In preparation for Bob Tereshinski’s forthcoming retirement from Mount Marty College, officials have wasted no time naming his replacement.

Suzy Kalsow, who has served as the associate vice president for academic affairs and the dean of graduate and professional studies for nearly two years at Buena Vista University, in Storm Lake, Iowa, will take the reins as MMC’s vice president and Dean of Academic Affairs beginning July 1.

Prior to her current position at Buena Vista, Kalsow had served as the university’s dean for the school of education. Before arriving at Buena Vista, she taught seventh and eighth grade English and physical education for 17 years. She also served as a curriculum director and worked in education consulting.

“In my current position (at Buena Vista), I oversee each of the 16 satellite campuses we have and I’m also in charge of online education,” she said. “I also coordinate all of the graduate programming we offer here.”

Kalsow said she enjoys working with people who, in many cases, are going back to school as an adult to get their degree.

“I enjoy seeing older students and adults changing their lives through education,” she said. “We have programs set up with community college and offer opportunities for people to get their education in their home area, while still working and having families. That is so rewarding for me to be a part of.”

Kalsow added that the next step in furthering her career is a position as vice president — one that she’ll have at Mount Marty.

“I had been looking at the VP position after having had the associate vice president position at Buena Vista,” she said. “The size of Mount Marty was appealing to me, and I also like the Benedictine connection there that serves as a clear philosophy for the school.”

One of the new challenges awaiting Kalsow at MMC are the health care programs.

“Even though it’s a new area and a new challenge, I’m still interested in learning all about the health care programs,” she said. “The fact that MMC has two satellite campuses outside of Yankton that offer opportunities for students was also intriguing to me.”

Kalsow said one of the biggest differences between MMC and Buena Vista is the emphasis Buena Vista places on its satellite campuses. She added that people at Mount Marty have a sense of who they are, and the grounding principles are clear at the college.

She noted that one of the things she will do before she gets on campus is understanding the education requirements for South Dakota and how they compare to those in Iowa.

Kalsow added that the other programs are similar to what she’s been working with at Buena Vista and are not as much of a challenge for her as the health care programs are.

“After 14 years at Buena Vista, which is also my alma mater, part of me thought I might stay there until I retired, but this seemed like the right opportunity for me,” she said. “After I applied and interviewed, it wasn’t as hard to leave Buena Vista because I was impressed with the people at Mount Marty.”

She added that she is focused on getting results by building relationships, and said she deeply cares about the culture of an organization and how it does business.

“I want to get to know the individuals and build relationships with everyone at MMC, including having one-on-one time with people,” Kalsow said. “I care about what we do and how we go about making decisions and how we include people in the decision-making process. I want to find out what is happening at MMC currently, the strengths of the college and will get to do some strategic planning while at MMC.”

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