Torch 2025 Feature Story: Remembering Rose Iraci Ulseth 1987

Beloved. Dedicated. Hospitable. Historian. This is just a glimpse at words that could be used to describe Rose Iraci Ulseth 1987, who sadly passed away January 30, 2025. She was also a caring, compassionate, and devoted mother, grandmother, colleague, friend, and proud Trojan alumni.

Ulseth celebrated 28 years as an employee of the University of Minnesota Crookston, where she was the donor relations and gift management specialist for the Alumni & Donor Relations department, though she was so much more than that. She was the one who alumni of all three eras, Aggies, Trojans, and Golden Eagles, connected with most; the one her peers sought out when they had any question at all about the campus and its history, and the one whose presence would brighten people’s day even when the temperatures were below zero.

During her time at UMN Crookston, Ulseth was a member of numerous campus committees including Commencement and Homecoming, and helped host countless events, especially alumni-focused gatherings like the annual Northwest School of Agriculture reunion. She was a consistent familiar face at alumni board meetings and retreats, and loved the connection with members of both committees. Ulseth also enjoyed talking about and contributing to campus projects, and was particularly looking forward to the completion of a few that had been in the works.

In recent years, Ulseth was a “regular” in the campus’ social media videos, oftentimes adding a quirky comment, gesture, or a blooper her colleagues now treasure.

In 2023, Ulseth received the Distinguished Staff Service Award during the faculty and staff award ceremony with a tear-jerking speech delivered by her boss and longtime friend, Brandy Chaffee 2000. Ulseth’s career longevity and dedication was incomparable, and something those around her aspired to model.

Dressing up with maroon and gold pride was something Ulseth made sure everyone remembered, especially on Fridays, and she would often talk about the extensive amount of UMN related items adorning her closet. Alongside those clothes were accessories to match, as she was known for her purses and lipsticks. New campus mailroom employees quickly learned where Rose’s office was located as packages filled with stylish clothes and accessories seemed to magically appear, most times weekly.

Before working at the Crookston campus, Ulseth attended school there as a Trojan from 1985-87 when it was the University of Minnesota Technical Institute. She received two associate’s degrees in executive secretarial administration and legal secretarial administration, and was proud to be a Trojan hockey cheerleader. Prior to college, Ulseth attended St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic School in International Falls, Minn., where she grew up, and was a hockey cheerleader there as well.

As a college student, Rose met her future husband, Marc, which led her life in a direction she was most proud of. On June 25, 1988, Rose married Marc Ulseth in International Falls. Together, they raised three beautiful children, Allie, Colee, and Jacob, and were proud grandparents to Adalyn “Junior”, Hudson, Emersyn, and Freyja, plus a new grandson, Luca, who was born in October 2025. They lived on the Ulseth family farm where Rose took care of the record keeping for the family and the farm, and was the secretary and treasurer for their township.

Rose was a proud Italian, affectionately known by her grandkids as “Nonna” - the Italian word for grandmother. Her youngest grandchildren attended child care at U of M Crookston and, on their frequent walks around campus, she would hear them coming down the hall calling out to Nonna, which caused her to literally jump out of her chair and dash for an embrace. Nonna and “Papa” would often host sleepovers with all the grandkids at the farm and the lake, and, while exhausting, made for memories to be treasured forever.

Summers with the Ulseths were spent at the family cabin in northern Minnesota on Lake of the Woods. Boat rides, bonfires, tending to the garden, and chasing puppies and grandkids around the yard were some of Rose’s favorite pastimes. She couldn’t wait to share the stories and photos with her coworkers and friends that next week in person and on social media. Weekly golf trips with the “golf girls” were also something Ulseth looked forward to, as well as socials at the “Northland”, now Crookston Inn, where she used to work as a bartender during and after college. A recent trip to Hawaii to see Rose and Marc’s daughter, Allie, was planned for years and finally happened for the couple in 2024.  

Rose’s kindness, warmth, and caring spirit touched the lives of everyone she met. Fortunately, her memory and legacy will live on through the UMC Rose Iraci Ulseth Memorial Scholarship, which was created after her passing. The scholarship has the opportunity to be endowed and continue its course into the future, impacting students attending UMN Crookston. Future donations to the scholarship are accepted online at https://makingagift.umn.edu/give/fund.html?id=25794, via mail to the University of Minnesota Crookston, and in person at the UMN Crookston Alumni & Donor Relations office.

Though she is no longer with us, the impact Rose Iraci Ulseth made will continue to be etched in the minds of her loved ones. She is deeply missed by her family, friends, and the University of Minnesota Crookston campus.