Inductees September 26, 2003
Left to Right: Richard Ojakangas, William Mularie, James Swenson, Chancellor Kathryn Martin, Dean James Riehl, Robert Senkler, Lawrence Skog
Dr. Lawrence E. Skog: Bachelor of Arts – Botany 1965.
Dr. Skog is currently Curator and Research Scientist for the Smithsonian
Institution, a position he has held for the past 10 years, having moved up
through the curatorial ranks at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of
Natural History since 1972. He has been elected to Fellowship by the Linnean
Society of London and the Botanical Society of Scotland, appointed Honorary
Professor at the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing for his work on the
plants of China, and has honorary memberships or served as officer in
several botanical organizations in the U.S. and abroad. Dr. Skog graduated
from the University of Minnesota Duluth in 1965 with a B.A. in Botany, and
then went on to receive an M.S. in Botany from the University of Connecticut
in 1968 and a Ph.D. in Botany from Cornell University in 1972. Dr. Skog is
the author of 129 reviewed scientific publications and has many years of
international research experience resulting in three new genera and more
than 20 new species of plants that he has described. At least two species of
plants have been named after him.
James I. Swenson: Bachelor of Arts – Chemistry 1959.
Superior, Wisconsin native James I. Swenson completed a B.A. degree in
chemistry in 1959. While a student at UMD in the late 1950’s, Mr.
Swenson was one of the early participants in the chemistry undergraduate
research program. Following military service, Mr. Swenson worked for several
computer manufacturing companies including Honeywell and Univac. His career
took him to California where he started a small printed circuit board
manufacturing company. Details, Inc., became the industry leader in
providing custom printed circuit boards; the company’s rapid
turnaround, flexibility and high quality contributed to its remarkable
success. He sold Details, Inc., in 1996. Jim and wife, Sue, have a strong
commitment to the future through the education of children and young adults.
The work of the Swenson Family Foundation clearly reflects this dedication
and has been a powerful and enabling force in the lives of countless
students.
Dr. Richard W. Ojakangas: Bachelor of Arts – Geology 1955.
Dick Ojakangas grew up in Warba, MN, attended Grand Rapids High School and
then UMD. He started out as a business major, but switched after taking
Introductory Geology from Professor Robert L. Heller. He graduated in 1955
with a BA in geology, after which he served in the Air Force. He came back
to UMD to be an instructor before going on to receive his M.A. from the
University of Missouri (1960) and his Ph.D. from Stanford (1964). He joined
the faculty at UMD in 1964 and retired from ‘active duty’ in
2002. He has received numerous awards, including: Sam Goldrich Medal from
the Institute on Lake Superior Geology, The Horace T. Morse Award for
Outstanding Contributions to Undergraduate Education, an Honorary Doctorate
from the University of Helsinki and the Anderson Scholar/Teacher Award from
the College of Science and Engineering. Throughout his tenure in the
department he has published at least 99 papers, reports, maps and books. He
advised 31 Master’s students and taught thousands of undergrads. He
was and still is the conscience of the department. In 1999 his Ph.D.
dissertation (published in 1964) was recognized as a “classic concept
in Cordilleran Geology”, a high honor. Our views of geological
thinking have changed drastically since 1965; however, Dick’s work was
so seminal that it is still accepted and recognized.
Robert L. Senkler: Bachelor of Arts – Mathematics 1974.
Robert Senkler is a 1974 graduate of UMD, receiving his Bachelor of Arts
degree in Mathematics. He has been with Minnesota Life for over 25 years,
starting as an actuarial trainee in the Individual Insurance Division in
1974. He became a Fellow of the Society of Actuaries in 1979 and joined
Minnesota Life’s senior management team five years later as second
vice president of Individual Actuarial. By 1987, he was vice president and
actuary, Individual Insurance, and in 1994 he was named president and chief
executive officer of Minnesota Life. One year later he was elected chairman
of the board. Mr. Senkler currently participates in a variety of business
and civic leadership positions in the Twin Cities, including HealthEast, the
Wilder Foundation, the Carlson School of Management, and the Minnesota
Orchestra. He resides in White Bear Lake with his wife Pam and two sons.
Dr. William M. Mularie: Bachelor of Arts – Physics 1961; Bachelor of Arts – Mathematics 1961.
William Mularie is currently CEO of Telework Consortium, funded by a
Department of Commerce grant for development and evaluation of pilot
projects for a high-bandwidth optical communication infrastructure. Prior to
this, he spent five years as a government employee in Senior Executive
Service, having retired from 3M in 1996 after 30 years of employment in the
private sector. His government service included being Deputy Director for
Science and Technology for the National Imagery and Mapping Agency, Office
Director for the Information Systems Office of the Defense Advanced Research
Projects Agency (DARPA), and a short term in the Science and Technology
Directorate of the Central Intelligence Agency. For his work with the
Imagery and Mapping Agency, he received the Department of Defense
Distinguished Civilian Award. While in the private sector, Dr. Mularie was
General Manager and Director of the CAT-ARC Division of Perkin-Elmer
Corporation and Vice President of VacTec Systems, and spent ten years as
Director of the National Media Laboratory. Dr. Mularie received B.A. degrees
in Physics and Mathematics from UMD in 1961 and his Ph.D. in Electrical
Engineering from UM-Twin Cities in 1971.