The GHR Fellows Program at the University of St. Thomas Opus College of Business aims to support and strengthen students as principled leaders capable of creating enduring value for society. The program is grounded in the shared values of GHR and the University of St. Thomas, of working in service to the common good.

The fellowship program is funded by a $50M grant to UST from the Foundation. Ten students are added each year as incoming freshmen to this highly competitive, transformational undergraduate experience for students pursuing careers in business. Fellows receive full-tuition scholarships to the University of St. Thomas and customized programming designed to deliver leadership experiences, including global exposure. The first cohort of GHR Fellows graduates in the spring of 2023.

​Made in partnership with UST, this video features interviews with a few of the GHR Fellows, as they reflect on their accomplishments so far, and consider the promise of what lies ahead.
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As the GHR Foundation Board and staff came together in solidarity, community and celebration at the end of 2022, this video offered a reminder of how we have all lived deeply into creating enduring value in an ever-changing world around us, alongside our partners. 
 

From Pioneer Press:

"St. Thomas and the foundation spent more than a year designing the fellowship. [Amy] Rauenhorst Goldman said they wanted to raise the university’s profile and encourage others to give.

“We really want to have this gift inspire other gifts,” she said.

The fellowship is based on merit, but Rauenhorst Goldman said first-generation students will get preference. Financially needy fellows can also get grants for room and board..."
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Education is a powerful tool for changing lives and strengthening communities. The education our founders received shaped them, and we continue their commitment to providing hope and opportunity through education by investing in innovative, values-based institutions.

Today, the University of St. Thomas announced a scholarship drive to infuse $200 million into support for students over the next eight years.  GHR Foundation has committed $50 million as the lead gift designated entirely for scholarships.

With GHR’s gift, St. Thomas will establish a pre-eminent four-year endowed scholarship program for business majors called GHR Fellows. This highly competitive program is designed to attract future business leaders who embody the mission of the university and model GHR values: globally-minded, ethics-oriented changemakers who seek create enduring value for society.

Each year, fifteen GHR Fellows will be selected to receive scholarships providing them with full tuition for four years, a fully funded J-Term study abroad experience, individualized career coaching, customized social entrepreneurship opportunities and more. By offering this scholarship, the university will be able recruit and retain excellent students who might not otherwise have access to such an opportunity.

GHR Foundation believes education can transform an individual as it did Gerry Rauenhorst, one of our founders, a first-generation college student and a St. Thomas alum. We are proud to help educate students to be principled leaders who think critically, work skillfully and act wisely to advance the common good. To learn more about GHR's Higher Education funding, contact us.

From Star Tribune:

The hope is to attract more exceptional students like sophomore business major Madison Morehouse. Morehouse, 19, grew up in Rosemount, the daughter of a plumber and a loan officer. A standout high school student, she’s the first in her family to attend college. She visited St. Thomas several times while in high school and it was her first choice for college, but the high price tag initially made it seem out of reach.

“I loved how I felt when I was there. When I was there, I felt important,” Morehouse said. “My parents were very up front with me. I could go wherever I wanted, but that loan would be taken out.”

When she got the e-mail from St. Thomas offering her $29,000 in a renewable annual scholarship, Morehouse squealed in the middle of her high school study hall.

“I would not have been able to go to St. Thomas [without the scholarship]. That is the reality of it,” Morehouse said.
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The founders of GHR Foundation left a set of enduring values, one of which is the importance of innovative, values-based higher education. GHR lives out this value through investments to three legacy institutions: Marquette University’s Opus College of Engineering, St. Catherine University’s Henrietta Schmoll School of Health and the University of St. Thomas’ Opus College of Business. Each university receives an annual grant of $1 million to advance the school through “Legacy Initiative Plans” developed in partnership with GHR.

The deans of these three institutions came together recently for the first time to meet one another and share learnings. The landscape of higher education is changing quickly, and the legacy grants help institutions adapt. Through conversations about how the grant fits into their universities, the participants were able to gain wider perspectives on trends in higher education, learn about innovative programs and discuss the path forward. These new lines of communication will support future knowledge sharing and collaboration.

​Each school shared how the legacy grant has been a catalyst for innovation by helping launch a new program, enhancing an existing approach or responding to a compelling challenge. The deans spent time discussing GHR’s goals and strategies, common challenges the institutions face and the role of the legacy grant in overcoming these challenges. GHR also asked the universities for feedback on a new dashboard of indicators for measuring success, which will be used as GHR fine-tunes how to best carry out the legacy of GHR's founders.

To learn more about how GHR is partnering with higher education institutions to promote education that creates a positive transformation in individuals, communities and our world, contact us.

GHR Foundation's Higher Education funding promotes innovative, values-based Catholic education that creates positive transformation in individuals, communities and the world. GHR recently awarded an $18 million grant to St. Catherine University to support growth and innovation in healthcare education.

The grant aligns the missions of both organizations by fostering hope and opportunity for students in the healthcare arena, while honoring GHR co-founder and St. Catherine University alumna, Henrietta Schmoll Rauenhorst.  The investment supports the ongoing expansion of the Henrietta Schmoll School of Health. In accepting the grant, St. Catherine University President Andrea Lee noted that “this generous gift inspires both gratitude and excitement in all of us at St. Catherine – gratitude for the expansive vision and generosity of the GHR Foundation and its founders, and excitement at the transformative impact this gift will have on the groundbreaking work of the Henrietta Schmoll School of Health.”

St. Catherine University will use the grant to develop new programs and fund technology and faculty as it addresses the critical and ever-changing needs in senior living, primary care and global health. "GHR Foundation is pleased to support St. Catherine University as it strengthens its globally-focused, collaborative approach to educating a diverse student population and addresses the extreme shortage of skilled healthcare professionals," said GHR CEO and Chair Amy Goldman. "Through this gift, GHR honors and advances our founders' values by deepening the impact of the Henrietta Schmoll School of Health."

To learn more about GHR’s support of higher education institutions in their pursuits to deliver programmatic excellence and graduate world-class scholars who exhibit a strong moral and ethical core, contact us.

GHR Foundation's Higher Education funding promotes innovative, values-based Catholic education that creates a positive transformation in individuals, communities and the world.

Through significant annual grants, GHR invests in a small number of higher education institutions, including Marquette University’s Opus College of Engineering, which recently named a new Dean—Dr. Kristina Ropella, professor of biomedical engineering. Her new role began July 1, after more than 25 years of the college faculty.

Dr. Ropella is internationally renowned for her biosignal processing and medical imaging expertise, and has maintained industry partnerships to support innovative educational programs. She earned her bachelor’s degree in biomedical engineering from Marquette University and her master’s and doctoral degrees from Northwestern University.

Dr. Ropella is playing an important role in defining key components of the Opus College of Engineering’s grant from GHR Foundation, including supporting research and innovation, entrepreneurship and industry engagement and I-Explore, a program promoting social responsibility and community engagement at Marquette.

Dr. Ropella’s leadership style uniquely positions her to maximize students’ experience by connecting with them directly, as well as by empowering faculty and engaging industry leaders. We look forward to working with Dr. Ropella as we continue to support the Opus College of Engineering’s students and engineering community. To learn more about our Higher Education Initiative, contact us.

GHR Foundation’s Higher Education Initiative promotes innovative, values-based Catholic education that positively transforms individuals, communities and the world. Honoring the legacy of GHR founder and Marquette University alumnus Gerald “Gerry” Rauenhorst, Marquette University recently named its engineering college the Opus College of Engineering.
“The university is proud to be able to honor Gerry by naming the College of Engineering after the business he started," Marquette President Michael Lovell said. Rauenhorst graduated from Marquette in 1951 and served as trustee emeritus from 1970 to 2000. During that time, he advised university leadership and supported many university projects, especially the College of Engineering.

The panel was moderated by former journalist and Marquette faculty member Mike Gousha, and featured engineering executives including Dave Bangasser, president and CEO of Opus Design Build; Todd Adams, president and CEO of Rexnord; Kim Marotta, director of sustainability for MillerCoors; and MaryAnn Wright, vice president of engineering and product development at Johnson Controls Power Solutions. The panelists discussed how engineering is transforming the world for an estimated 125 attendees.

The naming ceremony featured the reveal of the new logo, as well as words from Dr. Kris Ropella, Interim Opus Dean, Dr. Chris Foley, Opus faculty member, Theresa Le, Opus Scholar, Joe Rauenhorst, Dr. Michael Lovell and Fr. Ed Mathie, College Champlain.

View photos of the event here.

The University of St. Thomas, a grantee of GHR Foundation’s Higher Education Initiative, has named a new dean of its Opus College of Business. Effective Aug. 1, Dr. Stefanie Lenway, who has served as business dean at Michigan State University, will become dean and hold the Opus Distinguished Chair at the university.

According to a news release issued by the College, Lenway is still shaping specific initiatives for the Opus College of Business, but is “tremendously impressed with what St. Thomas has done in areas such as entrepreneurship, health care and ethics.” She will also be exploring opportunities in the area of online education given growing demand.

Lenway is a researcher, author, consultant on global technology innovation, and for the past 33 years has been a university business professor, department chair or dean. She has held positions at the University of Minnesota’s Carlson School of Management, University of Illinois at Chicago in addition to Michigan State University. She received a bachelor’s degree in politics from the University of California, Santa Cruz, and a master’s degree in political science from the University of California, Los Angeles. Her master's degree and doctorate, both in business administration, are from the Haas School of Business at the University of California, Berkeley.