JonErik Ickler
JonErik joins ITS as the Technology Purchasing Coordinator and Office Manager. He will purchase software and hardware, facilitate digital telecom infrastructure, and provide administrative services to the ITS department. In his previous role, JonErik worked for the College of Liberal Arts at the University of Minnesota, where he was Operations Coordinator for the office of Undergraduate Education.
In his free time, JonErik plays the violin and enjoys cooking. He grew up in St. Paul and graduated from Carleton with a degree in History and minors in French and Francophone Studies and Medieval and Renaissance Studies.
Ben Patterson
ITS Enterprise Applications Support Specialist Ben Patterson has been a temporary employee in ITS since March 2023. He is now in a permanent position as Enterprise Applications Developer following Sara Oster’s retirement and a reorganization in the Enterprise Information Services (EIS) group. He will continue his work with report-writing and data transformations in Workday PRISM. Ben graduated from UW–River Falls with a bachelor’s degree in Data Science and Math.
Ben lives in Lakeville and spends his time studying the Bible and theology with friends, playing and developing board and card games, and playing and watching hockey (go Wild!). He also listens to a wide range of music and enjoys watching anime.
Congratulations to Our Retirees!
Sara Oster
Sara Oster, Enterprise Applications Administrator, served with a quiet dedication and a meticulous eye for detail for 22 years. Known for her reliability and her sunny, helpful disposition, she has been a steady presence through decades of technological evolution. Her colleagues describe her as a “true team player” who consistently went beyond expectations to support the digital infrastructure that keeps Carleton running smoothly. Thank you, Sara!
Jeanne Blair
Jeanne Blair was the Technology Purchasing Coordinator and Office Manager at Carleton from 2018 until her retirement on March 31st. She ordered software and hardware for the campus, spent significant effort helping the college transition to a new telecom system, facilitated many activities as part of the Workday project, and was the glue that kept operations running smoothly within the ITS department. We suspect that nearly everyone on campus knew Jeanne and worked with her in some way or another. Thank you, Jeanne!
Les LaCroix
Les LaCroix, Strategic Technologist and Class of 1979 alum, has spent the last 34 years exhibiting true markers of a liberal arts education: he’s adaptable, curious, and perpetually creative. Long before smartphones and Google, he was on the “ground floor” of national networking, serving on advisory groups for Internet2 to build the tools that IT departments across the country now rely on. At Carleton, he was the architect of the College’s Identity and Access Management systems, handling everything from the web directory to Moodle access. Colleagues will miss his ability to remain calm and optimistic during any technical storm. Thank you, Les!