Tales from the Archives: Other Campuses 

What do the Mall of America, Thunder Bay, Owatonna, Taipei, Chaska, Rome and Minneapolis have in common? All of these places have hosted St. Thomas campuses at some point in the university’s history. While the main campus in St. Paul is likely the first that comes to mind when thinking of St. Thomas, the university has a tradition of extending its presence beyond its original borders. 

In 1981, the Owatonna farm of the late Daniel C. Gainey was given to the College of St. Thomas. After an addition to the existing residence, the Gainey Conference Center opened in 1982. This location provided space for graduate business classes, outreach programs, and continuing education, while also hosting professional conferences. Until its sale in 2014, the Gainey Center stayed a valuable resource for St. Thomas. 

The Peavey Company donated its Technical Center building to St. Thomas in 1983. Located in Chaska, this facility provided classrooms for graduate business, manufacturing engineering, and education courses, but also provided office space for business start-ups through the school’s Enterprise Center. In 1986, St. Thomas bought the nearby former Green Giant headquarters to provide more classroom space and to be used as an executive conference venue. Although the complex was sold in 1996, St. Thomas continued to lease classroom space in the facilities through the early 2000s. 

In the 1990s, several temporary satellite campuses sprang up across the five-county metro area, primarily to meet the needs of graduate students. One of the most unique locations for these programs was the Mall of America. Starting in 1994, St. Thomas leased classroom space in the iconic mall, offering a convenient option for students from the southern Twin Cities suburbs. 

St. Thomas established its presence in downtown Minneapolis in 1987 by leasing space in the former Powers department store. The site initially offered evening undergraduate courses through the school’s New College – a program designed for adult learners – along with graduate-level MBA and education courses. During the day, the school’s Management Center hosted seminars, workshops and professional development programs for local businesspeople.

This move was so successful that it spurred the construction of Terrence Murphy Hall, the first permanent building on the Minneapolis campus. Dedicated in 1992, the building’s design echoes the Collegiate Gothic style of the St. Paul campus. In later years, Opus Hall (1999), the School of Law (2003) and Schulze Hall (2005) expanded the footprint and offerings of the Minneapolis campus.  

Over the years, St. Thomas has also offered courses through international satellite campuses in locations as far flung as Thunder Bay, Ontario, to Taipei, Taiwan. Today, the university’s international hub is the Bernardi Campus in Rome. Purchased in 1999 through a generous gift from Antonio and Cecilia Bernardi, the former residential estate and convent serves as the home for the Center for Catholic Studies’ Rome Program, as well as the Rome Empower Program.