Former Saint Mary's professor, reformer, ND grad dies
By KATIE McVOY
News Writer
A Saint Mary's legacy passed away this past Friday, leaving behind 25 years of students, respect and change.
Margaret Dineen, recently of Jacksonville, Fla., was a professor of business administration at Saint Mary's from 1967 until her retirement in 1990.
Through the course of her years at the College she watched the business department grow and change from a small department that was primarily focused on secretarial skills to the highly respected program it is today.
"She was present at the creation of the BBA," professor of business and administration Claude Renshaw said. "She had a lot of input into that change."
Dinnen arrived at Saint Mary's shortly after receiving her MBA from Notre Dame in the late `60s. At that time, the department was small and course selections were limited.
Saint Mary's offered classes in typing and shorthand and other necessary secretarial skills.
In 1976, department head Bill Schmuhl and the other members of his small department, including Dineen, changed the department with the creation of the BBA, Bachelors of Business and Administration.
At that point, Dineen began to focus primarily on marketing classes, teaching the first group of Saint Mary's women to ever receive a BBA. Dineen, who ran a very strict classroom, was highly respected by students and colleagues alike.
"Students had an enormous amount of respect for her," Renshaw said. "She had an approach in the classroom that was very strict, but it really created professional women."
The faculty also found her to be a warm, caring person.
"When my wife and I moved here, she and her husband, Clarence, made us feel so welcome," Renshaw said. "She was a very genuinely generous person."
Dineen's husband, Clarence Dineen, was also a member of the Saint Mary's faculty in the biology department for almost 25 years.
Dineen has three daughters, Margot, Diane and Mary, and one son, Jim. Her husband still lives in Jacksonville where she passed away, but her grave is in Cedar Grove at Notre Dame.
All News Stories for Friday, April 14, 2000
