Although free pizza remains the industry standard for enticing students, this year’s first-year students hopped on board a generous transit offer.

Auggies enrolled in Augsburg Seminar (or AugSem) received a Metro Transit Go To card loaded with $20 at student orientation. Those who loaded $10 on their card by October 1 gained an additional $45 on their card.

Ann Garvey, vice president of student affairs, said nearly 200 students (about 40 percent) took advantage of the offer, which was designed to introduce students to the ease of the Twin Cities’ transit system of buses, light rail, and commuter rail. The pilot project emerged from a collaboration between Metro Transit and the Central Corridor Anchor Partnership—a group of colleges, universities, hospitals, and health care organizations invested in the health and vitality of area neighborhoods.

“Augsburg is committed to its urban location and our Green by 2019 statement,” said Garvey, celebrating Augsburg’s involvement with Central Corridor. “We benefit from being at the crux of the two light rail lines, and we encounter the reality of a small campus footprint. A car-related solution to transportation cannot be our first step.”

Through curriculum, organizations, and overall mission, Augsburg is committed to engaging its neighbors through partnerships and service. Garvey said incorporating the transit offer into the AugSem excursion on City Service Day made sense.

“As we were discussing how best to introduce this idea to new first-year students, we quickly realized that all first-years have the Augsburg Seminar and all Augsburg Seminars have the embedded curricular commitment of engaging Minneapolis,” Garvey said. “It was a perfect fit to show how we integrate what we do with the city, and faculty were stunned with how wonderful it was, as they would sometimes encounter financial barriers in getting their classes out to the city.”

Garvey said another element of success was student involvement. Communications major Sulin Phat and history major Anisa Sharif helped shape a communications campaign to market the Go To card offer by sharing personal experiences and emphasizing the benefits of sustainability and connecting with the community.

“I loved this part,” Garvey said. “Students listen to other students and students bring the reality of their experience in coordinating the outreach that makes these efforts so much more effective. Plus, it gave two current students jobs and hands on experience for their growth and development.”

Results from student surveys, Garvey said, will inform Metro Transit’s offers to students in 2016. The overwhelming success of the project, she added, has certainly renewed interest in the Metro among the rest of the Augsburg community.

Dimension 3, Goal 7, Strategy 7: Engage anchor partnerships in developing, improving, and sharing resources that serve Augsburg, our neighborhood, and our wider community.

—by Kate Elliott

You’re about to graduate with a resume full of top honors and a cover letter that sings. But without a college internship, you’re like a bird without wings. Good thing Augsburg College is committed to helping its students take flight.

The Strommen Center for Meaningful Work secured a grant that will provide paid, career-related internships for juniors and seniors with demonstrated financial need. These Great Lakes Career Ready Internships will be available through spring 2018, outfitting hundreds of deserving students with real-world experiences that lead to a competitive edge.

During the 2014-15 academic year, the Strommen Center facilitated more than 50 paid internships supported by the Great Lakes Higher Education Guaranty Corporation. Center Director Keith Munson said success of the one-year award prompted his office to reapply for funding from the Wisconsin-based non-profit dedicated to helping students reach their full potential.

“Employers expect new graduates to leave college with relevant experiences, which are sometimes unpaid,” Munson said. “In the first year of the grant, we created or converted unpaid internships into paid opportunities that ranged from non-profit agency work to jobs with larger corporations or STEM research positions. In a follow-up survey, almost every student stated that he or she would not have been able to participate in the internship without this grant.”

Munson could fill your afternoon with personal stories about social work students working as youth case managers or biology students shadowing physicians, but you might prefer to hear these stories from the students who are test-driving careers, building professional networks, and cultivating relationships with mentors.

An easy two-step application

Those interested in applying for the grant-funded experience must have junior or senior status at the time of the internship, which is 12 hours per week for 16 weeks during the academic year or a maximum of 25 hours for 10-12 weeks during the summer. Applicants must also be work-study eligible (as determined by the Free Application for Federal Student Aid) and maintain Title IV Satisfactory Academic Progress, among other requirements.

Eligible students apply for the grant using the Augsburg College Human Resource Department work study system. After that, they seek out and apply for an internship through AugPost. Students may already have an internship arranged or they may obtain assistance finding an internship through Career and Internship Services in the Strommen Center, The SABO center, or the STEM programs at Augsburg.

“It’s exciting to think about all the students who are going to benefit from this grant in the coming years,” Munson said. “These opportunities are enriching their studies and helping them pay for school while preparing them to secure top jobs after they graduate. This certainly is rewarding work.”

Dimension 2, Goal 5, Strategy 5: Expand and systematize experiential opportunities.

—by Kate Elliott

Augsburg is a community of lifelong learners, and that includes its faculty—striving to inspire students to achieve through relevant and engaging learning experiences. And this fall, the Center for Teaching and Learning launched a program to support professors eager to enhance their pedagogy and classroom management.

Classroom Consulting is designed to offer individualized and course-specific faculty development through confidential peer partnerships. The program—available to any Augsburg faculty member, including adjunct instructors—operates fully outside the tenure and promotion review process (see confidentiality policy). Heading the program is Tim Pippert, associate professor of sociology and director of the Center for Teaching and Learning. Pippert said interactions with trained consultants—a mix of 17 faculty who specialize in a variety of teaching methods and settings—are provided in strict confidence and may take many forms.

“These anonymous consultations are a collaborative process, driven by the needs of each faculty member who reaches out for support,” said Pippert, who has taught at Augsburg for 16 years. “One faculty member may want to talk through a specific problem or ask a consultant to review course materials while another might request a consultant to observe a class or explore strategies to more fully engage students.”

Consultants are available on an on-call basis to offer assistance to fellow faculty members. Because consultations are course- and faculty-specific, Pippert said the center pairs inquiring faculty members with consultants whose expertise aligns with their needs, goals, and schedule.

“Our consultants are a great resource for all faculty, from the tenured professor who has taught the same class for 15 years to a newcomer eager to gain his or her footing,” Pippert said. “And while those involved with the program maintain anonymity, faculty who engage in the program are free to share their participation. Augsburg celebrates faculty who actively strengthen their teaching because it ultimately enhances our students’ learning experiences.”

For more information or to arrange a meeting with a consultant, email Tim Pippert.

Dimension 1, Goal 2, Strategy 2: Invest in faculty.

—by Kate Elliott