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Tuesday, March 19, 2024

St. Kate’s names alumna its new president

St. Catherine University alumna and YMCA of Minneapolis president ReBecca Roloff was named the university's new president May 4. Courtesy St. Catherine University
St. Catherine University alumna and YWCA of Minneapolis president ReBecca Roloff was named the university’s new president May 4. Courtesy St. Catherine University

St. Catherine University named alumna and YWCA of Minneapolis president and CEO ReBecca Koenig Roloff its new president May 4. She begins her position as the university’s 11th president July 1.

“Her distinguished career in the private and non-profit sectors has demonstrated her extraordinary leadership, commitment to inclusion and ability to achieve financial stability through fundraising, while at the same time serving the community,” said Karen Rauenhorst, chairwoman of St. Catherine’s board of trustees, in a May 4 statement. “Throughout her life, she has remained part of the St. Kate’s community and we are blessed to welcome her home as our next president.”

Roloff graduated with a bachelor’s degree from what was then the College of St. Catherine in 1976 before earning an MBA from Harvard University in 1982. She served as a trustee of St. Kate’s board of directors from 1983 to 1995, with the last four years as its chairwoman.

Known as “Becky,” Roloff has served for 11 years as president of the YWCA of Minneapolis, where revenue grew approximately 70 percent and investment pools nearly quadrupled under her leadership, according to a statement from St. Catherine. Before the YWCA, she worked in senior and executive roles with American Express Financial Advisors, Pillsbury and Cargill.

As St. Catherine’s president, she follows Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary Sister Andrea Lee, who served as president for 18 years. After announcing her plans to leave St. Catherine’s last fall, she was named president of Alverno College in Milwaukee in February.

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St. Catherine was founded in 1905 by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet and includes the nation’s largest Catholic college for women. It has nearly 5,000 students and campuses in St. Paul and Minneapolis.

“There’s no questioning [Roloff’s] keen business and financial acumen, and the university needs those skills during these challenging times in higher education,” said Sister of St. Joseph of Carondelet Jean Wincek, the board’s vice chairwoman, in a May 4 statement. “But what makes her the best person to lead St. Kate’s at this time is her deep commitment to the values and vision that lead to its founding by our sisters over a century ago. As an alumna, she will bring a unique perspective to that role of president.”

 


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