John Kersey

Class of 1956

Earned four letters 1954-1956

Cross-Country 2 letters

Track 2 letters as a half-miler

Other

• National Honor Society
• Eagle Scott
• 1960 graduate of Dartmouth College
• 1964 graduate of University of Minnesota Medical School
• Lifelong faculty member at the University of Minnesota Medical School
• National leader in the fight to eradicate cancer
• Founding Director of the University of Minnesota Cancer Center
• Director - University of Minnesota Bone Marrow Transplant Program
• Chair of the Children's Cancer Research Fund in Pediatric Oncology
• 2008 - John H. Kersey Chair in Cancer Research established at the University of Minnesota

John Kersey is a 1956 graduate of Washburn who competed in cross-country and track. He was a member of the National Honor Society and an Eagle Scout.

In cross-country, John's teammates remember him as a tenacious competitor and an asset to the team.

In track, John was a half-miler whose peers recall him as an intense competitor.

After Washburn, John attended Dartmouth College where he also ran cross- country.

John then returned to Minnesota, graduated from the University of Minnesota Medical School and began a career in cancer research where he has become a nationally recognized and highly revered leader in the fight to eradicate cancer.

John served as the founding director of what is now the University of Minnesota Masonic Cancer Center. As director of the Bone Marrow Transplant Program, he led the team that conducted the world's first successful bone marrow transplant for the treatment of malignant lymphoma. John pioneered developments in fighting childhood cancers, trained countless physicians and improved standards in patient care.

In the fall of 2008, the John H. Kersey Chair in Cancer Research at the University of Minnesota Cancer Center was established in his honor. He has also worked as the Children's Cancer Research Fund Land Grant Chair in Pediatric Oncology.

Each spring, John takes Washburn biology students to his laboratory where he explains the work he does with one student selected for a summer research internship.

John has always been proud to be from south Minneapolis and a graduate of Washburn.