Alumni Notes

Muriel B Ryden passed away on April 11, 2023. She received a BS in nursing from the University of Minnesota, a MA from Columbia University, and a PhD from the College of Education at the University of Minnesota. She loved teaching and research. She impacted hundreds of students over the years as a Professor in […]

Dr. William “Bill” Ammentorp, former Professor of Educational Administration and chair of the department, passed away at his home in Cannon Falls on Saturday morning, February 4, 2023. Bill is the only child of Olaf and Marie (Larsen) Ammentorp. He was born on August 26, 1933 in Withee, Wisconsin, on his parents’ dairy farm. Bill […]

Congratulations to Sekou Robertson (BS ’02) for being named the Illinois Network of Charter Schools (INCS) Principal of the Year. He is the principal of LEARN Excel and a 2022 CEHD Distinguished Alumni Award recipient. Learn more about the Charter Excellence awards and read the recent opt-ed he wrote in the Sun-Times.

Dr. Amy Jean Knorr (MS ’45) celebrated her 106th birthday last month. She was recently featured in an article in the Arizona Daily Star. Read it here. The CEHD Alumni Society wishes Dr. Amy Jean Knorr a happy belated birthday!

Carol Jean Richards, née Mason passed away November 21, 2022. Born in 1942 in Minneapolis, MN, she graduated from Central High School in 1960. She earned a bachelor of science from the University of Minnesota in 1964. She began her career at the E. H. Butler Library of the State University College of New York […]

Pete Palmer (PhD ’50) passed away on October 24, 2022. He graduated with his PhD in geology in 1950 from the University of Minnesota. During his career, he garnered many scientific honors, notably the Walcott Medal (US National Academy of Sciences), the Golden Plate Award (American Academy of Achievement), and elected Fellow (American Association for […]

Mary Ellen Olson passed away on June 1, 2022, at the age of 89 in Minneapolis, MN. She received a Master of Social Work degree from the University of Minnesota in 1972. She was active in her hometown church’s youth ministry programs, worked as a social worker at Lutheran Social Service and also at several […]

Oryan Brown (MEd ’22) was chosen by the Knowles Teacher Initiative as a member of its 2022 Cohort of Teaching Fellows. This year, 29 promising high school mathematics and science teachers who are just beginning their careers were awarded Knowles Teaching Fellowships. Oryan is a first-year teacher at the High School for Youth and Community […]

Joseph Erickson (PhD ’90) has been named a Fulbright Scholar for the 2022–23 academic year. Each year, the Department of State and the Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board select roughly 800 U.S. citizens to receive the Fulbright Scholar award for international travel, study, and teaching. Erickson, a professor of education and a psychologist by training, first […]

Chelsea Petree, a 2013 Ph.D. graduate in Family Social Science, published a new book titled, Post College Ready: Expert Advice for Parents to Support Their College Senior. This book helps parents through their student’s senior year and transition out of college and includes topics such as the job search, graduate school, volunteering post-college, and changes […]