJU Entrepreneur of the Year, and Joe Cavanaugh ’81, founder and CEO of Youth Frontiers, as CSB/SJU Social Entrepreneur of the Year.
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Accounting grads chart their way to the top College of Saint Benedict ranks number three in the country on certified public accountant exams, according to the Best-Performing Accounting Programs of 2011 by the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA). This ranking is determined from the results of all first-time CPA exams taken. Saint Ben’s students collectively had an 84.8 percent pass rate on the CPA exam in 2011. The state of Minnesota averaged 52.6 percent and the national average was 45.5 percent. According to the report, the top five schools for first-time exam takers were (listed in descending order) Wake Forest University, University of Pennsylvania, College of Saint Benedict, University of Virginia and Duke University.