Alumni Spotlight: Margaret Barnhart ’89

In 2023, Margaret Barnhart was inducted into the Communication, Speech and Theater Association of North Dakota Hall of Fame. For more than 50 years, she has been involved in speech, adjudicating high school forensics meets at the local, regional and state levels. She also has judged state one-act play competitions and state student congress. Reflecting on the honor, Margaret says, “Truthfully, I felt both proud and humbled to join the list of so many distinguished speech and theater teachers, coaches, directors and administrators in the field.”

Margaret’s journey in speech and theater began at Dickinson State College, where she found the perfect place to grow her passion. She transferred in the fall of 1972 to pursue a degree in theater. While at DSC, she met her husband, Pat Barnhart, and they married in 1974 before moving out of state to start a family. When their children were in school, she re-enrolled at Dickinson State University and went on to double major in English and theater in 1989.

She chose DSU for its strong theater program and close-knit learning environment. Along with being close to her hometown, the college offered individualized opportunities that appealed to her. Returning in the late 1980s, Margaret says she felt “inspired by the erudite faculty in my chosen areas (all then included in the Department of Fine Arts and Humanities).” During her last two years, she performed in several plays and joined Writers Exchange, which encouraged her writing for decades to come. She graduated with the Outstanding Senior Award in 1989.

After college, Margaret spent more than a decade as Director of Arts on the Prairie in Dickinson, revitalizing the organization. In 1992, she began teaching at DSU, first as an adjunct and later as full-time faculty. She taught English and communications courses for 29 years before retiring in May 2021.

Over the years, Margaret’s dedication to education and the arts has been recognized through many honors, including DSU Teacher of the Year (2008), DSU Alumni Fellow for the Department of Language and Literature (2013), CSTAND Service to the Profession Award

(2015), NSDA District Communicator of the Year (2017), CSTAND Creative Artist of the Year (2019) and her 2023 induction into the CSTAND Hall of Fame.

In addition to her long career in education and the arts, Margaret is also a published author. Her book, Under the Twisted Cross, was inspired by her father’s experiences as a prisoner of war during World War II. The idea began when she rediscovered a questionnaire, he had filled out for an ex-prisoner of war organization. “As I reread the questions and my father’s answers, I felt absolutely stunned by what my own dad had been through, and I knew his stories needed to be recorded and remembered,” she says. To bring the story to life, Margaret immersed herself in 1940s history, war accounts, music, letters and memoirs. One of her most valuable finds was a 1943 military intelligence report describing the camp where her father had been held prisoner. “The result was Under the Twisted Cross, a novel rather than a biography or memoir. It was from the outset a labor of love and is something I still am very proud of.”

After its publication in 2010, Under the Twisted Cross found its audience. Several schools included it in their reading lists, and Margaret visited classrooms and gave presentations for community organizations. The book was even serialized for 21 weeks in a South Dakota newspaper.

Today, Margaret enjoys a full and active life surrounded by family, creativity and community. She spends her time reading, playing piano, tending her garden, writing and performing. She also volunteers at Twice-Sold Tales, a local used bookstore, and remains involved with CSTAND. Margaret and her husband, Pat, recently celebrated 51 years of marriage. They treasure time with their three daughters, all DSU alumni, and four grandchildren. She continues to share her love of the arts as a founding member of Cat Wrangler Productions, a local theater group that performs twice a year at the Belfield Movie Theatre.

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Written by Alician Parks – DSU HF Student Writer