The Gustavus Adolphus College Alumni Board of Directors has announced that Mark Anderson ’66, the College’s Vice President for Admission and Financial Aid, will receive the Greater Gustavus Award.
The award is the highest honor given by the College’s Alumni Association and is awarded to those “who by deed have notably advanced and aided Gustavus Adolphus College.”
Anderson plans to retire this summer after devoting 32 years of service to his alma mater.
“I have never met a person more committed to Gustavus or more committed to the development of his staff,” said Lynn Boehne, director of admission services and a longtime co-worker of Anderson’s. “Mark will be impossible to replace.”
Anderson earned his bachelor’s degree in theatre and speech from Gustavus in 1966 and went on to earn a master of education degree from the University of Minnesota. He returned to Gustavus in 1978 as assistant dean of students and in that capacity helped to develop the College’s Career Counseling Center. He later served for 15 years as director of admission and for one year as associate vice president for advancement. In 1998 he was named dean of admission and in 2006 he assumed the title of vice president for admission and financial aid.
“Mark has been a leader in the College’s efforts to increase and retain students of color,” said Rich Aune, senior associate director of admission and another longtime co-worker of Anderson’s. “He is passionate about the need for Gustavus to reflect the changing demographics in Minnesota and the country. His work in this area will be reflected for years to come.”
During the course of his career, Anderson has assisted in enrolling 27 classes at Gustavus, or more than half of the living alumni of the College. Anderson also spent many years serving on numerous national scholarship selection committees. He worked with Educational Testing Services in Princeton, N.J., to select national scholarship recipients for companies such as Toyota, Aid Association for Lutherans, and Kraft Foods. He also served on the National Merit Selection Committee in Evanston, Ill., and the ACT Board for the State of Minnesota.
Anderson and his wife, Frani Peterson Anderson ’67, have two children, Joey Anderson ’95 and Lindsey Anderson Carlson ’96.
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