About the Gage Center

The mission of the Gage Center for Student Success is to connect Augsburg students to academic support, resources, and services that will help them create and achieve their educational goals. This unique vision was made possible through the generous support of the Gage and Groves families.

Our Benefactors

The Gage Family

The Gage family began their relationship with Augsburg College in 1984 with the admission of Geoff ’89, the oldest child of Barbara Carlson Gage and Edwin (Skip) Gage. Subsequently, all three of Geoff’s siblings attended classes at the College, with Rick ’96 following in his brother’s footsteps to graduation. As an involved parent, Barbara Gage was invited to serve on the Board of Regents of Augsburg College from 1986 to 1998, including four years as Chair of the Board and as Co-Chair of Augsburg’s Access to Excellence Campaign.

Barbara and Skip Gage, together with the Carlson Family Foundation, have been generous benefactors of the College through the years. Their involvement and investments allowed the College to establish the CLASS (Center for Learning and Adaptive Support Services) program.

Skip and Barbara have supported many other campus projects through the years, including the Scandinavian Center, Lindell Library, Anderson Plaza, the Gage Family Art Gallery, and now the Gage Center for Student Success. With their newest gift for the Gage Center, the family once again revealed their enthusiasm for student support and innovative academic programming.

The Groves Family

Franklin (Skip) Groves, Jr. ’85 graduated from Augsburg College with a Business Administration and Finance major. While at Augsburg, he started the Omicron Delta Kappa leadership fraternity. Skip is a Vice President at the Groves Foundation in Minneapolis. In the past, he has worked as a sales manager and buyer for the natural food industry for Presence Marketing, Ahold USA, Inc., and Whole Foods.

Skip’s mother, Carolyn Groves, served on the Augsburg College Board of Regents from 1985 to 1994. Through the Groves Foundation, she and her husband Franklin Groves, Sr. established the “Groves Learning Disabilities Endowment” at Augsburg College to support the CLASS program. The Groves Technology Center, newly relocated in the Gage Center for Student Success, is an extension of the family’s long-standing interest in ensuring academic excellence for all Augsburg students.