St. Olaf awards inaugural Founders Medal to Dean Buntrock ’55
In addition to bestowing the longtime St. Olaf supporter with the medal, St. Olaf also named the Buntrock Institute for Freedom and Community in his honor.
Dean Buntrock ’55 speaks at a special Founders Day chapel service where he received one of the highest honors the college can bestow. Photo by Steven Garcia ’20 
President Susan Rundell Singer shows Dean Buntrock ’55 the Founders Medal. Photo by Steven Garcia ’20 
The St. Olaf Choir, conducted by Anton Armstrong ’78, sings at a special Founders Day chapel service. Photo by Steven Garcia ’20 
During the service, Associate College Pastor Katie Fick reads from the college’s Saint John’s Bible Heritage Edition. Photo by Steven Garcia ’20 
Board of Regents Chair Susan Gunderson ’79 offers her congratulations to Dean Buntrock ’55. Photo by Steven Garcia ’20 
Dean Buntrock ’55 and his wife, Rosemarie, with fellow Board of Regents members, college leaders, and family after the service. Photo by Steven Garcia ’20 
Dean Buntrock ’55 and his wife, Rosemarie, with their family after the service. Photo by Steven Garcia ’20
More than 150 years after Norwegian immigrants established St. Olaf College to educate young people for lives of purpose and service, the college celebrated a modern founder whose support will have a lasting impact on generations of Oles.
The college awarded the first-ever Founders Medal to Senior Regent Dean Buntrock ’55, a business leader and dedicated philanthropist whose steadfast support of St. Olaf has transformed access, belonging, campus life, financial aid, and learning opportunities on the Hill.
“The Founders Medal is one of the highest honors the college can bestow,” President Susan Rundell Singer told the students, faculty, staff, alumni, regents, and community members who gathered for a special Founders Day chapel service where the award was presented. “It recognizes individuals whose extraordinary contributions have significantly advanced the college’s mission and improved the lives and outcomes of St. Olaf students today and for centuries to come.”
“The Founders Medal is one of the highest honors the college can bestow. It recognizes individuals whose extraordinary contributions have significantly advanced the college’s mission and improved the lives and outcomes of St. Olaf students today and for centuries to come.”
— President Susan Rundell Singer
Buntrock and his family have given more than $66.7 million to St. Olaf — starting with a $100 gift in 1958. The $26 million gift that the family provided in 1995 to build Buntrock Commons was, at the time, the largest single gift ever made to any Lutheran college in the United States. They have been ardent supporters of many St. Olaf initiatives, including the Institute for Freedom and Community; Regents Hall of Natural and Mathematical Sciences; and academic programs, financial aid, and operations.
As she awarded Buntrock the Founders Medal, Rundell Singer announced that the college will name the Institute for Freedom and Community in his honor. “It will now be the Buntrock Institute for Freedom and Community,” she said. “Dean, thank you so very much for your profound and exceptional support of St. Olaf College.”
Established at St. Olaf in 2014, the Buntrock Institute for Freedom and Community encourages free inquiry and meaningful debate of important political and social issues among students, faculty, and the general public. The institute sponsors a range of programming opportunities each year to further cultivate civil discourse within the context of the liberal arts.
Professor of Political Science Chris Chapp, the Morrison Family Director of the Buntrock Institute for Freedom and Community, notes that it’s a valuable campus resource for students, faculty, and staff. A public lecture series each year brings renowned academics and national experts to campus to share insights on a wide range of issues, with this fall’s topic focused on strengthening democracy. Students can participate in the Public Affairs Conversation (PACON), a two-course sequence that engages Oles in exploring and debating contested ideals that shape American discourse and provides them with a funded internship opportunity. Through the Buntrock Institute, students also have opportunities for hands-on learning through the IFC Fellows and Weber Scholars programs, as well as the ability to earn a microcredential in Dialogue Across Difference. During the academic year, the Buntrock Institute hosts a weekly Politics and Pastries gathering every Friday morning that provides a space for members of the campus community to discuss issues and current events — often led by leaders from campus organizations like the Pre-Law Society.
This fall the Buntrock Institute launched the Svoboda Center for Civic Engagement, which expands St. Olaf’s Academic Civic Engagement team and adds new resources for course development, community partnerships, and project implementation. It will also include a new civic leadership and credentialing program for St. Olaf’s community-based work-study students, volunteers, and fellows. The new center was made possible by an initial $1.7 million gift from Paul Svoboda ’81, which was matched by a gift from the Buntrock Foundation for Leadership that doubled its impact.
“One of the most rewarding things about serving as director is seeing the different ways the Buntrock Institute helps students grow into civic leaders,” Chapp says. “From students inspired to take a more active civic role in their community to students learning to engage and collaborate across political differences, the work of the Buntrock Institute clearly leaves a positive imprint on our student community. They leave St. Olaf more civically prepared, more nuanced in their political thought, and better equipped to be leaders in a complex world.”
“From students inspired to take a more active civic role in their community to students learning to engage and collaborate across political differences, the work of the Buntrock Institute clearly leaves a positive imprint on our student community. They leave St. Olaf more civically prepared, more nuanced in their political thought, and better equipped to be leaders in a complex world.”
— Buntrock Institute for Freedom and Community Director Chris Chapp
Professor of Political Science Chris Chapp, the Morrison Family Director of the Buntrock Institute for Freedom and Community, speaks during a luncheon honoring Dean Buntrock ’55. Photo by Steven Garcia ’20 
Board of Regents Chair Susan Gunderson ’79 thanks Dean Buntrock ’55 during a Founders Day luncheon in his honor. Photo by Steven Garcia ’20 
Chris Chapp unveils the new name for the Buntrock Institute for Freedom and Community. Photo by Steven Garcia ’20 
Dean Buntrock ’55 thanks Chris Chapp and Aisling Cox ’28 for sharing their work during during the luncheon. Photo by Steven Garcia ’20 
Dean Buntrock ’55 at a Founders Day luncheon in his honor. Photo by Steven Garcia ’20
Buntrock grew up in a small South Dakota farm town, where he learned about business and community working in his father’s implement dealership and hauling grain. He attended St. Olaf with his two siblings, taking a break to serve in the Korean War and to manage the family business when his father was ill. After his service, he came back to St. Olaf to finish his degree and graduate in 1955. Upon graduation, he married and took over his in-laws’ small garbage disposal business. He developed it in the decades that followed, co-founding what became North America’s largest waste disposal company, Waste Management, Inc., leading it as chair and CEO until 1997. He has served as a St. Olaf Regent since 1972, including as board chair from 1986–95.
Buntrock is the recipient of the Horatio Alger Award, an honor given to those who overcome significant adversity to achieve success through perseverance and hard work. Upon receiving the award, he noted that “Education is the greatest gift we can give our youth. It gives them the tools they need to carve out and direct their careers and achieve whatever goals they set for themselves. I was fortunate to have parents who valued education and made it central to my life. I hope that I can encourage today’s youth to value their education as well.”
Watch the full Founders Day service and awarding of the medal below.