St. Thomas Responds

Stories showcasing the St. Thomas community’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

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Trevor Brink, right, is a St. Thomas law student and a National Guard officer.

School of Law Student at the Heart of Minnesota’s PPE Distribution

Jordan Osterman '11
Academic News, Changemaking for the Common Good, Common Good, COVID-19 Response, Current Students, News, Our Community, School of Law, School of Law Current Students, School of Law News Feed, St. Thomas Responds, Top News
St. Thomas School of Law student Trevor Brink has been working since April 9 as the executive officer of his National Guard company and in charge of managing the Minnesota Department of Health’s personal protective equipment (PPE) distribution warehouse.

Large Turnout Highlights St. Thomas-Hosted Ashoka U Exchange

Jordan Osterman '11
Academic News, Center for the Common Good, Changemaking for the Common Good, Common Good, Current Students, Front Page, News, Our Community, Social Innovation, St. Thomas Responds, Sustainability, Uncategorized
A large turnout highlighted the St. Thomas-hosted Ashoka U Exchange 2020 event, which was virtual for the first time: 481 people representing 24 countries and 104 higher education institutions attended 75 sessions across April 16-17.
A prison yard.

School of Law Helps Develop, Support Minnesota Prisoners Medical Release Program

Jordan Osterman '11
Academic News, Common Good, COVID-19 Response, Current Students, News, Our Community, School of Law, School of Law Current Students, School of Law News Feed, St. Thomas Responds, Top News
On March 27, School of Law Professor Mark Osler wrote an editorial column in the Star Tribune calling on local, state and federal officials to “take action now if we are to avoid catastrophic illness and death in those [prison and jail] facilities as COVID-19 inexorably advances." The state listened.
Dining services staffers Carl Littlejohn, left, and brother Anthony Littlejohn, right, pose for a photo in the Anderson Student Center. They are part of a team of critical employees ensuring that students and staff remaining on campus are looked after.

‘A Second Family’: Life at St. Thomas During COVID-19

Amy Carlson Gustafson, Jordan Osterman '11 and photos by Mark Brown
COVID-19 Response, Current Students, Life at St. Thomas, News, Our Community, St. Thomas Responds, Staff, Top News
1
Life on St. Thomas’ St. Paul and Minneapolis campuses looks more different lately than it ever has before. They are far, however, from empty: Some 125 students continue to live in St. Paul residence halls, and dozens of essential staff continue to work in both St. Paul and Minneapolis.
A view of barbed wire in front of a prison

Tommie Experts: School of Law’s Mark Osler on Clemency and Prison Populations Amidst COVID-19

Jordan Osterman '11
Academic News, Changemaking for the Common Good, COVID-19 Response, News, School of Law, School of Law Current Students, School of Law News Feed, St. Thomas Responds, Tommie Experts, Top News
As COVID-19's potential impact on the country's prison system continues to be explored nationally and in Minnesota, the Newsroom spoke with School of Law professor and clemency expert Mark Osler.
The University of St. Thomas sign in front of the Anderson Student Center. Mark Brown/University of St. Thomas

Care, Compassion, Empathy: Admissions Working Hard to Support Prospective Students, Families

Jordan Osterman '11
Admissions, COVID-19 Response, News, Our Community, St. Thomas Responds, Top News
As high school graduation approaches, more and more students are making decisions on higher education enrollment. St. Thomas’ Admissions Department has made major changes to ensure prospective students and their families are getting the support they need as they navigate the challenges of COVID-19.
A chemistry student analyzes data on a computer screen August 1, 2016 in Owens Science Hall.

Equity, Inclusion Remains Focus During Online Learning

Jordan Osterman '11
Academic News, COVID-19 Response, Current Students, Faculty, News, Our Community, St. Thomas Responds, Top News
With such a massive amount of work to move St. Thomas’ curriculum online in the past several weeks, some priorities for faculty could have gotten lost in the shuffle. Faculty engagement and recent seminars from Faculty Development Center (FDC) and STELAR are signs that equity and inclusion in online learning will not be one of those things.
A sign reading "All for the Common Good" hangs from a lamp post on the John P. Monahan Plaza January 29, 2016. The Anderson Athletic and Recreation Complex is in the background.

Virtual Postgraduation Fair to Focus on Meaningful Work for Class of 2020

Casey Gordon, Program Manager for Center for the Common Good
Center for the Common Good, Changemaking for the Common Good, Common Good, COVID-19 Response, Current Students, Front Page, News, Our Community, St. Thomas Responds
Meaningful work and how graduates might take this opportunity to find work that advances the common good is the focus of the May 7 virtual postgraduation fair, co-hosted by the Center for the Common Good and the Career Development Center.
Students rush past and into the Anderson Student Center on a sunny autumn day on October 7, 2016.

Support Through Challenges: Undergraduate Students Share Experiences of Shifts Amidst COVID-19

Jordan Osterman '11
Academic News, COVID-19 Response, Current Students, News, Our Community, St. Thomas Responds, Top News
Dozens of undergraduate students responded to a request to provide some insight into how the adjustments to a new normal of all online classes and social distancing has gone, answering questions about how they’ve made those adjustments, what some of the biggest challenges they’ve faced are, and what has been most helpful for them throughout this process. Below are some of their many responses.
School of Engineering students took the initiative to use 3D Printers to create PPE - personal protective equipment - to donate to local hospitals to help keep medical professionals safe during the coronavirus pandemic. The students worked on the project in the Facilities of Design Center on April 15, 2020, in St. Paul. Collin Goldbach (Mechanical Engineering) works on a 3D printer.

School of Engineering Students Producing PPE For Local Hospitals

Jordan Osterman '11
Academic News, Changemaking for the Common Good, Common Good, COVID-19 Response, Current Students, News, Our Community, School of Engineering, St. Thomas Responds, Top News
2
The St. Thomas campuses have largely shut down in response to the coronavirus, but thanks to the efforts of more than a dozen St. Thomas engineering, education and chemistry students, the university’s 3D printers are not sitting idle: They’re turning out personal protective equipment (PPE) to support the Twin Cities medical community.
Dr. Kathlene Holmes Campbell, dean of the School of Education, speaks in the O'Shaughnessy Educational Center auditorium on March 19, 2019.

School of Education Dean Campbell Advocates For Student Teachers Amidst COVID-19 Changes

Amy Carlson Gustafson
Academic News, COVID-19 Response, Faculty, News, Our Community, School of Education, St. Thomas Responds, Top News
School of Education Dean Kathlene Holmes Campbell has been working tirelessly over the past six weeks advocating for her students on everything from the number of “face-to-face" weeks of student teaching required to the way teacher performance assessments are conducted.