John T. Thornton '59CBA, '72L, '02HON was awarded the
President’s Medal of St. John’s University at the 28th Annual
Alumni Convocation on Friday, May 29, 2009.
A double alumnus of St. John’s University, he received his
B.B.A. from the College of Business Administration in 1959 and his
J.D. from the School of Law in 1972.
After positions at KPMG and Texasgulf, Inc., he moved to Norwest
Corporation, a banking and financial services corporation, where he
served as Senior Vice President and Controller and later as
Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. In 1998,
after Norwest merged with Wells Fargo and Company, he was selected
to oversee the financial operations of the combined entities.
He is currently Director and Chair of the Audit Committee of
Arcadia Resources, Inc., a medical services and pharmaceutical
company. His lifelong dedication to St. John’s is evidenced
by his memberships in the Founders Society, the University’s most
elite and generous donor recognition group, and The Loughlin
Society.
In addition, he and his wife, Patricia, established the Thornton
Family Scholarship Fund to provide financial assistance to
deserving students in the School of Risk Management of The Peter J.
Tobin College of Business. In 2002 St. John’s conferred upon
him an honorary Doctor of Commercial Science.
Sr. Catherine Thornton, O.P. (pictured) accepted the President’s
Medal on behalf of her brother.
The President’s Medal is among the most prestigious awards at
St. John’s University. It is presented to an individual who
has achieved exceptional personal and professional success and/or
rendered outstanding service to the University or society.