CLASS NOTES

1950

KATHERINE HUGHES BEIERS ’55 ran the New York City Marathon on November 3, 2019. She placed third in the 80+ age group, and she was the oldest woman to run the race. She has also placed in the Boston Marathon 14 times.

ANITA GERMAIN, CSJ, ’59 published a book, Because He Believed, about her nephew who had a double-lung transplant. Sister Anita works as a holistic health therapist.

1970

SUSAN JESKA ’74, EdD, MBA, BAN, RN, FAAN

SUSAN JESKA ’74, EdD, MBA, BAN, RN, FAAN, was inducted into the American Academy of Nursing in Washington, DC, on October 26, 2019. She is currently vice president of the Center for Clinician Advancement at UnitedHealth Group.

MARY BENNETT ’78 was recently included on the Forbes Top Women Wealth Advisors list.

LYNN VOLKENANT ’78, MAED’95, EdD, graduated from the University of St. Thomas with a doctorate degree in education in May 2020.

1980

COLLEEN HAAS ’83, PhD, received the 2019 Foundational Studies Teaching Award in recognition of teaching excellence within the Indiana State University liberal arts core requirements program. In 2016, she was selected for the Faculty Award for CommunityBased Learning and Scholarship for bringing African music study to students and the community. Haas is faculty in the African and African-American studies program at Indiana State University.

COLLEEN HAAS ’83

SUZANNE HEIDELBERG ANDERSON ’83, PEGGY KEMP KRATZ ’83, TERESA ROLFES SCHULTZ ’84, AND LENNIE HEALEY SCHULTZ ’82 gathered together to cheer on the Wildcats swimming and diving team in February as they placed first at the MIAC championship.

SUZANNE HEIDELBERG ANDERSON ’83, PEGGY KEMP KRATZ ’83, TERESA ROLFES SCHULTZ ’84, AND LENNIE HEALEY SCHULTZ ’82

CATHERINE ADAMS ’85 was named principal of River Middle School in the Napa Valley Unified School District.

SOME MEMBERS FROM THE CLASS OF 1980 GATHERED VIRTUALLY. FROM TOP (L-R): RUTH HAAG BROMBACH ’60, NANCY JAMIESON ’80, BETH RIEDEL CARNEY ’82, JEAN ZIEGEWEID ROKKE ’80, BETSY POLAKOWSKI ’80, PATTY OPPEGARD DUEBER ’80, ANNE DUXBURY RENAKER ’80, GINNY STEINHAGEN ’80, MARY JO DEPAUW ROWLEY ’80, BARBARA MORTINSON BAUMGARTEN ’80, AND LISA BARTH POLACHEK ’80

ANNE K. MCKEIG ’89, a University trustee, was the recipient of the University of Minnesota’s Center for Advanced Studies in Child Welfare’s 2020 Child Welfare Leadership Award. McKeig, an associate justice on the Minnesota Supreme Court, began her career as an assistant Hennepin County attorney in 1992 in the Child Protection Division. In 2008, Governor Pawlenty appointed her to the 4th Judicial District bench. Throughout her career, she played a pivotal role in developing protocols and programs for child protection and Indian child welfare.

ANNE K. MCKEIG ’89

1990

AMY POLSKI LARSON ’91, MAED’05 took the position of chief development officer for the College of Pharmacy at the University of Minnesota in July.

2000

WILLIAM LE VOIR-BARRY ’02, chief technology officer for IBM’s Esports and Video Games, spoke at Glase ToJoy conference in Vienna in November.

ABIGAIL BURROWS WHITE ’03 was awarded a 2020 Leadership Award from the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center (WRNMMC) Nurses Association on May 14, 2020. She has been an active duty Navy Nurse Corps officer for 16 years, currently serving as the clinical nurse specialist of the Emergency Department at WRNMMC.

ABIGAIL BURROWS WHITE ’03

ANGELIQUE HOWE BASKIN ’04 was promoted to the position of customer support manager and officer at First National Bank and Trust in Beloit, Wis.

ANGELIQUE HOWE BASKIN ’04

MELINDA REEDER ’05 was named the new principal of Bethlehem Academy in Faribault, Minn. in July 2020.

LAWRENCE RICHARDSON ’05 was named the lead pastor of Linden Hills United Church of Christ in Minneapolis in a near-unanimous vote in October 2019.

SARA AGONSTINELLI ’06, EdD, graduated with her doctorate in educational leadership from the University of Montana in May 2020.

REBECCA MCDONALD ’07, founder and director of BFRESH Productions, will be working with the City of Minneapolis to reimagine their public access television. BFRESH began this work in July 2020.

MICHELLE SIEBEN DOREE ’08 married Brian Doree on September 21, 2019, at Christ Episcopal Church in Woodbury, Minn.

MICHELLE SIEBEN DOREE ’08

LINDSAY VERGIN BROWN ’08 accepted the position of vice president of sales and marketing for Beyond Clean in October 2019. Beyond Clean is a healthcare education, consulting, and media company.

LINDSAY VERGIN BROWN ’08

LINDSAY BUTTERFIELD WHIPPLE ’09 and Christopher Whipple welcomed their second child, Patrick James, on October 25, 2019.

PATRICK JAMES

LAURA NELSON ’09, JD, was promoted to partner at Stinson, LLP. Nelson also serves as a board member of Gilda’s Club Twin Cities and a member of the Health Law Section Governing Council of the Minnesota State Bar Association.

KATRINA SANDE OTT ’09 and Ryan Ott welcomed their first child, Nolan, on January 30, 2020.

2010

JULIE HULL ’10 was named the principal of Scandia Elementary School in Forest Lake, Minn. in July 2020.

REBECCA ZENEFSKI SLATER ’10 and Mitchell Slater welcomed baby Maeve Elizabeth, on March 7, 2020.

MAEVE ELIZABETH

JACQUELINE SAWYER-KULESZA ’11, MBA’18 married Jordan Kulesza on November 23, 2019, at Our Lady of Victory Chapel.

MICHELLE PICKLE BROWN MAOT’12 and Jeff Brown welcomed their second child, Lucas Richard, in November 2019.

LUCAS RICHARD

KYLIE WHITE ’14 was a finalist in the Star Tribune’s cookie contest in December 2019 for her recipe for smoky blue cheese and cherry biscuits.

MARGARET FISCHER HERRIGES MSW’17 married Daniel Herriges on January 18, 2020, at Our Lady of Victory Chapel.

RUBY BAYLISS ’17, a doctoral student at the Drexel University’s Dornsife School of Public Health, won the student poster competition at the 2019 Field of Dreams Conference held by the Math Alliance, The National Alliance for Doctoral Studies in the Mathematical Sciences. Bayliss’ poster explored her research on the relationship between counties with low socioeconomic status and access to clean drinking water within the United States.

RUBY BAYLISS ’17

BRITT RHODES DSW’17 published an article in the Journal of Baccalaureate Social Work in 2019 titled, “Trauma-Informed Contemplative Pedagogy: Implications for Undergraduate Course Revision.” Rhodes is the director of the social work program at Luther College in Decorah, Iowa.

ROBYN ROHR ’17 was named as the head softball coach at Brevard College in North Carolina. Rohr most recently served as assistant coach for Dakota County Technical College in Rosemount, Minn.

ELIZABETH CAMBER GIBBONS DPT’19 married Patrick Gibbons on September 21, 2019, at the Church of Saint Mark in St. Paul.

KAITLYN SKOG FEATHERSTONE ’19 married Andrew Featherstone on February 15, 2020, in Vassa, Minn.

SUBMIT A CLASS NOTE:

CONTACT US

Online: stkate.edu/alumni

Phone: 651-690-6666

Email: alumni@stkate.edu

facebook.com/katiealumni

@StKatesAlums