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StepUP to host National Collegiate Recovery Conference

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Augsburg College’s StepUP program has been selected to host the 5th annual National Collegiate Recovery Conference, taking place on campus June 5-7, 2014. The theme of the conference is “From Research to Policy to Practice: Creating Environments for Academic Success and Sustained Recovery” and is expected to attract several hundred professionals working in the field of collegiate recovery across the US. More than 700 Augsburg alumni have been served by the StepUP program, and many are expected to attend.

Augsburg has been a pioneer in the field of collegiate recovery, having started the StepUP program 17 years ago and provided guidance to 30 other collegiate recovery programs across the country, including programs at St. Cloud State University, the College of St. Scholastica, and the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities. Approximately 85 students were served by StepUP in the 2013-2014 academic year and the program is expected to grow to 95 students in the coming academic year.

The conference will feature nationally-recognized speakers in the field of recovery, including David Mineta, Deputy Director of Demand Reduction for the Office of National Drug Control Policy; Peter Gaumond, Chief of the Recovery Branch at Office of National Drug Control Policy; and more.

Augsburg alumni are invited to attend the conference as well. Open meetings will take place each day and former StepUP program participants and Augsburg alumni will be in attendance.

StepUP Website

Give to the Max Day is back

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Save the date for Give to the Max Day on Thursday, November 13, 2014. Once again, Augsburg College is participating in Give to the Max Day, a one-day online giving event where donors around the world can support their favorite Minnesota nonprofits.

Give to the Max Day is also a contest—and last year, Augsburg raised more money than any other Minnesota college or university! A total of 837 donors gave more than $313,000 to Augsburg in just 24 hours. Augsburg also placed fourth among all nonprofits overall. Many alumni, parents, and friends took to social media throughout the day to share Augsburg’s rankings and keep up-to-date on the College’s progress.

Watch for more updates on Give to the Max Day in the coming months!

For more information or questions, please contact Martha Truax at 612-330-1652 or truaxm@augsburg.edu.

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Watson Honored by Lockheed Martin for Outstanding Contributions

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As many corporate leaders seek to maintain a healthy STEM workforce, Brynn (Mundahl) Watson ’89 is “laser-sharp focused” on promoting STEM (science/technology/engineering/math) careers for middle school students (especially girls) and has been known to “take her show on the road.” As director of software engineering at Lockheed Martin, where she has served since 1996 and currently leads over 1,200 software engineers in the Space Systems Company (SSC), Watson has concluded that diversity drives performance and innovation, and she is determined to “pay it forward.”

S/W Systems Architect DirShe continues to speak at various local and regional STEM events, and was recently at the Houston Space Center as the keynote welcome speaker for the Spirit of Innovation Challenge finals sponsored by the Conrad Foundation, which gathers high school STEM students and their coaches for a session in developing innovative products to help solve global and local problems in a sustainable way.

Recently honored by Lockheed Martin with a 2013 Full Spectrum Leadership NOVA Award, Watson was recognized for her commitment to creating and fostering an inclusive environment to complete performance evaluations across the entire SSC Software organization with a newly adopted enterprise-focused process. The annual NOVA award is granted by the company to a select few employees who have made outstanding contributions to customers, business, and strategic goals. In a workforce of over 115,000, only 58 of the awards were granted in 2013.  The black-tie award ceremony, held at the National Air & Space Museum in Washington, D.C., was an incredibly exciting event and venue for Watson, especially since the museum showcases the very industry that the company serves.

Just a year earlier, Watson had been overwhelmed by the recognition she received from the Silicon Valley YWCA with their Tribute to Women (TWIN) award. She has since joined that organization’s board and is excited about its commitment to empower women, children, and families, and to eliminate racism, hatred, and prejudice. She is helping to grow their TechGYRLS program, an after-school empowerment program that provides girls aged 5-14 with opportunities to increase their skills and confidence in the use of technology and engineering.

Watson remembers asking many “how questions” as a youngster, and was always intrigued by how things work. It was in the tenth grade WatsonPicthat she decided she wanted to become a computer programmer, perhaps inspired by her frustration with games like Pong. The encouragement of family and friends and the mentorship of her professors at Augsburg played a big role in shaping her future, especially with regard to “thinking big” and becoming a creative problem solver. She feels very fortunate to be in a position now to support such fascinating programs as Orion (the next generation of human space flight), the MAVEN and JUNO spacecraft that will explore the atmosphere on Mars and Jupiter, and other space and missile defense systems that protect our freedom every day.

After corporate relocations from Riverside, Calif. (where she earned her M.S. and met her husband of nearly 22 years), to Colorado Springs, Denver, and McLean, Virg., Watson and her husband Tim have happily settled in Silicon Valley (Los Altos, Calif.), where they live with their 10-year-old daughter, Claire, and a golden retriever named Liberty.

Commencement Speakers & Honorary Degree Recipients

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Majora Carter, Urban Revitalization Strategist and Peabody Award-winning Radio Broadcaster 

Commencement Speaker & Honorary Degree Recipient, Saturday May 3

Majora Carter is an internationally renowned urban revitalization strategy consultant, real estate developer, and Peabody Award-winning broadcaster. She is responsible for the creation and successful implementation of numerous green-infrastructure projects, policies, and job training and placement systems. After establishing several local and national organizations to carry on that work, Carter built on this foundation with innovative ventures and insights into urban economic developments designed to help move Americans out of poverty.

Carter’s long list of awards and honorary degrees includes accolades from groups as diverse as Rupert Murdoch’s News Corporation, John Podesta’s Center for American Progress, Goldman Sachs, as well as a MacArthur “genius” Fellowship. Her 2006 TED talk was one of the first six videos to launch their groundbreaking website.

Lois Quam, Executive Director of Global Health Initiative, U. S. State Department

Commencement Speaker & Honorary Degree Recipient, Saturday May 3

Ms. Lois Quam serves as the Chief Operating Officer at The Nature Conservancy. She was the Executive Director of the Global Health Initiative (GHI), reporting directly to former Secretary of State, Hillary Rodham Clinton. The GHI was created by President Obama to “save lives today, and strengthen health systems to build stronger nations tomorrow.” Appointed by Gov. Rudy Perpich in 1989 to chair the Minnesota Health Care Access Commission, later passed, providing health care to tens of thousands of Minnesotans, and the nation’s lowest uninsured rate at that time. She went on to serve as senior advisor to First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton’s task force on health care reform.

Quam served as president and CEO of the Public and Senior Markets segment at UnitedHealth Group, a $30 billion division overseeing Medicare and Medicaid-based businesses.  In 2009, she was co-founder and president of Tysvar, LLC, a Minnesota-based New Green Economy (NGE) and health care reform incubator dedicated to universal health care and bringing scale to the NGE. She also served as a senior fellow at the Center for American Progress. Prior to founding Tysvar, Quam was Head of Strategic Investments, Green Economy & Health at Piper Jaffray, a leading international Minneapolis-based investment bank.

In 2006 Quam was named by Fortune magazine as one of America’s “50 Most Powerful Women.”  She graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Macalester College. As a Rhodes Scholar she went on to complete her master’s degree in philosophy, politics and economics at the University of Oxford in England.

David Orr, Professor of Environmental Studies and Politics, and special assistant to the president of Oberlin College

Commencement Speaker & Honorary Degree Recipient, Sunday May 4

David Orr is the Paul Sears Distinguished Professor of Environmental Studies and Politics, and special assistant to the president of Oberlin College. He is also the executive director of the Oberlin Project: an all-encompassing joint venture by the town and College to create a thriving, sustainable and environmentally friendly community in Oberlin.

Orr has been involved in environmental issues for more than 25 years. He is the recipient of six honorary degrees and other awards, including The Millennium Leadership Award from Global Green, the Bioneers Award, the National Wildlife Federation Leadership Award, and a Lyndhurst Prize acknowledging “persons of exceptional moral character, vision, and energy.” He has been a scholar in residence at Ball State University, the University of Washington, and other universities, and has served as a trustee for many organizations, including the Rocky Mountain Institute, the Aldo Leopold Foundation, and the Bioneers.

AUGPOST, A Call to Action

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Dear alumni and friends,

This fall, I reached out to my fellow Auggies to ask that you support our alma mater on Give to the Max Day by donating to one of 25 different Augsburg fundraising projects. I am grateful to the 837 donors who helped us raise $313,639 in one day and achieve our goals of coming in first place among colleges and universities and fourth place among all Minnesota non-profits! This proves that when Auggies pull together, we can accomplish any goal.

I am often asked, “How, in addition to supporting Augsburg with gifts, can I help the College and the current students?” Here’s an answer: draw upon your experience, expertise, and networks to help students who are looking for jobs and internships.

Our students are bright, ardent, and ambitious. They represent our best hope for the future. Their most immediate challenge in moving on to life after Augsburg is aligning their liberal arts degree with a career path that will be personally rewarding and provide them with financial independence.

I encourage all Augsburg alumni and parents to post internship, job, or volunteer opportunities—for free—on AUGPOST through Augsburg’s Clair and Gladys Strommen Center for Meaningful Work. AUGPOST is an online job posting board used as a resource by alumni and students, and it features posts specifically for Auggies from local and national employers. The next time you or your employer are hiring, consider employing a fellow Auggie.

We have already seen what can happen when Auggies work together—we accomplish great things. I would like to set another goal. Currently, approximately 1,000 alumni are posting jobs on AUGPOST. I would like that to increase to 5,000 alumni submitting internship, job, and volunteer opportunities. Imagine the influence we can make on the current Augsburg students and their future opportunities. Learn more at augsburg.edu/strommen.

Sincerely,

TRACY (ANDERSON) SEVERSON ’95

 

 

 

 
TRACY (ANDERSON) SEVERSON ’95
ALUMNI BOARD PRESIDENT

 

 

Alumni Campaign Leaders Hosted Summit

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You are invited for an evening of inquiry and fellowship hosted by Augsburg College Alumni Campaign Leaders and Campaign Action Team

Thursday, May 22, 2014
Hoversten Chapel, Foss Center
4:30-8 p.m.

The evening will include student research presentations; a faculty panel discussion; featured speakers President Paul C. Pribbenow and Alumni Class Challenge Chair Wayne Jorgenson ’71; and special music by Augsburg students. Dinner will be served.

RSVP by Friday, May 16, by contacting Sonja Casperson at 612-330-1171 or casperso@augsburg.edu. Space is limited.

Valet Parking provided.

Class Challenge Summit Hosts

George Lanes ’50, Paul Almquist ’59, Dale Hanka ’60, Leola (Dyrud) Furman ’61, Dean Larson ’62, Barbara (Beglinger) Larson ’63, Bob Tufford ’63, Dan Anderson ’65, Lee Anne (Hansen) Lack ’67, John Selstad ’67, Karolynn Lestrud ’68, Dale Pederson ’70, Mike Good ’71, Corky Hall ’71, Doug Johnson ’71, Wayne Jorgenson ’71, Bruce Nelson ’71, Nancy (Olson) Hrdlicka ’72, Kris (Parbst) Rohde ’72, Pat Marcy ’72, Jonathan Nye ’72, Carol (Pederson) Jorgenson ’72, Inez (Schey) Bergquist ’77, Beverly (Ranum) Meyer ’78, Dennis Meyer ’78, Sally (Hough) Daniels Herron ’79, Jeff Swenson ’79, Chris Ascher ’81, Bob Wick ’81, Kristin Dragseth Wiersma ’91, David Murr ’92, Laura Delavie ’92, Andy Sackreiter ’94, Lisa Sackreiter ’95, Rachel Engebretson ’98

“The First Minnesota in the American Civil War”

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Wayne B. Jorgenson ’71
Author and Augsburg College Regent
April 7th at 7:00 p.m. in the Marshall Room
Presentation: “The First Minnesota in the American Civil War”

Hosted by Michael Lansing, Department of History, and John Cerrito, Department of Business

This is the 150th anniversary of the American Civil War. The Civil War defined our country and helped to shape the country that we are still becoming. The War raged on from 1861 into Spring of 1865 with over 600,000 casualties.

President Lincoln called for troops to put down the rebellion of the Confederate States. Minnesota was the first state to respond and promised to send to Washington an infantry regiment. Wayne Jorgenson has authored an excellent book on the complete history of the life and death of the 1st Minnesota Infantry Regiment.

Wayne Jorgenson’s lecture on April 7 will be interesting, informative and thought provoking. The Augsburg community is invited to attend Wayne’s lecture.

Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community’s Support for Augsburg Students Honored

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At our Pow Wow last Saturday, the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community (SMSC) was honored for recently contributing $250,000 to endowed scholarships for American Indian students at the college.

The SMSC’s gift to the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community Scholarship provides the College with a permanent asset from which American Indian students can receive support. An endowed scholarship fund provides scholarship awards based upon the annual earnings of the fund’s principal. Due to the generosity of SMSC towards students of all American Indian nations, the scholarship has provided 58 awards to more than 40 students since its establishment in 1991. This new gift means the College will be able to award an additional $10,000 per year in scholarships to enrolled American Indian students at Augsburg College.

This event, hosted by the Augsburg Indigenous Student Association and American Indian Student Services, was Augsburg’s 6th annual Pow Wow.  This year’s American Indian graduates were honored and Regent Bonnie Wallace thanked the SMSC on behalf of the College.