CSB Spring 2023 Informed Newsletter

ON THE IMPORTANCE OF LISTENING

I learn something new every day as the president of two proud, prestigious liberal arts schools. But I learn even more each day being married to a respected expert on relationship communication. One of the loudest and most consistent lessons I’ve learned in the latter (which has gone on to serve me well in the former) is to just be quiet and listen.

It sounds so simple. But if listening was easy, we would all be good at it. Can you imagine that peaceful world? If listening was easy, Benedict wouldn’t have felt called to make it the first and most prominent word in his Rule. If listening was easy, Saint Ben’s and Saint John’s wouldn’t have seen the need to define “taking counsel” as one of our core Benedictine values.

but I feel confident in saying I’ve gotten better at it than William Howard Taft, who once grumbled “I’ll be damned if I am not getting tired of this. It seems to be the profession of a president simply to hear other people talk.”

So I work hard at listening in my role as president. I won’t call myself an expert,

Right now, all of us at the College of Saint Benedict and at Saint John’s University are stretching our ear muscles as we begin the crucially important cyclical process of strategic planning. It’s a routine, recurring, unquestionably significant journey that the institutions have taken together many times before. And you can read a little more about it on page 3 from our newly installed Chief Operating Officer, Kara Kolomitz.

We’re currently in the information-gathering stage – listening. I’ve been excited about the process of traveling across the country (and beyond) to meet Bennie alumnae and friends and hear your perspectives.

It’s my first time going through strategic planning with this community, but I have no doubt we will do well. Specifically, I am confident because we have outstanding role models.

In late February, the Sisters of the Order of Saint Benedict at Saint Benedict’s Monastery in St. Joseph, Minnesota, came together peacefully and prayerfully to elect Sister

Karen Rose as their new prioress. Sister Karen will be installed at a special ceremony in June, taking over from Sister Susan Rudolph, who has been prioress since 2017.

They began their canonical election process back in October, when the community thoughtfully identified seven women for consideration. In December the sisters created direction statements (brief strategic plans) for each of the six years of the new prioress’ term. In January they gathered to consider the qualities they will need in a leader to bring those direction statements to fruition – and which of their sisters possess those qualities. Then they concluded their

process over two days in February when they gathered to, as Sister Nancy Bauer puts it, “discern more deeply which sister the Holy Spirit is calling forth to be our next prioress. We are very conscious that the Spirit is leading us in this decision.”

Clearly, the Spirit led them to Sister Karen. I applaud their decision and look forward to working with her. I am inspired and awed by the sisters’ process filled with discussion, consideration, discernment, faith … and listening. All of us at Saint Ben’s and Saint John’s are faced with a milestone task in creating our next strategic plan. And I pray we will be diligent in matching our founding sisters’ spirit.

Right now, all of us at the College of Saint Benedict and at Saint John’s University are stretching our ear muscles as we begin the crucially important cyclical process of strategic planning.

MOVING FORWARD TOGETHER

On the heels of Strong Integration, and the appointment of one president for both institutions, CSB and SJU are at a critical moment in our history and strategic planning process, embracing the challenges and opportunities of a changing industry as well as the mandate from our Common Boards to live out, more fully, an integrated approach. The strategic plan we are developing will be nimble in its very nature – coalescing the newly identified priorities born out of Strong Integration, building on the efficiencies and prioritization work already underway, and measurable in both short- and long-term achievements and aspirations.

We have learned, in the wake of a pandemic, racial reckoning and tense political climates, that time is of the essence, and societal conditions can change instantly. Therefore, the work to secure our future will embark on an untraditional timeframe – we are working in months, not years.

President Bruess frequently refers to these four cornerstones as our “mission traditions,” because in doing so, we capture both intellectual and social traditions, both of which are within the moniker of Catholic.

We are striving to respond to the needs of the times, as we are called to do within the Benedictine, Catholic intellectual, social justice and liberal arts traditions.

The recent cumulation of Strong Integration, the academic program prioritization process, and our new president present the need for three strategic priorities, aligned between two campuses, that have been culled and established throughout multiple studies

of preparation, board participation and community engagement.

Our three strategic priorities are:

• student experience

• financial strength and operational excellence

• mission-centered practice

Diversity, equity, inclusion and justice will permeate our plan to reflect our Benedictine commitment to these values. Simultaneously, we also know that thriving, strong institutions are able to address functioning excellence while declaring their vision and aspirations. In our strategic plan, we intend to do just that.

This process will reflect a parallel approach that will engage our communities in both a current and future strategic state. Throughout the spring, we are facilitating various on- and off-campus meetings to recognize and hear

the current understanding of students, staff, faculty and alums. Additionally, we will focus on the collective vision and direction for both institutions. The learnings from the various groups will help inform and shape this nimble strategic plan.

Your input to that learning process is valuable. So this spring we have conducted a nationwide series of alum and friend events, sharing information and gathering input.

The time to aspire, believe, innovate and respond is now, and I am looking forward to moving forward, together.

Kara Kolomitz Ed.D. is the inaugural chief operating officer of both the College of Saint Benedict and Saint John’s University. Among her many responsibilities, she is leading the institutions’ strategic planning process with Provost Richard Ice, Ph.D.

We are striving to respond to the needs of the times, as we are called to do within the Benedictine, Catholic intellectual, social justice and liberal arts traditions.

A LEGACY THAT LASTS

Former CSB and SJU chemistry professor Bill Muldoon supported scholarships much of his life. When he passed away, that support suddenly and unexpectedly exploded with the disbursement of his estate.

A native of Boston, Massachusetts, Bill Muldoon moved to Minnesota in 1972 to earn a Ph.D. in medicinal chemistry. He taught in the chemistry department at Saint Ben’s and Saint John’s from 1979-1996, which means his tenure coincided with the presidencies of Sister Emmanuel Renner and Sister Colman O’Connell at Saint Ben’s. They became close friends as Bill served in a variety of faculty leadership roles, was the pre-pharmacy advisor and led study abroad programs to Greece and Italy on which the two presidents occasionally participated.

Bill retired early from teaching and worked as a pharmacist in St. Paul for more than

10 years. After he finally retired for good, he became an Oblate and active volunteer with Saint John’s Abbey. He traveled from his home on Summit Avenue in St. Paul to Collegeville at least one day a week, usually participating in the monastic noon prayer and community Mass.

Long a philanthropic supporter of both schools, Bill provided scholarships to students and, in summer 2020, honored a dear friend, Gary Thomas, who died in 2019, by passing on Gary’s rare Hellmuth Wolff mechanical action pipe organ. Gary had given the organ to Bill with the encouragement that he donate it to CSB.

Bill further endowed a scholarship for Saint Ben’s students studying the pipe organ.

For all his generosity, however, Bill never let on to the enormous gifts he would leave to the College of Saint Benedict. He died on Sept. 6, 2022, at age 78. Soon after, it was revealed that he’d left his estate to Saint Ben’s, including Gary Thomas’ estate and that of one of Bill’s sisters.

The contributions include IRAs worth more than $4 million, and Bill’s refurbished mansion on Summit Avenue – worth as much as $1 million. His chief desire was to launch an undergraduate research fund in chemistry, encouraging students to become engaged outside the classroom. However, a majority of his resources are undesignated, giving Saint Ben’s unlimited ways to serve our students and commemorate his life.

While he was teaching, and in retirement, Bill wasn’t that different from many

His estate gift is an example of the maximum impact someone can have in supporting what meant most to them during their lives.

donors who may give $1,000 per year – a not insignificant amount. His estate gift, however, is an example of the maximum impact someone can have in supporting what meant most to them during their lives. In that sentiment, Bill is not alone. Many other benefactors who have given as he has throughout their lives also are capable of a big, bold demonstration of their passion in their estate planning.

Throughout his career, Bill fostered students in the classroom. And throughout his life, he was attached to the friendships he made with Sister Emmanuel and Sister Colman. While he can no longer interact with the people he loved and left behind, his investment

in students and Saint Ben’s will leave a tremendous and lasting legacy.

If you’re interested in learning more about the potential impact of estate planning and the steps it takes to get started, contact Senior Planned and Leadership Giving Officer Tara Maas ’14, 320-363-5078, tmaas@csbsju.edu.

LEAPING INTO LEADERSHIP

Sometimes taking a chance leads to even more than you originally expected.

Sometimes taking a chance leads to even more than you originally expected.

That was the case for Sydney E. Robinson ’19, the diversity and inclusion program manager for the CSB and SJU Multicultural Center, who was recently appointed the Minnesota State Coordinator in Region IV-E of the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA).

That was surprising, since Robinson had originally applied for the graduate student and new professionals liaison role. But the region leadership felt she was qualified for even more responsibility.

“Dr. Lamar (Hylton), who is the incoming regional director, called me and said that

they thought my skillset could be elevated to a different position,” said Robinson, a Las Vegas native who returned to Saint Ben’s two years ago to take over her current position in which she focuses on women’s leadership, peer-to-peer mentoring and diversity, equity, inclusion and justice (DEIJ) initiatives.

It helps that Robinson knows NASPA well. Last year, she was selected for a spot in NASPA’s NOW Professionals 2022 cohort, which recognizes exceptional contributions from new professionals and graduate students within the organization.

And this winter, she was chosen to attend the organization’s Alice Manicur Symposium, held Jan. 25-28, in Portland, Oregon. The symposium is designed for student affairs

professionals who identify as women or outside the gender binary, and who are at the middle management level and considering moving into a vice presidential or more senior role.

“I kind of applied on a whim because I’m technically not mid-level and I haven’t completed my master’s degree just yet,” said Robinson, who is in her final semester before completing a master’s degree in higher education administration at St. Cloud State University.

“But it’s specifically meant to develop women and people outside the gender binary to be prepared to take on those kinds of roles.

We got to go through different sessions on topics like taking up space, leading as a whole leader and how to advocate for women, femmes and nonbinary people. It was really enriching as a professional development experience.”

Robinson said she returned to CSB and SJU even more passionate about her work.

“I think it left me with a lot of confidence as a Black woman taking up space and working in these kinds of predominately male environments,” she said. “It really reinvigorated my love for this. It showed me I’m doing the right thing, at the right time, in the right place.

“I was surrounded by a lot of women who were either in their doctoral dissertation process or already had their doctorate. I was the youngest by far – and having not completed my master’s degree – so many of them were encouraging me to get my doctorate and stay connected with them. So it was really nice to be in community with other women of color and being uplifted by Black women specifically.”

It really reinvigorated my love for this. It showed me I’m doing the right thing, at the right time, in the right place.

STILL LISTENING

During our last capital campaign, Illuminating Lives, we began an initiative called Bennie Conversations. The intent was to capture the voices, experiences and wisdom of as many College of Saint Benedict alumnae as possible. These alumna-to-alumna interview sessions have become a priceless source of insights and a finger on the pulse of our community. So much so that, even though the Illuminating Lives campaign has long since come to its successful conclusion, we’re happily continuing the conversations.

In the Bennie Conversations interview process, one of the questions that’s always asked is What does it mean to be a college for women? The answers we get are surprisingly varied and always interesting. Here are a few of them.

ENHANCING THE LIBERAL ARTS EXPERIENCE

“You are doing a lot of growing up in college. There is value in doing that around other women who are also trying to figure out what they want to do in life. What do they believe? And then they are learning to express all of those things.”

“I especially liked classes where there were more women enrolled, just being part of groups where there were more women helped me express myself better and feel understood.”

GAINING COURAGE AND CONFIDENCE

“You need courage to be authentic and be who you are. The confidence that you learn at Saint Ben’s. … Part of being confident is being courageous too. I think Saint Ben’s teaches that to women.”

JOINING A NETWORK

“I think if you would have asked me in college, I would have said, well Saint Ben’s doesn’t really feel like an all-women’s institution because Saint John’s is there. Now, as a woman in my 30s, reflecting on this I realized how grateful and powerful it was to be part of a network of women who uplift other women, and you realize how rare that is in some places around the world.”

If you’re interested in sitting for a Bennie Conversation, please contact Ellen Newkirk ’13, Engagement Officer, at enewkirk001@csbsju.edu. We look forward to listening!

Key consistent themes identified through Bennie Conversations

1. The liberal arts education our alumnae received as students has impacted the way they engage with the world.

2. The Bennie sisterhood is strong and infinite.

3. Attending a women’s college developed our alums’ sense of identity and helped them find their voice.

4. The Catholic and Benedictine traditions laid a strong foundation for our alumnae.

5. Saint Ben’s is a lifelong community

ANNUAL GIVING

37 South College Avenue St. Joseph, MN 56374

Please direct questions to 800-648-3468, ext. 3 or mutsch@csbsju.edu

talk

LET’S

Creating an estate plan and documenting your wishes in a will just sounds intimidating. That’s why a startling number of Americans simply haven’t done it – and don’t even talk about it.

Freewill is a free tool available courtesy of CSB for creating a simple, valid will – or for at least starting the conversation with your loved ones before talking with your attorney. Learn more and get started at freewill.com/CSB

Embracing the conversations that mean the most