On May 2, the 13th commencement exercise at our Christ the Teacher Institute for Education was held in Nairobi, Kenya. This affiliated program of Saint Mary’s provides coursework in teacher education to East Africans. Thirty of our students received a bachelor of education degree in Education and five received a master’s in African Studies.
A short week later, on May 9, we held two graduation ceremonies in Winona. The first occasion was commencement for the undergraduate and residential College, where about 220 graduates were encouraged to live the mission of the university: “On this most significant day – a day of discovery and new beginnings – as you walk through our doors, through the portal between yesterday and tomorrow, know that Saint Mary’s University has confidence in you. We believe that it is ordinary people – just like you – who have the capacity to make our world a better place. We know what you are capable of, and we have great confidence in your determination and your ability to make a difference in our world by sharing lavishly and joyfully the abilities and abundant talent you have, for the common good of all.”
Later that same day in Winona, more than 400 adults in our Schools of Graduate and Professional Programs received master’s degrees. Their ages and life situations are different from College graduates, but they are no less determined to make a positive difference in the world.
A month later, on June 7, three more ceremonies for the Schools of Graduate and Professional Programs were conducted on our Twin Cities campus. The varied backgrounds of these adult learners, their passion for education, and their gratitude to a university that is helping them advance their careers, their lives, their communities was joyfully obvious for all to see.
The graduates were encouraged during the ceremony to own and to share the mission of Saint Mary’s: “This is…what Saint Mary’s University is about. We strive to unleash the creative capacity of minds and to enkindle a passion in hearts. We strive to run good schools where students – both young and old – can be confident that they will be known and valued while receiving an excellent education. They know they will be treated as individuals and with respect while being formed to ethical lives of service and leadership. They will be welcomed into a community of belonging and belief while being prepared for civic responsibility and being formed to provide the kind of ethical and entrepreneurial leadership in the professional sphere for which the peoples of the nations dream.”
As many of you well know, in 1984, Saint Mary’s was a liberal arts college and the campus was in Winona. More than 25 years later, Saint Mary’s has become a true university. The undergraduate College remains vital and relevant, while there has been tremendous growth in our Schools of Graduate and Professional Programs (SGPP).
The mission of the university remains a constant: “Enriched by the Catholic, Lasallian heritage, Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota awakens, nurtures, and empowers learners to ethical lives of service and leadership.”
What has changed over the years is the scope and reach of Saint Mary’s. About 1,400 traditional undergraduates study each year in Winona. At the same time, close to 4,300 adult learners are enrolled – for the most part, part-time – in graduate and professional programs in education, business, counseling, nurse anesthesiology and in an undergraduate completion program.
The Schools of Graduate and Professional Programs locations have expanded to include a Twin Cities campus; Rochester, Apply Valley and Minnetonka centers; more than 100 course delivery sites around Minnesota and Wisconsin; and affiliated programs in Nairobi, Kenya and Jamaica.
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