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St. Olaf Board of Regents welcomes new members

By Karl Olson '08
October 4, 2007

Three new St. Olaf Regents will join veteran regents on Oct. 4 for the first meeting of the year. Elected to the St. Olaf Board of Regents for six-year terms are Eric Hanson '76, Philip Milne '81 and Mary Rand Taylor who were selected during the 2007 Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) churchwide assembly held in Chicago this past August. Kevin Bethke '78 and Larry Stranghoener '76, who have served on the Board of Regents since 2006 and 2005 respectively, were formally elected to serve through June 2013. The ELCA churchwide assembly meets every two years.

"These three new members bring to the board wide and deep expertise in a variety of fields, broad geographic diversity which reflects the increasingly national character of our student body and, most importantly, a deep understanding of and passion for St. Olaf College," says President David R. Anderson '74.

The St. Olaf Board of Regents manages and directs the business and affairs of the college. Among its many responsibilities, the Board ultimately oversees the academic integrity of the college by appointing the president, awarding tenure to the faculty upon the president's nomination, and adopting policies that establish the rights and obligations of faculty members.

According to the college bylaws, the Board must be comprised of at least 12 members, and at least 60 percent of its members must belong to the ELCA. Regents are both elected and appointed. The elected members are divided into three classes of varying terms of office, set up to ensure that one-third of the terms expires every other year.

The newest regents

RegentHanson07
Hanson
Eric Hanson '76 is a managing director in Lazard's Financial Institutions Group, an international firm that advises finance companies, leasing companies, and commercial banks and airlines on mergers and acquisitions, divestitures and restructurings. He has spent 23 years in Lazard's New York office and most recently has advised on acquisitions and divestitures for Cerberus, Fortress Investment Group, The CIT Group and IBM Global Finance. Prior to joining Lazard, Hanson worked in the residual guaranty industry in a successful start-up and in the transportation industry with Tiger International, parent of the Flying Tiger Airlines.

"Eric enhances our presence on the East Coast, especially in New York City, where he figures prominently in the investment banking community," says Anderson. "Eric's expertise in finance will be most helpful to the Board in stewarding our resources, and his commitment to helping Oles cross the bridge from life on the Hill to their post-graduate careers will help keep us focused on that important work."

Hanson is a member of the Dean's Advisory Board at the Kellogg Graduate School of Management, where he earned is Masters in Business Administration. He resides in Manhattan.

RegentMilne
Milne
Philip Milne '81 is the chairman, president, and chief executive officer of MoneyGram International, Inc., a payment and financial services company that offers consumers a wide variety of payment products and services, from the traditional money order and official check services to the latest in electronic bill payment and money transfer services. Milne joined MoneyGram's predecessor, Travelers Express in 1991 as general manager of the official check line of business.

"Phil, both an alum and a St. Olaf parent, brings top management experience and a keen intelligence to the Board," says Anderson. "He will help us to think strategically about the college's future and to execute the strategies we embrace, always keeping in mind the purpose of our work -- educating students."

Milne became vice president and general manager of official checks in early 1992 and later that year was promoted to vice president and general manager of the consolidated Payment Systems Division. In 1993 he moved to the retail side of the business when he became vice president and general manager of the Retail Payment Products Group, and he was named president and CEO for Travelers Express in 1996. In 2004, Travelers Express became an independent company under the name of MoneyGram International, Inc. Milne lives in Wayzata, Minn.

RegentTaylor07
Taylor
Mary Rand Taylor is a former high school teacher and retired professional development director for the California Western School of Law. Rand Taylor is a member and past president of the Rebecca and John Moores Cancer Center Advisory Board, as well as a member of the Chancellor's Circle at the University of California, San Diego. She has served as a member of the Concordia College Board of Regents and lives in La Jolla, Calif.

"Mary Rand Taylor is the daughter of Sydney Rand, one of St. Olaf's great presidents. She brings to the Board a deep understanding of the college and of higher education," says Anderson. Rand Taylor's previous affiliation with St. Olaf comes, additionally, as a board member of the Norwegian-American Historical Association, an organization aiming to locate, collect, preserve and interpret the Norwegian-American part of this whole with accuracy, integrity, and liveliness.

"Her passion for St. Olaf and her commitment to nurturing our Norwegian-American heritage will help keep the college true to its core values as we go forward," Anderson adds. "As our student body becomes more and more geographically diverse, it will be important for our Board to be equally nationally representative. As a Californian, Mary enhances our presence on the West Coast."

Kevin Bethke '78, M.D., is an assistant professor of clinical surgery in the Division of Surgical Oncology at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine in Illinois. Bethke is consistently named one of Chicago's "Best Doctors" and is the recipient of numerous awards, including Northwestern University Medical School's Department of Surgery Excellence in Teaching Award. He also serves on various professional committees such as the American Cancer Society (Chicago Board), the Physician Resource Group and the Cancer Wellness Center and is a much sought-after author and lecturer. Bethke lives in Wilmette, Ill with his wife, Beth Alwin, and their two children, Giselle and Calder.

Larry Stranghoener '76 is executive vice president and chief financial officer of Minneapolis-based Mosaic Co., one of the world's leading producers and marketers of concentrated phosphate and potash crop nutrients. He has worked for Honeywell, including in Honeywell-Germany, where he was responsible for corporate planning, mergers and acquisitions, as well as investor relations. Stranghoener also worked as chief financial officer for Lutheran Brotherhood (now Thrivent Financial), assisting the organization through its merger with Aid Association for Lutherans. Stranghoener and his wife, Lynn Siefert Stranghoener '76, live in Plymouth, Minn., with their children, Rachel '10, Erika '08 and David.

Contact Carole Engblom at 507-786-3271 or leigh@stolaf.edu.