Riverland Community College

Darlene Voeltz, of Rochester, MN, was honored Riverland Community College's Distinguished Alumni Award in recognition of exceptional contributions to the college, on May 13, 2022.

She attended Austin State Junior College from 1966-68.  She was a teacher of economics and business at Rochester Community and Technical College (RCTC) from 1976 -2010. 

Darlene received her bachelor’s degree from Wartburg College and her master’s degree from the University of Minnesota.  She is a two-time Fulbright fellow and a two-time Fulbright specialist, serving in Morocco, Peru/Argentina, Tanzania, and Bolivia. Darlene’s commitment to higher education resulted in receiving the Faculty Award of Excellence in 2005- 2009. She also received the Post-Secondary SE Minnesota Business Teacher of the Year 2001.  Darlene has given national presentations on Virtual Service-Learning Experiences in Developing Countries and Integrating Technology to Engage Students in Developing Countries.  She has served as a Consultant/Textbook Revision Editor for numerous collegiate economics textbooks.

While visiting Riverland in June, she was presented a plaque of recognition and enjoyed lunch with Dr. Nuga and some of the Advancement Team, followed by a tour of the Austin campus.

Since 1979 the Riverland Distinguished Alumni Award has honored alumni in recognition of their achievement and contributions to their career field, meaningful service to their community, and advocacy of higher education and/or Riverland. By honoring our former students, we hope to inspire today’s student to strive for both personal and professional success. The award is bestowed every even-numbered year.