I work for Emerson Process Management in Chanhassen as a Lead Business Systems Analyst and Project Manager and am in the first year of my UST Evening MBA program.  My Liberal Arts undergraduate degree from the University of Minnesota focused on International Relations, which I enjoy being able to use in my work.  Over the last 10 year I have focused on Import/Export Compliance software and US, Latin American and EU import and export regulations.

I am an optimistic mother of two teenage boys: Andy, age 15, 10th grade soccer and trumpet player at Hopkins High School and Gabe, age 12, 7th grade football and trumpet player at Hopkins West Jr. High

I am fluent in Spanish which I learned while living in Ecuador for 1 year. In my leisure time I love to go running, travel, visit my grandfather and read.  My travels include adventures like scuba diving, biking and snorkeling, white water rafting, caving, hiking, exploring ancient ruins, canoeing, camping, cross country skiing, and anything with warm sunshine and a beach.  The picture is a collection of the significant pieces of who I am. 

This is my first year at UST. My undergrad is in Accounting from St. Kates. Currently I am working at Target and have been there for 6 years in various accounting and finance roles.  Eventually, I would like to be in an area that has more of a global perspective, so I am focusing my electives on international business.

I live in Blaine with my 3 yr old son, Jakob, and cat, Mac. Jakob and I frequently take care of my brother’s German Shepherd/Boxer named Cooper. We like to bring him to the playground, running, and swimming (although Cooper prefers jet-skiing).  I enjoy baking cookies, kayaking, running, reading, going to the cabin, and movies from the 1940’s – 60’s. Also, I have designed some tattoos for friends and family, and am currently working on a few more.

Within the next 5-10 year the Company leadership will be passed onto me.  This prompted me to enroll in the UST MBA program in order to help prepare me for this transition.  Prior to working for the family business I worked as an air freight forwarder in Chicago for Distribution By Air, Inc (DBA) (1 year) and also as a transportation sales agent & supervisor for CH Robinson Worldwide (4 years).  I enjoy football and baseball, hiking, traveling and being at home with my wife.  We live in a condo near the new Twins ballpark and we can't wait for next summer's baseball season! 

Elisabeth Burrow is in her first semester of the Evening MBA program.  Her undergraduate is from the University of North Dakota, where she majored in Management and Financial Management.  The majority of her free time at UND was spent in the pool.  She swam all four years for the Fighting Sioux, at that time a Division II program.  During these four years she competed at Nationals twice and was a two time All-American.     

Elisabeth has been employed with Buffets, Inc. for the past four years.  Buffets, Inc. is the holding company of Old Country Buffet, Hometown Buffet, Ryan’s and Fire Mountain.  She is a Security Compliance Specialist; in this position she is responsible for Loss Prevention audits on the 286 stores of the Old Country Buffet and Hometown Buffet brands.  

When not traveling for work, Elisabeth enjoys leisure travel with her husband.  Their most recent trip was Spain and Portugal in August of this year.  She also enjoys time at home with her animals, a five year old cat named Princess and a one year old puggle named Tink.

I moved to the US permanently when I married my husband Madhu (working at 3M as a Lean Six Sigma Black Belt project manager). Since then, the job opportunities that have presented themselves to me have challenged me so that I have become flexible enough to tackle anything that comes my way (IT- Commercial Banking, IT- Health Insurance, IT- Life Insurance etc.). I hope my MBA will take me to higher career levels and greater satisfaction in life!

 In 2006, Brandy joined MAKO Surgical Corp. and relocated to Ft. Lauderdale, FL, where she was responsible for defining and developing MAKO’s brand and marketing collateral and helped move the company from a small, start-up engineering-focused company to a publically traded, marketing-driven corporation. In 2008, Brandy was recruited by St. Jude Medical to help with the launch of the company’s new brand and relocated to the Twin Cities. She served as Brand Integration Manager for St. Jude Medical for more than a year before moving to her current position of Communications Manager in June 2009. In her free time, Brandy enjoys working out, shopping, tap and swing dance and has been learning to snow and water ski since moving to Minnesota.

I was laid off in mid-2008 and then began my current job as a Marketing Consultant for Dominium Management Services in early 2009.  Although I get by well enough posting Craigslist ads part time, I do hope to someday find myself in a Marketing Analyst role where my mental abilities will actually be utilized.  St. Thomas will either build up my skills to become a Marketing Analyst, or it will prepare me to start my own business. 

Over the last five years, I have worked in compensation consulting for both a boutique consulting firm and currently Wells Fargo, and I generally like it.  My fun fact about me is that I'm a big Green Bay Packers fan, yet I have never lived in Wisconsin!

Originally from Bemidji, MN I received my undergrad in Business Administration from North Dakota State University.

A former swimmer, I've recently picked up running and am currently training for the Twin Cities 10 mile.

Ifeanyi Esimai is currently a full-time student at Opus College of Business. He obtained his medical degree from the College of medicine, University of Nigeria. Following his graduation, he practiced as a physician in a family care facility where he rose to the position of Assistant Medical Director.

Dr. Esimai has always had a fascination for entrepreneurship and the development of new products. In 2004, while studying for the US medical boards, he experienced discomfort from working with his laptop on his lap. Rather than purchasing a laptop pad from the closest office supplies store, he decided to build his own. In 2007, a patent was issued by USPTO for a laptop heat dissipating pad, the itoPad.

He has continued to be innovative, working on a laboratory tool that will cut down the time it takes to process tissue samples in pathology labs. Dr. Esimai decided to pursue his passion for entrepreneurship and enrolled at the MBA program at St. Johns University in New York. During his second semester, his wife decided to pursue her own passion for teaching, and accepted an offer from the University of St Thomas School of Law as a law professor, leaving her position as a VP at Goldman Sachs in New York City. The family moved to Minessota in June, and is yet to experience the MN winter.

Dr. Esimai believes that an MBA from Opus School of Business will equip him with the necessary tools for a deep dive into the business world where he hopes that his medical experience and his passion for business will be put into great use in marketing, product design, and the development of new products.

She also studied abroad in Seville, Spain and Oaxaca, Mexico. After graduating from college, she moved to Oaxaca, Mexico for a year to work as an Assistant Director of a private language school and to become fluent in Spanish.  Outside of working and studying, she is planning her wedding and enjoys bike riding, yoga, reading, traveling and cooking

I am originally from Brazil and moved to Minnesota 3 years ago, when my husband accepted a new position with the company he had been working for (Cummins). I hold a degree in Communications and Advertising. After college, I worked with Hospitality and Tourism and spent a year in Tahiti and six months in the Bahamas. It was a great opportunity to learn different languages and cultures. Prior to moving to Minneapolis I managed a travel agency in my hometown – Porto Alegre – and it was a good job for someone who enjoys traveling as much as I do. For the past two years I have been working for Wells Fargo and moved to the Treasury Management group six months ago.

Both my husband and I grew up in big cities so we choose to live downtown Minneapolis and we really like it. In our free time we enjoy bike riding, running, traveling and watching movies. We visit our family in Brazil once a year, usually when it’s winter here so we can enjoy summer there. Great deal!  This is my first semester in the UST MBA program.

He has worked as a legislative assistant, newspaper reporter, and in various parts of the transportation and logistics industry.

I attended Lakeville HS and graduated in 1995; moved onto UST as an undergraduate (three majors:  Business, Communication and Women's Studies)and graduated in 2000; and now plan on graduating from UST with my MBA in May of 2010.  Before grad school I had the opportunity to work in Granada, Spain for three years and across Turkey for nine months.  I am now employed at my family's business, Village Bank, which my father started in 1993.
 
I started at Village Bank six years ago as the Director of Marketing, which involved creating a new website, brochures, TV commercials, in-house marketing, etc.  This is important as now I have completely shifted and I am the Assistant Vice President of Commercial Lending for our Anoka-Ramsey market.  I have been a Teller, Relationship Banker, Business Development Officer, Consumer Lender and now Commercial Lender.  This adds great value to my position as I am able to relate to employees and customers alike, while managing relationships and expectations as I have been in many of their positions.  My brother works for our Real Estate Holding Company, D & M Management, so I am expected to take over the leadership role at Village Bank from my father.  The transition has been one of the most difficult experiences of my life and continues to be as it involves very difficult decisions that require strategic planning on an emotional topic.

On a personal note, when I am not working or going to school, I enjoy spending time with the love of my life (Kevin) and my two soon-to-be step babies (they are nine and fourteen).  My girlfriends and I enjoy golfing, get manicures and pedicures, drinking wine, eating sushi and planning my best friend’s baby shower for her twin boys!  Kevin and I are also preparing for three weeks in Asia in January which will involve studying abroad for ten days with UST and traveling through Vietnam and Thailand.

I work for Medtronic, Inc. in the Cardiac Rhythm Disease Management (CRDM) division. I am responsible for developing the implant procedures for our pacemaker leads (wires) and delivery systems. During my free time I enjoy going up north on the weekends and playing football with my boys. 

My undergraduate degree is from the University of Minnesota.  I grew up in Richfield and Eagan.  I live in St Paul.  In my spare time I enjoy watersports, basketball, fishing, food and a nice bonfire.

My area of focus at MTS considers problems associated with laboratory simulation of automotive and railway vehicle dynamics and development.  Distinguished by more than one million miles of world travel, my tenure at MTS has heightened my understanding of global markets and instilled in me a certain win-win entrepreneurial spirit.

I am a graduate of the University of Minnesota, where I received a degree in Sport Management.  Out of college, and for the last 4 years, I have been working with the Minnesota Twins as a sales development representative.  My main focus is on selling season ticket and luxury suite packages to corporations looking to utilize sports marketing to entertain clients, reward repeat business, and provide incentives for their employees.  I love my job as it does combine a few things I enjoy; business, developing and maintaining relationships, and baseball! 

My greatest fear in my profession and in life is stagnancy.  That is why, the time is now to develop into the type of person and transformational leader I hope to one day become.  It is my hope that the St. Thomas MBA program will play a major role in that.  When I am not working, I spend as much time as possible doing anything outdoors, traveling, playing sports (golf, downhill skiing, softball, etc), or spending time with friends and family.  I truly enjoy meeting new people and look forward to getting to know all of you as the semester progresses.  We all have commonalities, come from diverse backgrounds, and have unique life stories to share.   When time permits, I am always open for a happy hour to learn more! 

Jeremy Rothenburg is part of the Learning and Operations Team at Wells Fargo where he works closely with his business partners in WFHM (Wells Fargo Home Mortgage).  He has been in his current role for about 3 ½ years. Prior to coming aboard to Wells Fargo, Jeremy has brought 5 years of sales experience including his role as Life Insurance retention specialist where he obtained MN Life and Health, Series 6 and 63 Licenses.

Jeremy grew up in Dallas, TX and holds Bachelor of Business Administration in Marketing from the University of North Texas.

After Jeremy completes this semester, he will only have 1 more class left until he graduates from the Evening M.B.A program.

I grew up in Caracas, Venezuela, and came to the US to study English originally for 3 months, but ended up staying, going to college and building a career in marketing communications.  I spent the first part of my career in the government/non-profit area, but recently transitioned to the private sector, first working in multicultural marketing at UHG Ovations and just a few weeks ago began working in international marketing project management at 3M Health.

 I live in Uptown Minneapolis with my family—husband Julio, son Lucas, and dog Tristan (a 95# Goldendoodle).

I have lived in Minnesota for all but one year of my life of which I spent that in Tempe, Arizona after my freshman year of college. For the last 3 years I have worked at Varde Partners Inc which is a hedge fund located in Bloomington. Before that I have worked for Minneapolis Financial group and RBC Dain Raucher. I also moonlight as a bartender every other weekend at Biella Restaurant in Excelsior or at Somerset country club in Mendota Heights in the summer 3 times a month. This keeps me out of trouble and also has its perks like free food and also free golf.

For high school I went to Henry Sibley in Mendota Heights, and then for college I started at St. Cloud State for my freshman year before going to Arizona where I was looking at going to Arizona State but realized that the weather was too nice and I wouldn’t go to class.  I returned back to Minnesota and enrolled at St Thomas and completed my degree in Finance.

I live by St Thomas St. Paul campus with two roommates and the owner of the house is a Judge for Mendota Heights and the UN. I know his son so he lets us live at his house very cheaply. This gives me money for my hobbies like horse racing, golf, hanging out with my high school friends, and traveling. Most recently I went to Costa Rica I was able to stay for free at a hotel my work owns and travel around the country, fish, visit the different small bars and eat a lot of fresh seafood.

This is the start of my 3^rd year at St Thomas and after this class I’ll have 5 left before graduation.  Definitely looking forward to being done!  I currently work for UnitedHealth Group as a Financial Analyst.  I work in our IT division in Capital Reporting, helping to manage/track $300M in projects in 2009.  I grew up in a small town in SE MN (pop ~1,000), later I went to UW-River Falls for my undergraduate degree in Broad Area Business with a Finance emphasis. 

I’ve been married for 3 years to my high school sweetheart who currently works for US Bank as a Risk Manager in their distressed loan department.  He recently obtained his MBA from the U of M so it’s been interesting to compare notes. 

I also have a 4 month old daughter, Adelynn, at home.  Addy is the greatest little person in the world, and is absolutely the light of my life.  Back when I had spare time, my husband and I were runners, completing the TC marathon together among other races. 

Crystal S. Wisniewski has worked for DCM Services formally known as Balogh Becker for 10 years, the last 3 years as a Business Analyst. Prior to her current position as an analyst she managed a team of paralegals and legal assistants for 4 years.

She graduated from the University of Minnesota with a B.S. in Sociology and Youth Studies and started to pursue her MBA at Saint Thomas in 2008.  She is a proud parent of 2 children and volunteers at the Jeremiah Program as a Life Skills Facilitator.

Judy worked as a staff accountant, and later a branch controller for about 7 years in China before she moved to the U.S. 3 years ago. She graduated under the major- Accounting from Shanghai University of Financial and Economics in 1997, and the second major in English Language from Shanghai International Study University in 2005. Currently she works at Wayzata Holding LLC as a staff accountant, and is responsible for General Accounting, and the companies’ Financial Report.

She likes to make new friends. She is a trustful and reliable person who is always willing to help others. Her hobbies include cooking, (If anyone wants to try some authentic Chinese food, they should give her a call, because she is a good cook) shopping, and watching TV.