Two Women College Presidents Announce Their Retirements

ReBecca Koenig Roloff, president of St. Catherine University in St. Paul, Minnesota, has announced that she will retire at the end of the academic year. She became the university’s eleventh president in 2016.

Before being named president Roloff had served for 11 years as president and chief executive officer of the YWCA of Minneapolis. Earlier in her career, she served in executive posts at American Express Financial Advisors, Pillsbury, and Cargill. She is a former chair of the board of trustees of St. Catherine University. Roloff is a 1976 graduate of St. Catherine University. She holds an MBA from Harvard Business School.

“My professional life was launched when I came through Gate 1 as a first-generation student in August of 1972,” Roloff said in a message to the university community. “The circle will close 52 years later in a role that is the privilege of my career. The life afforded to me because of my education at St. Kate’s drives all decisions and choices I make as president so that others have the same chance I did.”

Christine De Vinne, president of Ursuline College in Pepper Pike, Ohio, will step down from her post at the end of the academic year. She became president of the college in 2015.

Before being named president, Dr. De Vinne was vice president for academic affairs and dean of the faculty at Notre Dame of Maryland University in Baltimore. Earlier in her career, she was a professor of English and dean of the School of Arts and Sciences at Ursuline College. Dr. De Vinne is a graduate of Ursuline College, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in mathematics. She holds a master’s degree from the University of Notre Dame in Indiana and a Ph.D. in English literature from Ohio State University.

“It’s been an honor to serve Ursuline College — my beloved alma mater– as president,” stated Dr. De Vinne, better known on campus as Sister Chris. “The timing is right for me to relinquish my keys to a new president, ready to lead our incredible faculty and staff and build on the momentum of their accomplishments.”