President Jon C. Gering announces the appointment of Jayna Bertholf, CPA, Winfield, as vice president for business and finance, to begin March 14.
Bertholf is a 1992 graduate of Kansas State University, Manhattan, with a B.S. in accounting and business management, and earned an M.S. in business education from Emporia State University.
She is currently assistant professor of accounting and finance at Southwestern College in Winfield, where she has taught since 2016, and where she was named Exemplary Teacher of the Year in 2021.
After finishing her undergraduate degree at K-State, Bertholf worked for three years, 1993-96, as an accountant for Adams, Brown, Beran and Ball in Hays.
From 2005-16, she taught business at Winfield High School.
While teaching at Southwestern, Bertholf has also worked during winter and summer breaks as an accounting intern at Galaxy Technologies Inc. in Winfield.
She is a licensed CPA in the state of Kansas and currently serves on the board of directors for the Kansas Society of CPAs.
“I and members of the Executive Cabinet were impressed with Jayna’s finance skills and her team-oriented approach to budgeting and strategy,” Gering said.
“She has experience inside and outside of higher education as well as statewide influence from her position on the board of Kansas Society of CPAs. She is a thoughtful, motivated leader who wants to be at Bethel College.”
Bertholf is no stranger to Bethel – her son, Sam Bertholf, graduated from the college in 2018.
“In the time my son was at Bethel, I came to love and admire the college for its family atmosphere, dedication to citizenship and commitment to the development of its students,” she said.
“I have a great respect for Bethel College and the impact the college has on the lives of its students,” she added. “I am honored to join the Thresher community.”
Following Allen Wedel’s retirement as VP for business affairs in May 2020, Amy Ruetten served in an interim role for one year, July 2020-July 2021. Gregg Dick, controller, has filled the interim position since then.
Bethel is a four-year liberal arts college founded in 1887 and is the oldest Mennonite college in North America. Known for academic excellence, Bethel ranks at #15 in the Washington Monthly list of “Best Bachelor’s Colleges” and #31 in U.S. News & World Report, Best Regional Colleges Midwest, both for 2021-22. Bethel was the only Kansas college or university selected for the American Association of College & Universities’ 2021 Institute on Truth, Racial Healing and Transformation, and has been named a TRHT Campus Center. For more information, see www.bethelks.edu
