NEWS

HELLO, my name is Thomas Skovholt

Hometown: St. Paul

When did you join UMRA? 2019

What was your very first job? Together with my brother, I shoveled snow, mowed lawns, and had a paper route. At 13, I went to a cafeteria and asked for a job. The boss said, “How old are you?” When I said I was 13, he said, “Come back next year.” As I turned to leave, I thought, that’s an eternity!

What was your occupation when you retired from FT work? Professor of counseling psychology in the U of M College of Education and Human Development Department of Educational Psychology. Now, I am a part-time psychologist practicing, consulting, writing, and speaking.

Do you have a favorite place on campus? The Knoll, a park-like area between Burton Hall and University Avenue. Magnificent oak trees and green space. 

What sparked your interest in counseling psychology? My mother was my first role model as a helper of others. I had a great father, too, but he was an engineer and had a different focus. I had a psychology course in high school in 1961 and was captivated by the topic.

I really enjoyed teaching undergraduate and graduate students for 46 years. However, my experience is that the counseling and therapy process, not always but sometimes, is a more powerful catalyst for human development. It directly addresses human suffering, helps repair human emotional scars, and increases human well-being. Of course, the process is often slow and sometimes ineffective. But the positive change from the days when psychology, counseling, and psychotherapy were stigmatized until the present has been spectacular. I think of it like the rise of dentistry, from simply pulling teeth to creating strong teeth and beautiful smiles. 

Your work in recent years has focused on resiliency development and burnout prevention in health and helping professionals. What have you learned that could be applied to self-care for older adults? One term I developed from qualitative interviews with therapy experts is “boundaried generosity.” Individuals in the relationship-intense professions are focused on the needs of the other. This is the generosity part. The boundaried part relates to preserving the self. There is a dynamic balance for the individual to maintain. It is a term older adults may apply to their own self-care. 

What is a fun fact about you we might not know? I send a TGIF joke to my grandchildren every Friday. It is fun. I get an occasional five-star review. 


Professor Skovholt won a 2024 Professional Development Grants for Retirees award that enabled him to present his work and conduct a workshop on burnout prevention for health and helping professionals at the University of Stavanger Hospital in Norway. He said, “The grant was like rocket fuel for my ongoing work and collaborations.”


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News

At a contentious meeting March 14, the University of Minnesota Board of Regents approved a resolution restricting University units from issuing statements “of public concern or public interest.” Several dozen faculty and students present vehemently protested the resolution.

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The election of UMRA officers and new board members for 2025–26 will be conducted via an online poll from May 12 to 18, with the results to be announced at our annual meeting on May 20. Sally Gregory Kohlstedt leads the slate of nominees as president-elect. She came to the University of Minnesota in 1989 as a professor and associate dean, and retired in 2018.

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This spring, UMRA will launch a new member portal to simplify and more efficiently manage many essential tasks, including enrolling new members, updating member records, registering event attendees, and processing payments.

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Meet UMRA member Vicki Gaylord. In her 32-year career at the Institute of Community Integration, a U of M Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities, her work made a positive impact on the lives of thousands of people around the world. 

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The University Retirees Volunteer Center is seeking candidates to serve on the URVC Leadership Council. The council meets six times per year to identify opportunities for volunteer projects and develop strategies for growing and supporting volunteer participation.

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Deanne Magnusson was raised in a family in which education and volunteerism were encouraged. She earned three degrees at the U of M, and enjoyed a career working in education with leaders and schools in Minnesota and across the world. These experiences, and her volunteer work today with URVC, continue to transform her as an educator and as a person.

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UMRA’s 2025 Professional Development Grants for Retirees awards cover a diverse set of topics reflecting the breadth of studies undertaken by University retirees, including Mark Bohnhorst for his proposal “More New Thinking about Presidential Elections.”

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UMRA member Lynn Slifer is taking full advantage of retirement, pursuing her interests in writing, crafting, babysitting grandchildren, good food, wine, and travel, plus serving on the leadership council of the University Retirees Volunteer Center.

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UMRA’s online Journal of Opinions, Ideas & Essays is a unique venue hosting diverse content that is enjoyed by people around the world. If you enjoy helping authors polish their products for publication, JOIE is looking for a new leader. It’s an opportunity that has been tremendously rewarding for the outgoing editor-in-chief.

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UMRA has lost contact with many members because of the unfortunate demise of your @umn.edu email accounts. If you haven’t done so already, please update your email address on our system. It won’t take long. 

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