BSU names outstanding alumni, sets annual gala

BEMIDJI — The 2013 Bemidji State University alumni award winners were announced by the school Thursday.

The winners will be honored at the third annual BSU Alumni and Foundation Honors Gala on Sept. 27 at the Sanford Center.

The 2013 alumni honorees are Outstanding Alumni — Tom Anderson, ’70; Pamela Hovland, ’83 and Keith Johanneson, ’69; Young Alumni — Dr. Jeremy Fogelson,’00 and Carri Jones, ’03 and Alumni Service — Kay Mack, ’86.

Here’s more information on each honoree:

• Thomas Anderson: For the past eight years, Anderson has led Baxter-based Minnesota Thermal Science, one of the fastest growing companies in the temperature-controlled packaging industry. Anderson started his career as a CPA with Arthur Anderson and Co. He also has served as a board member for more than a dozen businesses and charitable organizations. Anderson studied sociology and traveled to several European countries as a student in a BSU-sponsored foreign study program at Manchester College in Oxford, England.

• Pamela Hovland: In 1983, Pamela Hovland graduated magna cum laude and received a bachelor’s degree in design and communications from BSU. After graduation, the native of Pelican Rapids saw her summer internship turned into a full-time job at a Minneapolis design studio. In 1985, she moved to New York City and focused on projects with national and international visibility at well-known corporate identity and branding firms. In 1990, she enrolled at Yale University, where she pursued a master’s degree in fine arts. She soon joined the faculty at the school and now is the senior critic in graphic design. She also runs Pamela Hovland Design with offices in New York City and Connecticut.

• Keith Johanneson: Johanneson began his career as a clerk working at his family’s neighborhood supermarket. Early in his career, Johanneson worked as a market research analyst for SuperValu Inc. based in the Twin Cities. In addition, he started a beer distribution company in his native Bemidji. Shortly thereafter, Johanneson succeeded his father as president of Johanneson’s Inc. where he serves as CEO/President. More than 1,000 work for the Bemidji-based organization, which his parents, John and Thelma, founded in 1952. Johanneson has served on numerous industry councils and continues to serve on several company and industry boards including: Security Bank USA, Concordia Language Villages and the Minnesota Grocers Association. Johanneson attended Bemidji State University, studied at the University of Minnesota and the University of Oxford (Oxford, England).

• Dr. Jeremy Fogelson: Fogelson graduated magna cum laude from BSU in 2000 with a degree in chemistry. He received a BSU full-tuition scholarship, funded, in part, by Joe and Jan Lueken. The honor student then attended the University of Minnesota Medical School and performed his internship and residency in neurosurgery at the Mayo School of Graduate Medical Education. He also did a fellowship at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, Mo. He currently is a neurosurgeon at the Mayo Clinic and assistant professor at the Mayo Clinic College of Medicine. Fogelson recently performed a successful surgical procedure on Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton. He is a member of several professional associations and has co-authored numerous papers for national and international publication.

• Carri Jones: While a full-time student pursuing degrees in business administration degree and accounting at BSU, she also was a full-time employee in the accounting office for the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe. After five years and two summer school sessions, Jones earned degrees in 2003. Five years later, Jones was promoted to her first supervisory role as controller at Leech Lake. In 2012, Jones was sworn in as the youngest, and first female, Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe chairperson. She is the youngest chair among the six bands that comprise the Minnesota Chippewa Tribe. Her duties include leading the five-member Leech Lake Tribal Council, which oversees nine government divisions, as well as law enforcement services, the tribal college and a K-12 school. She also acts as CEO for tribal gaming and small businesses.

• Kay (Aultman) Mack: Mack gave up full-time studies at BSU when she accepted a position as Beltrami County deputy county treasurer, which launched a 36-year career in public service. She continued her education part-time and earned a business administration degree at BSU in 1986, the same year she also was elected Beltrami County treasurer. The auditor responsibilities were added in 1977, and she has been re-elected for six consecutive terms. She was appointed County Administrator in 2012. She also is involved in Girls State and the American Legion Auxiliary, as well as many other civic boards and organizations.

The BSU Alumni and Foundation Honors Gala at the Sanford Center starts at 5:30 p.m. An award ceremony and dinner follows at 6:30p.m. The event also will feature BSU’s first-ever comprehensive fundraising campaign. The event is open to the public and registration is required by Sept. 16. Tickets are $50.

For more information, visit http://www.bemidjistate.edu.