1990s

Tony Vanatter (1996) Graduated in 1996 with a BS in Criminal Justice and a BS in Public Administration. Got hired as a police officer in Iowa Falls, Iowa, in 1997 where I worked until 2002. Currently I am a production supervisor for Cargill, where I have been employed for 15 years. Married with 3 children, with 2 of them recently committing to MSU.

POSTED 11/12/2019

Matt Pothast (1991) Celebrated 20 years in sales at Genentech, a biotech pharmaceutical company based in South San Francisco. Lives just outside of Chicago in Park Ridge with his wife Rachel, a Genetic Counselor at Northwestern Memorial Hospital, and sons Nicholas (14) and Ryan (13).

POSTED 11/12/2019

Adrienne (Gillespie) Andrews (1997) I was selected as the 2017 ATHENA by the Ogden/Weber Chamber of Commerce! This exciting award reflects my commitment to the professional development of women as leaders. I am delighted to share that many of the skills I share with others are a direct outcome from my days at MSU!

POSTED 05/16/2017

Matthew Cecil (1997) Matthew Cecil, Ph.D., became dean of the Minnesota State University, Mankato College of Arts & Humanities in July 2016. A Brookings, S.D., native, Cecil formerly served as director of the Elliott School of Communication at Wichita State University and has served on faculties at Purdue University, the University of Oklahoma, and South Dakota State University. Cecil earned a Ph.D. in Mass Communication from the University of Iowa in 2000.

POSTED 01/19/2017

Jennifer (Leto) Muccianti (1996) Many great things happened this school year for me. I participated on the Leadership Committee for Fuel Up to Play 60, which is a great program with the Midwest Dairy Counsel and the NFL. I was also named Illinois PTA Teacher of the Year in March.

POSTED 08/31/2016

Gus Plata (1993) I have been back to my hometown, Panama City, Panama since 1994. Currently working in a big chain of drugstores/dept stores like Walgreens and Target. Involve in a few U.S. restaurant franchises, Chuck E. and B-Dubs. Enjoying my 5-year-old daughter, Nina Sofia, and trying not to get old fast!!! Planning to visit once again Minnesota in November for the Lions/Vikes game.

POSTED 06/03/2016

Melanie (Petty) Costello (1995) After graduating, I have worked in outdoor/environmental education or youth development roles for most of my career. I am currently the Campus Director for Northern Illinois University's Lorado Taft Field Campus, a residential outdoor education and conference center.

POSTED 06/01/2016

Cheryl (Kastning) Todtleben (1994) I was lucky enough to be hired by Blue Earth County Community Corrections right out of college with a BS in Corrections. I worked there for nearly 20 years as a Probation Officer and now work with Counseling Services of Southern MN out of St. Peter, MN as an Adult Mental Health Practitioner. Love the flexibility of my job and like making a change in peoples lives. Going on 17 years of marriage to John Todtleben and have three great kids to keep me young!

POSTED 06/01/2016

Tina (Lawrence) Schriever (1994) A few days after graduating with a B.S. in Psychology, I was fortunate to begin working in Rochester, Minn., for Mayo Clinic. I have remained at Mayo ever since but recently took on a new position. I currently work as the Supervisor of Concierge Services, which has provided a wealth of opportunity to connect not only with other Mayo departments, but also with the community of Rochester.

POSTED 03/17/2016

Bryan Karrick (1997) accepted a job as Chief Meteorologist for News 13 in Orlando, Florida. This Minnesota native (Eagan) is excited to leave behind the snow for palm trees and warmer weather. Prior to News 13, Bryan worked for Media Logic Group as a staff meteorologist, and was part of a team who launched national weather channel, WeatherNation TV. He got his start in television weather at KEYC-TV in North Mankato back in 1996, then spent 12 years as the morning meteorologist at KCCI-TV in Des Moines, IA.

POSTED 12/04/2015

Roger Dier (1993) Roger Dier, 1993, English, has published his second book: "Green & Gold Memories - Growing up in Vince Lombardi's Green Bay." It is available on Amazon.com.

POSTED 11/16/2015

John Meehan (1994) I graduated with an Bachelor of Science Degree (Psychology, Speech Communications, and Chemical Dependency Studies). I previously worked for Addiction Recovery Technologies ART) of Mankato/Rochester for eight years. I currently reside in Dubuque, Iowa and just celebrated my third year with Substance Abuse Services Center (SASC) of Dubuque. I recently was promoted as the addictions counselor for the Dubuque and Delaware Counties Drug Court Program.

POSTED 11/16/2015

David McKnight (1992) David McKnight married Ruth (Schroeder) McKnight, MSU class of 1993, in 2014. David and Ruth originally met at MSU in 1990. David works as the Farmington City Administrator and Ruth works as an account executive at Flexo Impressions. They reside in Farmington, Minnesota.

POSTED 11/16/2015

Amy (Olson) Olson-Treptow (1998) I graduated with an Associate's Degree in 1994, Bachelor of Science degree in 1996, and a Master of Science degree in 1998, all from Minnesota State Mankato. I currently reside in Rochester, Minn., and work for the Office of Access Management - Referring Physician's Services. I recently celebrated 6 years at Mayo Clinic. I love the updates that have been made to the Mankato campus!

POSTED 04/21/2015

Matthew Laird (1998) Enemy Past is the first novel penned by Matthew Laird, an FBI Special Agent and graduate of Minnesota State Mankato. It is available as a Kindle book or in soft cover on Amazon.  

POSTED 08/13/2014

Nancy (Berg) Eickhoff (1999) Nancy (Berg) Eickhoff, '99, Robbinsdale, MN Works as a Vocational Counselor for Hennepin County Vocational Services Program in Minneapolis. She and her husband Ryan welcomed their second daughter on July 28, 2013. Emma Reese joins big sister, Alexis, as part of the family.

POSTED 05/20/2014

Joanne (Benedetto) Littell (1996) Joanne Littell's career has taken her from Fairfax County Virginia Government Center to Intel's headquarters in beautiful Oregon. She currently lives in Bloomington-Normal, Ill., where she has worked as a User Interface Design Specialist at State Farm Insurance Company's headquarters for the past 7 years. She has made significant contributions to internal and external web pages. She recently joined the Digital Standards Governance team, where her professional expertise will continue to shape State Farm's web presence continually improving user experience.

POSTED 02/18/2013

Ken Navitsky (1995) Ken Navitsky was named Advance Auto Parts Monster Jam Rookie of the Year for the year 2012. Advance Auto Parts Monster Jam is an entertainment enterprise in the motorsports industry featured both on SPEED TV as well as CBS Sports.

POSTED 12/28/2012

Sara Hordyk Portner (1994) CPA, CCIFP, CGMA, is now the Regional Controller for the Midwest Division of Adolfson & Peterson Construction (A&P) in Minneapolis. A&P is a national contractor and construction management firm dedicated to quality and innovation and has attained the designation as "one of America's safest companies" from EHS Today magazine for its outstanding safety record and zero-injury philosophy.

POSTED 09/10/2012

Jodi (Kvaas) Rogstad (1997) is the editor of the features section at the Wyoming Tribune Eagle in Cheyenne, Wyo. She and her husband, Dale Rogstad (a 2002 graduate of Minnesota State University) recently celebrated a decade of marriage and are the proud parents of their 3-year-old son.

POSTED 08/07/2012

Saad (F) Alkubaisi (1995) Work at ministry of foreign affairs, Doha. Lived in Hungary for eight years and now back to Doha, Qatar

POSTED 08/06/2012

Rob Schultz (1992) Rob Schultz, '92, Hudson, WI, has been appointed as executive director of the International Wolf Center, in Minneapolis and Ely.

POSTED 07/02/2012

Roger Dier (1993) Roger Dier, BS (English) 1993, has published his first book. "Scarlet Ice" is the story of the 1994-95 Mankato West Scarlets hockey team. One member of the team, John Janavaras, succumbed to meningitis-related bacteria during the 1995 Mankato meningitis outbreak. Scarlet Ice has reached No. 1 on newly released winter sports books on Amazon. com. John Janavaras was the son of Basil and Linda Janavaras. Linda graduated from MSU in the early 1970s and Basil is on the business faculty of MSU. From the back cover: For the Mankato West Scarlets, the winter of 1994-95 was a tumultuous one. As a newly formed high school team in Minnesota—the State of Hockey—the Scarlets lacked the talent and experience of their peers, making every game a challenge of will. Success was fleeting and off-ice conflict pitted underclassmen versus seniors, players against coaches. John Janavaras was the smallest varsity player, but he played with enough heart to draw notice every time he stepped on the ice. At fifteen years old, he was the team's cheerleader, a fearless and competitive center, and the only son of Basil and Linda Janavaras. When a swift outbreak of meningitis tore through Mankato in January 1995, the city was shaken to its core: in days, seven cases were logged, thousands of vaccinations were administered, and one tragedy left behind a permanent stain. A tribute to John Janavaras and the essence of hockey he embraced, Scarlet Ice chronicles the season that gave meaning to what was lost.

POSTED 01/30/2012

Sara (Hordyk) Portner (1994) has been named one of Finance & Commerce's "Top Women in Finance" for 2011. Sara is the Controller with Frana Companies and is the current Chair of the MN Society of CPAs.

POSTED 01/20/2012

Travis Ramage (1999) Promoted to Interim Director, Crouse Center for Student Success (academic advising office) at Aurora University.

POSTED 12/20/2011