Six new members appointed to SJU Board of Trustees

August 5, 2016

Six new members have been appointed to the Saint John’s University Board of Trustees.

Patrick Bailey, Sandy Pfefferle Forster, Joe Hoesley, Greg Melsen and Gregory Soukup were recently named trustees. SJU trustees serve three-year terms, and are eligible to serve three consecutive terms.

In addition, Zac McFarland was named the student trustee to the board. He serves a one-year term.

All six began their terms July 1. The board consists of 38 members.

	Bailey received a Bachelor of Science degree in natural sciences from SJU in 1986. He is co-owner and vice president of the family-owned Bailey Nurseries in Newport, Minnesota. Bailey has served on a variety of non-profit boards, including All American Rose Selections, Minnesota Landscape Arboretum Foundation and the Minnesota State Fair Foundation, which he chaired for two years.
	In 2009, Forster launched little pepper promotions, a promotional and branding company. A 1982 graduate of the College of Saint Benedict, she served as a writer, editor and communications director before taking a break from the professional world to stay home with her three boys. Forster served on the Hopkins, Minnesota, School Board for four years, serving as chair in 2007.
	Hoesley is a former vice chairman and member of the Managing Committee of US Bank. He spent 23 years with the bank and was in charge of building its commercial real estate group into a national business. The SJU graduate (1977, government) also has a finance degree from DePaul University. He has served on several boards, and is a current board member of Ascension School in Minneapolis.
	Melsen is a self-employed consultant and a retired chief financial officer at a number of companies, including Techne Corporation, American Medical Systems and AVECOR Cardiovascular. He also served on the boards of numerous health-tech companies and non-profit agencies. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in accounting from SJU in 1974. His wife, Barb, served on the CSB Board of Trustees.
	Soukup served on the SJU Board of Regents from 2008-11 as the Alumni Representative, and is a 1972 graduate of SJU (history and economics). He is a retired partner at Ernst and Young, and is chairman of Warrior Manufacturing in Hutchinson, Minnesota. Soukup has a law degree from the University of Minnesota, and a graduate law degree from Georgetown University.
	McFarland, from St. Cloud, Minnesota, is a senior majoring in political science. He is an offensive tackle for the SJU football team. He has studied abroad in Cuba and South Africa, and has spent the last two summers interning for non-profits in the Twin Cities. McFarland served two terms as the Campus Policies and Procedures Representative for the SJU Senate.