Alumni

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Alumni Awards

Each year, awards are given to The College of St. Scholastica alumni and faculty members by fellow alumni. These awards are particularly prestigious because alumni are the only permanent part of any college. They represent, through their personal and professional accomplishments, the lasting value of The College of St. Scholastica. Recognition by alumni is the highest award the College can give. Awards presented on behalf of the Alumni Association:

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The Awards

Sister Ann Edward Scanlon Award

Sister Ann Edwards The College's Sister Ann Edward Scanlon Award was established in 1975. Its namesake is a former Professor of History, Dean of Students, Academic Dean and President of the College. After her retirement she continued to be an advisor to foreign students and kept in touch with hundreds of alumni. Sister Ann Edward also served the community of Duluth by serving on the boards of several community organizations and being active in local civic activities. The College was the focus of her life and of greatest interest to her. She gave unending time and commitment to the College, its students and alumni, and the Duluth community for over 50 years. The intent of this award is to recognize an alumna or alumnus who shares Sister Ann Edward's dedication to her or his community and to the College.

In 2011 Margaret (Peggy) Cane '50 received the Sister Ann Edward Scanlon Award. Margaret (Peggy) Cane enjoyed a successful career in St. Scholastica's Nursing Department for 20 years. In the 1980s, when the College created its unique RN completion program for nurses who had received a 2- or 3-year diploma and wanted to earn a bachelor's degree, she assumed a leadership role. She traveled weekly to Brainerd and later Grand Rapids to advise students, develop the curriculum, and to coordinate other faculty. She was instrumental in developing community partnerships with the local community colleges and nursing employers in those areas to support the RN completion program, which became the forerunner for the off-campus 2+2 Management program. She was a mentor to many faculty and nursing students throughout her extensive career, and saw four of her five children graduate from the College. She has also served as a long-time board member of the Lake Superior Life Care Center.

View Past Recipients of the Sister Ann Edward Award

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Sister Alice Lamb Award

The Sister Alice Lamb Award was established in 1979 to honor an alumna or alumnus for outstanding service to her or his profession. Sister Alice Lamb was associated with the College for 52 years before her death in 1983. She was a professor and head of the Biology Department and later academic dean of the College. This award in her name recognizes her lifelong commitment to her profession and to the College.

The 2011 Sister Alice Lamb Award winner was Mary Johnson Oakes '84. Mary Oakes had a distinguished nursing career in the U.S. Army. For the last two decades she has been a leader at Tillamook General Hospital and now as an educator at the University of Portland School of Nursing in Portland, OR. At Tillamook she managed the migration of the institution to an electronic health record system. At the University of Portland she heads simulation activities in a learning lab for more than 700 nursing students. Her expertise enables students to gain crucial skills. She generously works with all faculty who innovate and incorporate the academic electronic health record, which Portland subscribes to through St. Scholastica's Center for Healthcare Innovation. She is on the forefront of keeping knowledge management and clinical information systems dynamic and, by doing so, shaping the future nursing workforce. As a colleague says of her: "Everything she does
emerges from her scholarly foundation, quest for perfection and service to humanity.

View Recipients of the Sister Alice Lamb Award

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Sister Timothy Kirby Benedictine Spirit

Sr. Timothy Kirby The Sister Timothy Kirby Benedictine Spirit award was established in 1994 to recognize a graduate of St. Scholastica who has been a credit to the College by his or her professional achievements and who exemplifies the Benedictine values of respect for the individual, the dignity of work, stewardship, hospitality, and love of learning.

Anne Stadler '66 The 2011 Sister Timothy Kirby Benedictine Spirit Award was won by Anne Stadler. Since graduating from the College in 1966, Anne Stadler's life has been one of service. She worked in Bolivia as a member of the Peace Corps, teaching and leading the construction of a community school, as well as helping bring electricity, sanitation and running water to the community. She taught in Duluth, then relocated to California where she has worked in migrant communities for 40-plus years. She received nationwide recognition for involving migrant parents and promoting programs for migrant students to graduate from high school and continue their studies. She has helped numerous crippled and burned children obtain services at Shriner's Hospitals, organized Spanish adult literacy and basic skills classes for preliterate Spanish speaking students, and served as a translator for International Relief Teams on medical missions to Ecuador and Honduras and for Aid For Baja California, Inc. construction projects while promoting sanitation and education.

View Recipients of Sister Timothy Kirby Award

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Scholastica Inspiration Award

Strength, Providence, Wisdom and Rebirth Animal Icons The Scholastica Inspiration Award, established in 1994, honors a faculty or staff person whose interest and care for students made a significant impact on their lives.

The 2011 St. Scholastica Inspiration Award was given to John Baggs, posthumously. John Baggs became the youngest head coach in the entire nation when, in 1991 at age 24, he was hired at St. Scholastica. He served as head baseball coach from 1992 until 2009, and was the winningest coach ever at St. Scholastica. But he is equally well known for helping young men mature, with a desire to go out and make a difference in the world. He built teams into national powerhouses in NCAA Division III, including being runner-up in the Midwest Regional in 2008. Under his leadership the Saints won 12 straight Upper Midwest Athletic Conference titles and enjoyed a record of 531 wins to 197 losses, a .720 winning percentage. As a former player/student says of him: "I would not be where I am today if it was not for Coach Baggs. He taught me how to live for others, how to be a better husband and simply how to be a better person. Coach Baggs influences every single day of my life." Baggs died in February 2009 of cancer

View Recipients of the Scholastica Inspiration Award

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Young Alumni Achievement Award

This award, established in 2008, honors an alumnus or alumna under 40 years of age who has demonstrated a high level of achievement early in his or her career or profession, shown support of the College and substantial commitment to the service of others in living out the Benedictine values.

The 2011 Young Alumni Award was presented to Andrew Thelander during Homecoming Weekend.

Since graduating in 2003 with a major in Management and a minor in Computer Information Systems, Andrew's career has progressed steadily and quickly. He began his career in the financial services industry with American Express Financial Advisors. He earned his MBA from Augsburg College in 2007 and completed a Graduate Certificate in Personal Financial Planning from Kansas State University in 2009. He joined Wealth Enhancement Group in 2007 as a financial planner and was recently promoted to an Associate Financial Advisor within one of the firm's largest and most successful financial advisory practices.

Andrew's support of the College has been extraordinary. Not only was he a four-year member of the men's basketball team but since graduating from CSS, he has served for seven years as a member of the Alumni Association Board of Directors, including two years as Board president and ex-officio member of the College's Board of Trustees. Through his leadership during this time, he demonstrated his commitment to the values of respect, stewardship, love of learning, and to the community of Saints as well as to the global community as a whole. Andrew has proudly served as a member of the Financial Literacy Committee within the Financial Planning Association of Minnesota. He continues to mentor high school students on the importance of fiscal responsibility through his involvement with BestPrep and Junior Achievement. He has also actively volunteered to help those in need through his work with AccountAbility Minnesota, Meals on Wheels, and Special Olympics of Minnesota. Andrew and his wife Kary live in Lakeville.

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