By Micah Friez
Published 10:05 am on May 13, 2026
When he stood before Bemidji State University’s graduating class of 2026, Brent Larson had the best view of a historic group of Beavers.
As he delivered the Commencement address on May 8 on behalf of the late R. Allen Sunderman, BSU’s 43rd Distinguished Minnesotan, looking back at Larson were the very first grads from the Sunderman College of Creativity, Enterprise & Place.
“This is what he wanted his impact to be,” Larson said of Sunderman. “It’s going to have a huge legacy over time, one person at a time getting their education, especially if they couldn’t have gotten it without a scholarship. He’s going to be putting people through college, affecting not only their lives but generations after that.”
Larson spoke about Sunderman, the 1975 BSU alumnus behind an $8.1 million estate gift that recently renamed Bemidji State’s College of Creativity, Enterprise & Place. The Distinguished Minnesotan Award acknowledges the contributions of current or former residents of the state who have performed exemplary service to the people of Minnesota or the United States. BSU posthumously named Sunderman as this year’s recipient.
Larson, a retired U.S. Air Force officer and a sustainable farming advocate, represented Sunderman Farm Management Company — the Iowa firm established by Sunderman’s parents. So as Larson addressed the Class of 2026, and throughout his trip to the North Woods, he likely felt what Sunderman experienced as a Bemidji State student.
“It’s been a real honor to reflect on what Allen did here and put myself in his shoes, and understand why this place was such a significant part of his life,” Larson said. “He thought well enough of BSU to make a major gift. We should all aspire to that, to give back to the places and people and things that made us who we are.”
Sunderman’s gift, which is the largest single gift in the university’s 107-year history, will go toward supporting a broad array of existing and new initiatives for the college. The gift will fund the creation of a newly formed Office of Sponsored Programs, establish a regional innovation fund and a technology advancement fund. It will also offer direct student support through scholarships for students enrolling in information technology-related majors, provide support for students transferring to Bemidji State from one of its partner two-year colleges, and support programs and partnerships that increase industry relationships for students in BSU’s engineering programs.
And Larson thinks that’s the special part of Sunderman’s gift: It’s serving the needs of the North.
“Bemidji State is making the northern half of Minnesota run,” Larson said. “Clearly, BSU plays a large role in this region because of the way it listens to what the workforce and employers need, and it caters specifically to that need. Allen must have seen that that’s how the North works.”
Nearly a thousand Beavers earned their Bemidji State degrees in 2026. Many of them became the first graduates of the Sunderman College — which holds the Schools of Business, Education, Humanities, Music, and Technology, Art & Design.
More than anything, Larson hopes these grads and future grads will take pride in knowing of the man who helped make their college experience possible.
“I hope there’s a way to convey to future scholarship recipients where this money came from, and the spirit in which it was given,” Larson said. “It’s from someone who had a lot, but understood and was grateful for the fact that he was given a lot. He parlayed it into helping thousands of people over time.”
