Service to the University
When she was a student at Viterbo, Georgia Christensen, FSPA ’70, always planned on a career in teaching. Little did she realize then how wide ranging that career would be, how far from home it would take her, and how much of an impact she would have when she returned to Viterbo as a faculty member and administrator.
“I never expected to be anything other than an elementary or secondary school teacher, but I ended up as an administrator, assistant superintendent, consultant, and university dean,” Sr. Christensen said. “I never dreamed of teaching in Africa, yet I learned so much from both experiences in Zimbabwe and Cameroon.”
A native of Utah, Sr. Christensen came to St. Rose Convent in 1959 to join the Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration, for which she now serves as vice president. She graduated from Viterbo in 1970 with a degree in mathematics (and a minor in chemistry).
After graduation, she taught two years at St. Boniface Parish in New Vienna, Iowa, a year at St. John the Baptist Parish in La Crosse, and then 11 years at Our Lady of Fatima/All Saints Middle School and Marycliff High School in Spokane, Wash.
While teaching in Washington, she earned a master’s degree in educational administration (K–14) from Eastern Washington State University.
After earning her master’s degree, she was transferred to Palo Alto, Calif., as a principal, later becoming assistant superintendent of schools in Monterey, Calif. While in California, she began doctoral studies at Stanford University and in 1995 received her PhD in education administration and policy analysis, with a focus on organizational theory. While in California she also taught at San Jose State University and Chapman College.
From 1995 to 2000, Sr. Christensen worked with the Zimbabwe Catholic Bishops Conference as a staff development officer and instructor at Arrupe College in Harare, Zimbabwe. She also served as a consultant and educator with the Tertiary Sisters of St. Francis in Cameroon from 1999 to 2018.
In addition, Sr. Christensen also served for three years as a consultant for the National Center for Accelerated Schools via the University of Connecticut, Storrs. For over 20 years, she has been a consultant-evaluator and team chair for the Higher Learning Commission for accreditation of colleges and universities.
Even with all the demands of her other educational pursuits, in 1987 Sr. Christensen began teaching in summer sessions of Viterbo’s Master of Arts in Education degree program.
Since 2000 she has served in multiple roles at Viterbo University, including director of institutional research and assessment from 2000–08 and as dean of the School of Graduate, Professional, and Adult Education from 2008–12. In addition to teaching in the MAED program, she also has been an associate professor in religious studies, philosophy, and the Master of Arts Servant Leadership degree program.
She continues to serve Viterbo as a member of the university’s Board of Trustees and on the board of Viterbo Ministries.
2023 Viterbo University Distinguished Alumni Award Recipients main page
2023 Distinguished Alumni Award Winner Barbara Quillin
Barbara Quillin and her late husband, Phil, were honored by Viterbo University in 2014 with the St. John XXIII Award, the university’s highest non-academic honor, in recognition of the impact their philanthropy has had on the community. This year, she is being recognized for her impact at Viterbo in particular.
2023 Distinguished Alumni Award Winner Susan (Sue) Rieple Graf ’82
In 2011, Sue Graf's church was looking for someone to prepare a meal to feed 15 people seeking refuge at La Crosse’s Winter Warming Center. Raising her hand for that set her on a path toward founding and running a nonprofit organization in 2021, What I Need Now (WINN), a mobile mission to serve unsheltered people in the region.
2023 Distinguished Alumni Award Winner Linsie (Sanger) Clements ’08
Linsie (Sanger) Clements ’08, a labor and delivery nurse at Gundersen Health System, has a strong sense that she is right where she is supposed to be, and that comes from a sense of openness to new paths. After first specializing in cardiac care, Clements switched to labor and delivery with a passion for supporting the birth process and helping parents going through the grief she had when she lost her child.