Written by Starla Pointer. Reprinted with permission of the News-Register. Originally published Aug. 8, 2025.
In the five weeks since he moved into the president’s office at Linfield University, Mark Blegen said he has talked about the school with numerous students, alumni, donors and employees.
Most have intrigued him with tales of their “Linfield experience” — the unique sense they have about their time at the university and their continuing relationship with it.
“It’s a recurring theme,” said Blegen, Linfield’s 12th fulltime president and the 22nd person to hold the job, if interims are included.
“Across the board, they say how much Linfield meant to them,” he said. “It’s heartwarming how the place and the people here affected them.”
Now he’s starting his own Linfield experience. And he’s already passionate about the university — enough to speak glowingly about his new school, and enough, even, to wear socks of cardinal and purple, Linfield’s colors.
Blegen, 53, commutes to his office in Melrose Hall from his home in the President’s House, a two-minute walk across the Oak Grove. He lives there with his partner, Karen, a fifth-grade teacher. His two daughters, Krin, 17, and Lyv, 13, still live in the upper Midwest.
He and Karen have been getting to know the McMinnville area, visiting local restaurants such as the Crescent Café and wine tasting rooms, such as Acorn to Oak, which is run by Linfield wine studies students. He said he’s eager to meet more community members.
Blegen was chosen as president in December after he and two other finalists came to the McMinnville campus to speak, go through interviews and tour the school and town.
The visit confirmed that he wanted to be here, he said. That wasn’t a surprise — he’d visited campus in 2018 to review Linfield’s exercise science program and had been learning more about the university since applying for the job.
“It’s a beautiful, beautiful place; more beautiful than I thought,” he said of walking through the Oak Grove and among the brick academic halls and dormitories. “Linfield feels like college.”
He said he feels like a Wildcat, the nickname for Linfield sports teams and students. A Linfield Wildcat is “resilient, determined, a leader and community based and focused,” he said.
Linfield, a liberal arts institution, also reminds him of his own liberal arts education at St. Olaf College in his native Minnesota and his work experience at similar schools.
“The liberal arts are so valuable in my life,” he said in a community presentation for his interview in November 2024. “I wouldn’t be here if not for the liberal arts.”
Such an education made him analyze things from a broad perspective and understand the value of collaboration, he said. It left him with a lifelong love of learning.
While he majored in sports science with a focus on sports medicine, he also studied an array of other subjects at St. Olaf before graduating in 1994. He went on to earn a master’s degree in exercise physiology from St. Cloud University and a doctorate in the same subject from Kent State University.
He worked at Springfield College and Mount Union College, where he coached football long snappers and offensive linemen in addition to teaching. Using his sports science background, he also worked for the Olympic Committee.
He became an administrator at St. Catherine University in Minnesota, then moved to Carroll University in Wisconsin.
As provost and vice president for academic affairs, he oversaw Carroll’s $40 million academic affairs budget, took part in comprehensive fundraising campaigns and played a key role in creating and implementing inclusive hiring practices for faculty and staff. Under his leadership, Carroll launched its first Ph.D program, expanded masters-level offerings and partnered with a high school to offer an associate degree program in nursing that focuses on educating and developing bilingual nurses.
Linfield is his first position as a college president; he recently attended a conference with 52 other first-time presidents held at Harvard.
Federal funding was one of their topics. Fortunately, Blegen said, Linfield isn’t deeply affected by funding cuts for research, since it doesn’t have many federal grant-dependent projects. The university will be affected, though, if there are cuts to federal student aid dollars, he said.
He replaces Rebecca Johnson, who served as Linfield’s interim president after the departure of Miles Davis, who was hired in 2018 and spent six years in the job.
As president, Blegen said he will be the “spokesperson and biggest cheerleader” for Linfield. He also will lead communications with his staff, donors and others; work with the trustees and the employees; and oversee the budget and day-to-day business of the school.
Linfield is on the right track, Blegen said, but it also has things to work on, of course.
Enrollment this fall is on track to meet the goal of about 425 new first-time undergraduates. About 84% of last year’s freshmen are returning for their sophomore year, a 5% jump in retention compared to the previous year.
That’s good news, especially in an era when there are fewer traditional college-age students, due to a decline in birth rate and more alternatives for education; and when the value of a college education is often questioned.
Blegen said college definitely has value. “In myriad ways, a college degree is so very much worth it,” he said. Not just in terms of raising income potential, compared to those with just a high school diploma, but also for the emotional value, lessons in critical thinking, exposure to other cultures and ideas, and other reasons.
“It’s even more true in the world of AI, when we can offload content quickly,” he said. “We need to learn to think.”
But attracting students and ensuring they graduate always requires more attention.
“I’d like as many more students as possible!” he said with a laugh, after being asked what kind of increase he is seeking. “The higher the retention rate goes, the better!”
Essentially, he said, “I would like consistent growth.” And that requires understanding why students choose Linfield, why they stay and why some leave.
Some of the reasons the school already is certain of, he said. Students are attracted to Linfield for its small size and chance to know and be known by professors. They also like the community focus, the range of classes, athletics and the chance to do undergraduate research.
“Those things attracted me, too,” Blegen said.
But to continue bringing in and keeping students, he said, the university has to take a look at its offerings and what job opportunities will be available to graduates. “I need to get into the community and look at what businesses need so we can create the right programs,” he said.
He said Linfield also must consider additional transfer programs, such as agreements with community colleges. The school also is one of the most transfer-friendly colleges in the area. “We value what students did at community college; we accept their credits without making them repeat classes,” he said.
Linfield also needs to make it simple to register for its programs. Some schools have multiple steps for students to plow through before they are accepted or scheduled into classes. “Don’t frustrate them,” he said. “Make it easy.”
The school also needs to continue its efforts to attract and retain first-generation college students by providing long-term support, he said. About half of Linfield’s incoming students are first-gen, often the first in their families to go beyond high school, he said.
They need help in navigating college in general, from budgeting study time to balancing academic and extra-curricular activities and volunteer opportunities. “We must develop creative structures to support them,” he said.
And all students need to feel involved and connected, Blegen said. That’s where the Linfield Experience comes in.
“If they’re connected to a professor, an adviser and to friends, that increases retention,” he said. “Those are the things they remember: a favorite professor, a leadership position, sports … being involved.
“Those were opportunities to find who they are and who they’ll become.”
