![\"Marie](\"http:\/\/www.augsburg.edu\/now\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2013\/11\/Marie_Olive_McNeff.jpg\")
Lifelong teacher.\nPilot.
\nRegent.
\nDean of Academic Affairs.
\nMom.
\nEntrepreneur.
\nCook.<\/p>\n
Lifelong teacher.
\nPilot.
\nRegent.
\nDean of Academic Affairs.
\nMom.
\nEntrepreneur.
\nCook.<\/p>\n
These are only a handful of words and titles that describe\u00a0Marie Olive McNeff, a dedicated leader in the Augsburg\u00a0College community for nearly 40 years, who passed away\u00a0August 23 at her home following a yearlong battle with cancer.<\/p>\n
McNeff\u2019s commitment to the College crossed all departments,\u00a0but started in 1968 when she was a member of the\u00a0Education Department. McNeff taught for 27 years in the\u00a0College\u2019s elementary education, adult undergraduate, and\u00a0Master of Arts in Leadership programs.<\/p>\n
\u201cMarie\u2019s willingness to think \u2018large\u2019 and beyond traditional\u00a0bounds and take calculated risks serves as a model for all of\u00a0us in the Education Department,\u201d said Vicki Olson, director of\u00a0the Master of Arts in Education program, in a 2001 nomination\u00a0of McNeff for the Spirit of Augsburg Award.<\/p>\n
\u201cAlways we have been challenged by Marie\u2019s \u2018reach for\u00a0the stars\u2019 attitude,\u201d Olson said. \u201cShe pushed, prodded, and\u00a0encouraged us to think large. Sometimes we could, often we\u00a0couldn\u2019t. As I grow older, I find that those stars don\u2019t seem\u00a0as far away, and that is largely due to the conditioning and\u00a0practice that Marie has led me through.\u201d<\/p>\n
In 1995, McNeff was appointed vice president of academic\u00a0affairs and dean of the College. She left this position in\u00a01999 to spend her last year prior to retirement as Augsburg\u2019s\u00a0academic master planner, creating a blueprint to implement\u00a0the academic provisions of Augsburg 2004, a College vision\u00a0document. She was elected to the Board of Regents in 2005\u00a0and served in that position until her retirement.<\/p>\n
\u201cI became Marie\u2019s student when I arrived at Augsburg\u00a0and slowly realized that this remarkable woman did indeed\u00a0have the heart of a teacher. She did strive each and every\u00a0day to create opportunities for learning\u2014learning that was\u00a0grounded in community, learning that was lifelong, learning\u00a0that changed lives,\u201d said Augsburg College President Paul C.\u00a0Pribbenow in his eulogy for McNeff.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was invited into her extended classroom, where she\u00a0taught me about Augsburg and its deeply held values\u2014about\u00a0community and shared leadership and walking the talk. She\u00a0taught me about ways in which a small business such as\u00a0SarTec can partner with a college like Augsburg to serve our\u00a0mutual needs and aspirations. She taught me to dream big\u00a0and then give away what you find. She taught me courage and\u00a0resilience.\u201d<\/p>\n
McNeff\u2019s reach extended into many areas outside of Augsburg,\u00a0most notably in her commitment to McNeff family businesses\u00a0where she served in varied roles, including as assistant\u00a0to the president at SarTec Corporation, president of McNeff\u00a0Research Consultants, and member of the Board of Directors\u00a0of Ever Cat Fuels.<\/p>\n
It was in her role with SarTec that McNeff\u2019s commitment\u00a0to mentoring, leadership, and hospitality was again made\u00a0evident. Every day McNeff prepared lunch for employees of\u00a0the company. Staff and family would gather in fellowship and\u00a0community just upstairs from the offices.<\/p>\n
McNeff was a graduate of Genoa High School in Genoa,\u00a0Nebr., and earned bachelor\u2019s, master\u2019s, and doctoral degrees\u00a0in education from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She was\u00a0a member of the Anoka United Methodist Church and held a\u00a0private pilot\u2019s license.<\/p>\n
As an educator, leader, entrepreneur, and philanthropist,\u00a0McNeff was deeply committed to the vision for the Center for\u00a0Science, Business, and Religion, and the McNeff family is a\u00a0great benefactor of the College.<\/p>\n
She was preceded in death by her parents and a brother,\u00a0LeRoy Rockey. She is survived by her sister, Marece; her husband,\u00a0Larry; her son, Clayton \u201991, and daughter-in-law, Denise;\u00a0and three grandchildren: Charles, Alexander, and Bridget.<\/p>\n