Gustavus Adolphus College presented Margaret Anderson Kelliher ’90 and Paul Peterson ’94 with Distinguished Alumni Citations at 5 p.m. Saturday, May 26 at the College’s Alumni Banquet as part of the 2007 Reunion Weekend.
The Distinguished Alumni Citation recognizes outstanding and exceptional professional achievement, such as to bring unusual honor to the individual in his or her field of endeavor. Criteria appropriate to selection include the difficulty of accomplishment; quality, creativity and distinctiveness of performance; recognition by professional peers; and lasting contribution to the world of ideas and affairs.
Kelliher is Speaker of the Minnesota House of Representatives and is serving her fifth term representing Minneapolis District 60A. After graduating from Gustavus, Kelliher worked as a legislative staffer for several members. She was honored as one of 22 individuals from Minnesota and the Dakotas to be named to the 2003 Bush Foundation Leadership Fellows Program at John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. Additionally, she was honored as a 2004 Toll Fellow, a prestigious fellowship that is awarded by the Council of State Governments to just 40 leaders nationwide.
Peterson is currently Principal at St. Peter High School and was honored by the Minnesota Association of Secondary School Principals (MASSP) in January as the 2007 Met Life/MASSP Minnesota Principal of the Year. He was recognized for his role in leading and facilitating several initiatives in the 7-12 high school program in St. Peter. He worked closely with a site leadership team to institute a “Get Ready, Get Credit” program, a new adviser/advisee homeroom system, and an emphasis on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics in the 7-12 curriculum, all of which resulted in St. Peter High School being selected as one of ten “Lighthouse High Schools” in Minnesota.
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