MY PERSPECTIVE

Following giant footsteps toward Saint John’s bright future By Dan McKeown ’85, SJU Board of Trustees chair and Isabel ’18 CSB). There’s a thread of commonality in experiences and lessons learned that I see through my father, myself and my son and daughter. These commonalties of the SJU/CSB experience, such as the Benedictine Values, residential life, strong athletics and liberal arts education, are shared and will continue to be shared through generations. At the same time, there is a need for the university to stay current and relevant, and to keep evolving as its students evolve. I see the need for this as a parent, as an alumnus and as a board member. At this juncture of change for the university, I am extremely grateful to Dr. Michael Hemesath ’81 for his leadership and accomplishments as President of Saint John’s for the past seven years. Dr. Hemesath established the role as the first lay president in the history of the university. That was quite an undertaking and he took it on and did an admirable job. We wish him and his family all the best in his next endeavor.

Tom (left) and Dan McKeown are the first father/son combination to serve as chair of the Saint John’s Board of Regents/Trustees. My father, Tom McKeown ’52, just celebrated his 90th birthday. He is a man of great character and simple wisdoms who continues to demonstrate to his children and grandchildren the importance of helping and serving others. He also taught us the power of listening, collaborating, the love of learning and the importance of an education. My father was chair of the SJU Board of Regents from 198792, and we are very grateful to be the first father/son pair to serve in this role. I’m reminded of the high bar he set when I meet alumni and I say, “Hi, I’m Dan McKeown” and they respond with “Yeah, Tom’s son – high bar.” We are both very honored and grateful to be of service to such an outstanding institution. I look forward to working diligently with the faculty, students and board members to address challenges and to celebrate the triumphs that make Saint John’s such a world-class institution. Thank you to my father for paving the way. I’ve recently become more deeply involved in the institution by serving on the board for the past six years and by coming back to campus frequently with my kids (Desmond ’15 SJU

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SUMMER/FALL 2019

The interim replacement has been selected and we are pleased to welcome Dr. Eugene McAllister, who was named to the position July 29 by the SJU Board of Trustees and started August 1. He will serve through the fiscal year ending June 30, 2020. Dr. McAllister appreciates and respects the Benedictine, Catholic tradition and is also deeply committed to the value of a liberal arts education. He brings a diverse résumé of experience that can help us think about the future of Saint John’s, and he has a demonstrated track record of growing enrollment. Saint John’s will continue to evolve and build upon what the Abbey, prior presidents, boards of trustees, faculty, staff and students have built. We have distinct strengths that we will uphold for future generations. As I think about the future of Saint John’s, I believe we need to be agile, nimble and forward-thinking while remaining true to our mission. We have great opportunities to keep our university relevant and dynamic in today’s changing educational realm. I look forward to exploring them and serving as board chair and working with the community at Saint John’s to maximize our potential. Dan McKeown ’85 was elected chair of the SJU Board of Trustees May 13. He graduated from Saint John’s with a degree in economics and is president and CEO of Specialty Manufacturing Company. He lives in Stillwater with his wife Heidi, and their children Desmond ’15 and Isabel ’18 are SJU/CSB graduates.