A 1977 Concordia graduate, the Rev. Ann Svennungsen is the bishop of the ELCA Minneapolis Area Synod, the first female bishop to serve in any of the ELCA's six Minnesota synods. She served as pastor of Zion Lutheran Church in Iowa City, co-pastor of Edina Community Lutheran Church, and senior pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church in Moorhead.

She went on to serve as president and CEO of The Fund for Theological Education and then president of Texas Lutheran University. Svennungsen, a well-respected theologian and speaker, is published in numerous journals and is invited to lecture, preach, and provide keynote and commencement addresses.

Among her many honors, she was inducted into the Martin Luther King Jr. Collegium of Scholars and has received the Luther Seminary Alumni Achievement award and an honorary doctorate from Trinity Lutheran Seminary.