Carolyn Sandberg, Macalester College and Hamline University

The Art of the Samurai and Exploring the Mississippi: Carolyn Sandberg Reflects on her College Adventures

In 1971, when Macalester College junior Carolyn Sandberg arrived at Waseda University in Tokyo for her year abroad, she faced a big adjustment. At the time Japan had seen few American visitors. The only English radio station was for the military and few street signs were in English. Sandberg, however, took the challenge head-on. She took every opportunity to learn something new in Japan, going as far as learning martial arts from six-year-olds.

Kendo, the physically intense Japanese martial art of the samurai, did not intimidate Sandberg. She was the first foreigner to enroll at a kendo school in her neighborhood. Dressed in full protective gear and wielding a bamboo stick, Sandberg attempted to “pour forth all one’s strength,” as her instructor demanded.

Sandberg, who is half Japanese, had studied Japanese at Macalester. But the kendo instructor and children in her class used words she had never heard before. She still remembers a particular six-year-old classmate who tried to translate the instructions to Japanese words Sandberg would better understand. “The kindness of the child was humbling, but it taught me a lot about how people will help you if you ask. People are vested in your success.”

While her experience studying in Japan left a profound impression, Sandberg also found chances to learn and explore the Twin Cities under Macalester geography professor David Lanegran. “I remember scrambling up and down the banks of the Mississippi to see the lock and dam. I lived in the Twin Cities my whole life and had never been down to the dam. Professor Lanegran made assignments that included personal journeys like that.”

Sandberg went on to conquer the corporate world with the curiosity instilled by her professors and the same ferocity she put to her kendo studies. At 21 she started working at Honeywell—as one of six women and one of three people of color—and stayed for more than 20 years. She received a degree from the Hamline University School of Law and has taught as an adjunct at the University of St. Thomas and Hamline University.

After almost thirty years of experience as one of the few women or persons of color in law, Sandberg was called to apply her expertise at the law firm of Faegre & Benson LLP. The firm created the position of diversity manager specifically for Sandberg.

This year Sandberg will take a vacation from recruiting and retaining a diverse workforce. She will return to Japan to reconnect with the friends she made during her studies more than thirty years ago. 

Hobby: When her father’s military career took Sandberg from city to city across the world, the Girl Scouts provided a much-needed stability. Today she is very involved with the Girl Scouts. “It teaches girls leadership skills and helps girls realize their potential,” Sandberg said.

Favorite Web site: Her husband, Chris Sandberg’s (also a Macalester graduate), photography Web site: www.landscapeimpact.com.

Favorite Book: Sandberg is currently working her way through the Harry Potter series.

Hero: Barbara Jordan, a “source of forceful, positive energy for black women.” Jordan was “a beautiful orator and the first black woman to give a keynote address at a Democratic National Convention.” She opened a law practice on her parents’ dining room table and later hosted a PBS series.

Why college is important: “When you’re at your parents’ home you are subject to their ideas and priorities. College is a time when you try different things and determine your own priorities. You go to have a purposeful discussion of issues, and you are challenged to change some ideas you grew up with. You will grow as a person and see your potential for changing the world.”

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