Established in 1994 by Oscar C. Boldt and his wife Patricia Hamar Boldt, the Boldt chair is offered to a current St. Olaf faculty member whose scholarship and professional endeavors advance the teaching and learning of humanities at the baccalaureate level. Oscar Boldt is chairman of The Boldt Group, Inc., a family-owned consulting and construction firm headquartered in Appleton, Wisconsin since 1889. The Boldt Chair is awarded for terms of three years; prior holders are James Farrell (History), Carol Holly (English), Edward Langerak (Philosophy), Gordon Marino (Philosophy), Diana Postlethwaite (English), Solveig Zempel (Norwegian), John Barbour (Religion), Steve Reece (Classics), Judy Kutulas (History), and Carlos Gallego (English).
Current Chair: Kristina I. Medina-Vilariño
Professor Medina-Vilariño, Associate Professor of Spanish, Race and Ethnic Studies, and Latin American Studies, has been at St. Olaf since 2012. She was also the director of American Conversations. Her classes include Spanish 314: Caribbean Literature and CyberSpace, Spanish 240: Politics and the Environment in Puerto Rico (a course she created), and AmCom 111: Borders and Empires. Her book project is titled: La dominicanidad en tránsito. Isla Negra Editores (Puerto Rico and Dominican Republic). In 2021 she was the keynote speaker at Simpson College for their Research and Creativity Symposium.