College of Saint Benedict and Saint John's University

The College of Saint Benedict (CSB), for women, and Saint John's University (SJU), for men, are partnered liberal arts colleges respectively located in St. Joseph and Collegeville, Minnesota, USA. Students attend classes and activities together, and have access to the resources of both campuses. CSB/SJU are located about three and a half miles apart – the campuses are located on 3500 acre of forests, prairies, and lakes.

Saint John's University has produced its own coarse-grained bread, Johnnie Bread, since 1856 and used the proceeds to fund projects such as the Abbey Church.

Partnership
CSB and SJU are two separate institutions that share a single academic program. Men and women attend classes together on both campuses. About 4,000 students are enrolled in CSB/SJU combined. They attend coed classes taught by a joint faculty of approximately 350 professors, mostly full-time, permanent appointees.

The Institute of International Education ranks CSB/SJU among the top baccalaureate institutions in the nation for the number of students who study abroad. Additionally, the colleges enroll approximately 250 students from 50 countries, and offer 200 undergraduate courses that have a global focus.

The Benedicta Arts Center of the College of Saint Benedict is a performing arts center on campus. The BAC presents three annual performances by the Minnesota Orchestra and has recently commissioned works by Diavolo and Merce Cunningham Dance Company. The Hill Museum and Manuscript Library at SJU is home to the Saint John's Bible (the first hand-scribed bible in 500 years) and a collection of religious sculpture, paintings, prints, and artifacts. Saint John's University also includes Saint John's School of Theology Seminary, a graduate school which confers Master of Divinity and Master of Arts degrees. The school also prepares seminarians for the priesthood.

Men
First-year dorms for the men of Saint John's University include Saint Thomas Aquinas Hall (Tommy Hall) and Saint Mary Hall. There are two men per dorm room in both of these buildings. Many sophomore men at Saint John's live in three residence halls: St. Bernard (Bernie), St. Boniface (Bonnie), and St. Patrick (Pat), the latter two of which are connected. All three sophomore halls have two men per dorm room. Other housing options available for sophomores include St. Benet Hall which is attached to the Quadrangle Building (Quad), St. Joseph Hall (Joe Hall), St. Gregory House (Greg), St. Francis House (Frank), the Virgil Michel Apartments, and the first floor of Tommy. All of these are separate from the other three sophomore dorm halls. There are also housing options for juniors and seniors to live on campus, including the apartments Placid House, Maur House, Saint Vincent Court, Metten Court and the new Flynntown Apartments.

Women
First-year women at the College of Saint Benedict live in three residence halls: Corona, Aurora, and Regina. Sophomore women at the College of Saint Benedict live in three residence halls: Lottie, Brian, and Margretta. Juniors and seniors can live in the either the West Apartments (Dominica, Gable, Girgen, Schumacher, Smith, Sohler, and Westkaemper) or the East Apartments (Luetmer, McDonald, Wirth, and Zierden). Opened for housing in the fall of 2012, Centennial Commons is the newest addition to the residential facilities. Students can also choose to live in "living communities" such as the Health and Wellness Community, as well as in other campus houses, such as Idzerda, the Rainbow House, or the Anne House.

Athletics
CSB/SJU are members of the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC).

Men's Sports
SJU made MIAC history in the fall of 2006 by winning team titles (or a share thereof) in all four fall sports: football, soccer, cross-country and golf (the golf team went on to finish first at the NCAA III championships in the spring).

Saint John's University sportsmen compete in men's intercollegiate Baseball, Basketball, Cross Country, Wrestling, Football, Golf, Soccer, Ice Hockey, Swimming and Diving, Tennis, and Track and Field.

Baseball
The Jonnies finished the 2012 season second with a MIAC record of 14-6 and a total of 29 wins. This tied a Saint John's University record for most wins in a season. The team also qualified for the NCAA tournament for the first time since 1998. This was the third time the Johnnies were able to claim the MIAC Playoff championship. The head coach, Jerry Haugen, has coached the SJU baseball team for 36 seasons with a career record of 665-567-5. He is in the top 25 on the NCAA Division III most winning active coaches win list.

Basketball
Saint John's University tied for fifth and played in the playoffs. The SJU basketball team ended the 2012-2013 season with a loss to Augsburg in the quarterfinal round of the MIAC playoffs. Their record for the season was 74-67. Three Johnnies earned All-MIAC recognition. The head coach of this team is Jim Smith, and he has a 755-535 career record. The 2013-2014 season will be his 50th season coaching the Johnnies.

Cross Country
The cross country team of Saint John's finished fourth of 27 teams at the NCAA Central Regional. They followed behind St. Olaf, Central of Iowa, and Luther of Iowa. The Johnnies were ranked seventh in regular season. The 2012 SJU cross country team earned U.S. Track & Field Cross Country Coaches' Association All-Academic recognition.

Football
Saint John's football team routinely finishes at or near the top of the conference. The program has been largely defined by its recently retired head coach John Gagliardi, who served in that role for 60 seasons until stepping down after the 2012 season. Gagliardi currently holds the record for most wins as a coach in college football history, regardless of division, with 489 wins. Saint John's has won six national team championships (2007, 2008 Golf Division III, 2003, 1976 Football Division III, 1965, 1963 Football NAIA). Saint John's biggest rival is the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul.

Golf
The 2012 Saint John's golf team was ranked third in the final Golf World/Nike Golf Coaches' Division III poll. They were ranked behind Oglethorpe(Ga.) and Methodist(N.C.). St. Thomas was ranked number 10. The Johnnies moved up a total of 15 spots throughout the year.

Hockey
The 2012-2013 SJU hockey season ended in the first round of the NCAA Division III Men's Hockey Tournament in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. The Johnnies lost to Wisconsin-Eau Claire 4-2. Wisconsin was ranked fourth and had beaten the Johnnies earlier in the season 5 to 1. SJU's record was 16-8-4 (9-4-3 MIAC).

Soccer
Saint John's University opened its new soccer complex this 2013 season. The 2013 season will open at the end of August. In 2012, the Johnnies ended the soccer season with a 9-6-4 (6-2-2 MIAC) record and finished fourth.

Swimming and Diving
SJU finished fifth out of eight at the MIAC Swimming and Diving Championships. Logan Arnold and freshman Preston Marsh received fourth and fifth place and were just half a second behind third. Nolan Bauer was fifth in the 1,650-yard freestyle. Braden McCormack also placed fifth in the 200-yard backstroke. In the 3-meter dive, Ben Studer placed sixth. The Johnnies Logan Arnold, Preston Marsh, Paul Knaak, and Connor Triggs) received second in the 400-yard freestyle relay.

Tennis
The 2013 tennis team has so far gained a record of 2-0. The Johnnies won 7-2 against Concordia-Moorhead on March 9. Fabricio Moncada was number one with four wins in singles. Joe Laue was third, and Zach Shriwise and Willie Paul were fifth and sixth. SJU will play Gustavus Adolphus on March 16.

Track and Field
The SJU Track and Field team finished fifth out of eleven teams at the 2013 MIAC Indoor Track & Field Championships. They were only 1.5 points from fourth place. Kevin Horton placed second in the 200-meter dash and was awarded his second All-MIAC performance. He was only 0.05 from the conference title. Brady O'Brien earned his first All-MIAC honor when he finished second in the triple jump. Willie Versen was awarded his first All-MIAC when he won third place in the 3,000 meters.

Wrestling
Seniors Mitch Hagen and Chris Stevermer will compete at the NCAA Division III Championships on March 15–16. Mitch Hagen is ranked fourth in the 2013 tournament. Chris Stevermer was third at regionals and is unranked in the tournament. Both competed in the tournament in 2012, but lost against higher ranked opponents. Four other Jonnies will compete in the national tournament. Ryan Arne, Ryan Michaelis, John Scepaniak, and Nick Schuler are all appearing at the national tournament for the first time.

Women's Sports
College of Saint Benedict sportswomen compete in Women's Intercollegiate Basketball, Golf, Cross Country, Volleyball, Ice Hockey, Softball, Swimming and Diving, Tennis, and Track and Field.

Basketball
Blazer basketball has won the MIAC championship five times in recent years and has made 15 NCAA Division III tournament appearances. The head Blazer basketball coach Mike Durbin celebrated his 500th win in the 2008–2009 basketball season.

Golf
Blazer golf is coached by Daryl Schomer, who started as head coach in the 2011-2012 season. In his first season at CSB as head coach, Schomer led the Blazers to finish third in the MIAC. The Blazer golf team just started their 2013 season on March 27 in Phoenix Arizona. So far the team has not played in any tournaments in Minnesota, as they have been cancelled due to winter weather.

Volleyball
Blazer volleyball had made appearances in the NCAA National Tournament 13 times, most recently in 2011, and has won the MIAC Conference Championship seven times, most recently in 2009. The volleyball team is coached by Nicole Hess, and she achieved her 100th win as a coach on November 1, 2011 against Gustavus Adolphus College.

Club Sports
The Nordic Ski teams at both schools were changed from intercollegiate to club teams in March 2011 due to budget concerns.

The colleges also offers a variety of other club sports including men's and women's lacrosse, rowing, Nordic skiing, ultimate, water polo, men's and women's rugby and Australian rules football and curling.

The rugby club recently celebrated its 40th anniversary in 2007 and continues to be a strong presence in Minnesota and the Midwest. The club has claimed the Minnesota Division II state championship from 2005–2009 and has made many appearances in the Midwest Final Four. In 2013 the club competed for a national championship in the National small college rugby organization final four and was victorious. The Johnnies, led by coaches Dan Franklin, Tammy Cowan, and Mike McElroy, defeated Duke University in the title game to be National Small College champions. The rugby club is also the largest club on campus with great support from the school, Parents, and Alumni

The men's club lacrosse team competes within the Upper Midwest Lacrosse League (UMLL), a division of the Men's Collegiate Lacrosse Association (MCLA). The team won the 2004, 2005, 2007, 2008 and 2011 UMLL Championship. The team has also appeared in the MCLA National Championship Tournament from 2006–2011, playing in the National Championship game in 2006 and 2007 (runners up both years).

The women's club lacrosse team has also made appearances on the national lacrosse scene. The CSB Lacrosse appeared at the inaugural 2010 WDIA National Championships for D2 club lacrosse in Scottsdale, Arizona; after coming in second place in the North Central Women's Lacrosse League.

Presidents
MaryAnn Baenninger, PhD, is the fourteenth president of the College of Saint Benedict. She earned her PhD and B.A. in psychology from Temple University.

Michael Hemesath, PhD, former Carleton College economics professor, is the thirteenth president of Saint John's University. He graduated from Saint John's in 1981 and is the first layperson appointed to a full presidential term at the school. He earned his M.A. and PhD in economics from Harvard University.

Student government
The Saint John's Senate (SJS) is the elected student government at Saint John's University. The Saint Ben's Senate (SBS) is the elected student government at the College of Saint Benedict. The Senates, while individually governing in the interest of their own student body, work closely together with students, faculty, staff, and university administrators to enhance all aspects of student life.

Music
The music department at the College of Saint Benedict and Saint John's University is quite expansive considering the size of the school. The department of music has many ensembles including four choirs, an orchestra, a wind ensemble, a jazz ensemble, and several small chamber ensembles. Many of these ensembles tour extensively both domestically and abroad. The department also presents an opera every year and recently performed a Stephen Paulus oratorio about the Holocaust entitled "To Be Certain of the Dawn", jointly with choirs and orchestra from Saint Cloud State University in Europe in May 2008. There are also several student run groups, including the a cappella group Johnnie Blend. Over half of the students at the College of Saint Benedict and Saint John's University participate in some kind of music ensemble.

Media
All student media is run independent of the CSB/SJU administration.

The Record
The official SJU newspaper since 1888, The Record became the official newspaper of CSB in 2000. The newspaper is published weekly during the fall and spring semesters and has been recognized among the best weekly college newspapers in Minnesota and the U.S. All back issues of CSB newspapers are available for full-text searching and viewing online through Vivarium, the CSB/SJU Digital Image Collection.

KJNB
The official student radio station of CSB/SJU allows students to host talk and music-oriented shows in one-hour segments. When KJNB first started out in 1954, it was located in the basement of Mary Hall. In 2001, the studio was moved to its current location in the lower level of Guild Hall in the center of campus. Broadcasts are streamed via http://kjnbradio.webs.com/, on closed-circuit campus TV Channel 6, and can be accessed on the radio anywhere in Collegeville on 99.5. KJNB does not advertise, and dead air is filled with randomly cycled music. KJNB is currently being renovated.

Channel Eight
Channel Eight is the local television station for CSB/SJU. Project Eight launched during the 2011–2012 school year, the channel has begun featuring student produced television shows along with other campus related activities such as live broadcasts of Senate meetings.

Notable alumni

 * Mike Anderson Actor, Writer, Comedian and host of The Not So Late Show
 * Neville K. Adderley, ('67) Supreme Court Justice of the Commonwealth of the Bahamas
 * Tom Burnett, hero of United Airlines Flight 93 during the September 11, 2001 attacks. Attended SJU for two years, but did not graduate.
 * Edward Devitt ('34), U.S. Congressman 1947–1949 and U.S. District Court Judge
 * David Durenberger, former U.S. Senator
 * Erin Truhler, ('02, Foreign Service Officer. Employed at the U.S. Embassy in Brasilia, Brazil.
 * Colette Peters ('93), Director of the Oregon Department of Corrections. She was named by the governor to lead the Department of Corrections after serving as the Director of the Oregon Youth Authority for several years.
 * Margaret Hofman ('90) Judge. Dallas County Criminal Court, Texas.
 * Glen Werner Roseboom ('93) U.S. Olympic Facility Director. Director of the U.S. Olympic Training Facility in Colorado.
 * Jon Hassler, novelist
 * Patrick Hicks, poet
 * Elizabeth Hayden ('68) District Court Judge in Stearns County; Presided over Rep. Norm Coleman's case to overturn Dem. Al Franken's 225-vote advantage following a recount
 * Vedie Himsl ('38), baseball player and coach
 * Mark Kennedy, former U.S. Congressman
 * Matt Kirby and Kevin Truckenmiller, members of alternative rock band Quietdrive
 * Bill Kling, co-founder and president of American Public Media
 * Bernie Kukar, former National Football League referee
 * Mike McCarthy, businessman
 * Barbara Edwards Farley ('81) recently appointed president of Illinois College
 * Judy Forstner Poferl ( '82) president and CEO, Northern States Power Company – Minnesota
 * Elizabeth Dinndorf ('73) president of Columbia College in Columbia, South Carolina
 * Eugene McCarthy ('35) long-time member of the United States Congress
 * John McCutcheon, Grammy-winning folk musician
 * Denis McDonough ('92), Chief of Staff to President Barack Obama.
 * John McDowell, National Football League player
 * John McNally, aka "Johnny Blood", National Football League Hall of Famer
 * Larry Millett, journalist and author
 * Margaret Murphy ('90) president and chief operating officer, OLSONdenali
 * Lino Rulli ('93) Emmy-winning producer and radio host (The Catholic Guy)
 * Richard Sabers ('60) South Dakota Supreme Court Justice
 * Matt Schnobrich, 2008 Summer Olympics bronze medalist in rowing
 * George Sinner ('50), Governor of North Dakota 1985–1992
 * Eugene P. Sheehy, Head Academic Librarian at Columbia University, 1967–1986
 * Stephen Sommers, movie director
 * Mark Vande Hei ('89), astronaut
 * Richard Weening, businessman
 * Jerome J. Workman, Jr. is a prolific author and editor of scientific reference works on the subject of spectroscopy; and a noted analytical spectroscopist.
 * Kipp Christianson, professional wrestler in Florida Championship Wrestling as "Eli Cottonwood"
 * Gordon Zahn attended briefly but was pressured to leave. He later wrote German Catholics and Hitler's Wars and In Solitary Witness: The Life and Death of Franz Jägerstätter. Later he was given St. John's Pax Christi award.

Notable faculty

 * Annette Atkins, Professor of History, Minnesota historian, author of Creating Minnesota: A History From the Inside Out
 * Arthur J. Spring, Professor of Education, inspired a former US Ambassador to attend Columbia University
 * Axel Theimer, Professor of Music, member of Minnesota Music Educators Hall of Fame
 * Dan Finn, Professor of Theology, William E. and Virginia Clemens Professor of Economics & the Liberal Arts
 * Miguel H. Diaz, Professor of Theology, ambassador to the Holy See.