Introducing the SOT/Sem Alumni Council

Saint John’s School of Theology and Seminary is proud to introduce the newly founded Alumni Council. The group was formed in response to the School of Theology’s Strategic Plan goals and alumni desires to have a closer relationship with the School of Theology. Starting in June 2017, a pilot group of twelve alumni met five times to discuss what the goals and structure of such a council would be. This group then created a structure for the Alumni Council that includes one Chair and Co-chair along with 12-14 Alumni Ambassadors. The Ambassadors will be a mix of alumni from various ministries and careers as well as people who live locally near Collegeville, throughout the state of Minnesota, and across the country.

The official start to the Alumni Council launched in January when Bailey Ziegler ’15 and Rebecca Calderone ’14 began their terms as Chair and Co-chair of the council. Bailey, a 2015 Master of Divinity graduate, was instrumental in the forming of the Alumni Council as she worked closely with the Development and Alumni offices to form the pilot group and lead that group through the five months of discussion and discernment. She is now serving a one-year term as the chair of the Alumni Council. Bailey also works as the Director of Human Resources for the Diocese of St. Cloud when she is not volunteering for the council. Rebecca Calderone, a 2014 Master of Divinity graduate, is serving a two-year term as the Co-Chair for the Alumni Council while she too continues to serve in another capacity as the Director of Pastoral Care for St. Benedict’s Senior Community in St. Cloud.

In this first year of the Alumni Council there continues to be much work needed in finalizing what the Council will look like and its sustainability. Rebecca and Bailey are collaborating with the Alumni and Development Offices in selecting and inviting Ambassadors to join the Council. This group will soon meet for the first time in March for a retreat at Saint John’s. There are five priority areas that the Council would like to focus on at this time. The priorities include: ongoing formation and educational opportunities, community building activities, communication, connecting with Collegeville, and networking support for people in ministry.

Additionally, Rebecca and Bailey will be hosting an Alumni Council event at the annual reunion weekend this summer. They hope that many alumni are able to make it so they can connect, learn more about what the needs of our alumni are, and get new ideas and feedback. See you there!