Augsburg College’s four fall team-sports (Football, Volleyball, Men’s Soccer and Women’s Soccer) have a combined record of 29-4-4 so far this season!
Stay up-to-date on Auggie athletics by visiting the Augsburg Athletics website and following them on social media.
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The Augsburg College Associates is a service auxiliary of volunteers whose mission includes fundraising for special projects and scholarships in support of the College. The Associates’ commitment to the College is evident in their ongoing support through fundraising events including estate sales, Velkommen Jul, and the Scandinavian boutique. The funds raised throughout the year support special projects and scholarships.
On Thursday, September 26, the Augsburg Associates Board elected three alumnae to its board.
Emily Crook ’07 of Duluth, Minn., graduated from Augsburg College in 2007 with a BA in psychology. While at Augsburg she participated in softball, worked in admissions, and served as an orientation leader welcoming incoming Augsburg students. Emily, a fourth grade elementary teacher, is currently finishing her thesis for her master of arts in education at Augsburg.
Kathleen Gabrielsen ’80 is part of an Augsburg family which includes her late husband, Stephen ’63, daughter Elizabeth ’89, an artist, and son Joe ’91, a computer programmer. She is a former preschool teacher and is an artist working in jewelry and clay sculpture. Kathleen, who has served on the board for six years before, is joining our board again in appreciation of her husband, “Dr. Gabe.” The Stephen “Gabe” Gabrielsen Memorial Scholarship is being established in 2013 to honor his memory and celebrate his life’s work.
Olivia “Livi” (Bylund) Smith attended Augsburg three years with the class of ’64. One of her three children, Heather (Wagner) Rand, is a 1985 Augsburg graduate. Livi was the children’s librarian in the Cloquet Public Library for 12 years. She has resided in the Cloquet and Duluth areas of Minnesota for the past 37 years.
Year after year we are consistently amazed by the faithfulness and generosity of our Auggie volunteers. Yet, upon reflection, we understand that Augsburg is the result of selflessness given from one generation to support the next one.
Auggies globally share in learning, living, discovering our gifts, and matching these gifts with the world’s most important needs. We as Auggies are called to question, to act, to serve our neighbor, and to make an impact.
To ensure that these uniquely Augsburg experiences endure for generations to come, we need support, and our volunteers understand this with exceptional clarity. We owe them a debt of gratitude for the way they deploy their energy and inventiveness in service to our college.
So to all of you volunteers, we extend our sincere thanks and our deep appreciation for everything that you do for the Augsburg community.
Thursday, November 14 is Give to the Max Day–a day of online giving to Minnesota nonprofits and schools. This year, more than 25 Augsburg alumni, faculty, and staff have 
created their own Give to the Max Day fundraising projects. There’s a project for everyone, from Chemistry, to Wrestling, to Medieval Studies, to Campus Kitchen.
Check out all the projects at givemn.org/auggiesgive or click on a project below to learn more. Your gift to any of these projects counts toward Augsburg’s Give to the Max Day fundraising totals. Our goal is to come in 1st place among all Minnesota colleges and universities. Schedule your gift for November 14 to make your gift count as part of Augsburg’s Give to the Max Day totals, or save the date and give on November 14 to make your gift and help Auggies Give to the Max.
Go Auggies!
Tracy Anderson Severson ’95
Alumni Board President
Last month, Ben Krouse-Gagne ‘11 joined the Institutional Advancement staff as Assistant Director of Annual Giving. Ben is returning “home” to Augsburg from St. Catherine University, where he served as the Annual Fund Assistant for the past two years. Ben brings strong experience with volunteer management, reunion giving, Phoneathon, e-philanthropy, and working with recent graduates. He has many ideas to strengthen Augsburg’s annual giving program.
“I had a great experience at Augsburg as a student and now I am proud to call this place my home once again,” says Ben. “I am excited to engage with the alumni and friends of Augsburg to keep strengthening this place.”
Ben graduated from Augsburg in 2011 as a Political Science major and History minor. During his time as a student at Augsburg, he served as Day Student Body Vice President and worked as a student caller at the on-campus Phoneathon. Ben also served as a member of the Young Alumni Council and has served as a lead volunteer for Auggie Volunteer Nights. He is incredibly dedicated to Augsburg, brings great passion for annual giving, and is eager to connect donors with ways to support the College.
Two key supporters of the addiction recovery community will be recognized for their leadership and philanthropy to Augsburg College’s StepUP Program. Mike and Pam Sime will receive the Toby Piper LaBelle Award at the Augsburg College StepUP Program Gala on October 11.
“Mike and Pam understand that turning kids away from StepUP could be fatal,” said Toby Piper LaBelle ’96, chair of the StepUP board and a member of the Augsburg College Board of Regents. “Their personal commitment to ensuring this does not happen is beyond generous. I couldn’t be more thrilled that they are receiving this award.”
Mike Sime is a leader in the recovery community. In addition to serving as a member of Augsburg’s StepUP board, he has served as chairman of the Johnson Institute, and serves on the Hazelden Foundation Board of Trustees. He is president and co-owner of Rapid Packaging and Berg Bag, a Minneapolis-based national distribution company.
“We are grateful to be able to give back to the recovery community that saved my life, my son’s, as well as many friends and family,” Sime said. “We realize that so many students enroll in the StepUP Program at Augsburg College because it truly is a choice between life and death.”
Pam Sime also is a notable supporter of the recovery community. She chaired the 2012 Minnesota Prayer Breakfast and the 2013 Hazelden Grand Opening Gala for the Center for Youth and Families in Plymouth. She is a certified fitness instructor. The Simes have three grown children and live in Wayzata.
The Toby Piper LaBelle Award is given to a person or family that consistently has supported young people in recovery. It is named in honor of the first recipient, Toby Piper LaBelle, for his insight and ability to advocate for the needs of recovering college students on a college campus. LaBelle was a lead champion for students in recovery while he was a student at Augsburg College. His advocacy supported founder and former director Don Warren in starting the StepUP Program. The program, one of the first residential collegiate recovery programs in the nation, continues to be a nationally recognized model for student success.
The Gala will take place on October 11, at the Hyatt Regency Minneapolis. For more information and tickets, visit https://web.augsburg.edu/stepup/gala2013/.
The Augsburg College StepUP Program serves men and women who are in recovery from addiction to alcohol and other drugs and are pursuing a college education. StepUP provides licensed personal counselors, a sober living community, and financial support to students in need. During 2012-13, the average abstinence rate from drugs and alcohol by members of the program was 93 percent. Students who graduated from the program attained an average GPA of 3.53 on a 4.0 scale.
Augsburg College is set in a vibrant Minneapolis neighborhood in the heart of the Twin Cities and offers more than 50 undergraduate majors and nine graduate degrees to more than 4,000 students of diverse backgrounds. The trademark of an Augsburg education is its emphasis on direct, personal experience. Guided by the faith and values of the Lutheran church, Augsburg educates students to be informed citizens, thoughtful stewards, critical thinkers, and responsible leaders.
The eighth president of Augsburg College, Charles S. Anderson oversaw significant growth in the College’s enrollment, student diversity, program offerings, and commitment to its Lutheran heritage. To honor his legacy, Augsburg will rename its music building the Charles S. Anderson Music Hall.
Join President Paul C. Pribbenow and the Augsburg community as we pay tribute to the legacy of President Emeritus Charles S. Anderson on Friday, September 27, 2013 at 1:30pm Charles S. Anderson Music Hall Plaza
Anderson Music Hall occupies a central location on campus and houses an array of music programs that welcome students of diverse musical interests. More than 100 students each year pursue traditional liberal arts music studies as well as degrees in music business, music education, music performance, and music therapy. More than 350 students—music majors and non-music majors alike—participate in the College’s numerous vocal, concert band, symphony orchestra, and jazz ensembles.
Marketing and Facilities are working to update campus maps to distinguish Anderson Music Hall from Anderson Residence Hall — the latter of which was named for former Augsburg President Oscar A. Anderson, who served as president of the College from 1963 to 1980.
Saturday, August 31 brought the arrival of one of the largest first year classes in 
Augsburg’s history! Pictured here are some of the nearly 40 legacy students with their Auggie connection; students whose parent/s, grandparent/s and/or siblings have also been Auggies.
Please mark your calendar for a celebration of all Legacy students, both current and future, during Homecoming and Parent and Family Weekend, September 28th. This Legacy Open House, sponsored by Admissions and the Office of Family and Constituent Relations, will be a great time to meet other Legacy families. The Admissions staff will be available to visit with prospective Legacy students; come find out more about what it means to be part of a Legacy.
The Augsburg community is excited to commence its 145th academic year this week. 
This year’s incoming first-year undergraduate class is one of the largest in the College’s history. Members of the class of 2017 moved in over the weekend and are full of talent and promise. They join us from 24 different states and 10 different countries from around the globe.
Stephanie, is a Twin Cities native 
whose high school teacher—an Augsburg alum—encouraged her to apply to the College. Stephanie is planning to major in Special Education and is the first member of her family to attend college. She will navigate the college experience with assistance from AVID, a program dedicated to increasing student learning, completions, and success in and beyond college. Augsburg was one of the first colleges in the U.S. to pilot AVID for Higher Education and it remains the only four-year private liberal arts college in the Upper Midwest with AVID.
Also joining us this fall is Samuel, a Regents Scholarship recipient who plans to play on the Auggie football team. Samuel hails from Northern Minnesota and will be busy in our science classrooms and labs as a pre-med student who will add additional rigor to his degree program by participating in the College’s Honors Program.
Hannah comes to us from rural Wisconsin as one of 11 recipients of the President’s Scholarship, our highest merit-based award. Hannah has a passion for musical and theatrical performance and a record of exceptional academic achievement. At Augsburg, Hannah will hone her talents through our fine arts classes and co-curricular activities. She is the fifth of her family’s five children to attend Augsburg. She is one of 40 other legacy students joining the Augsburg family this year.
Congratulations to 2013 graduate Joe Buchman for receiving the prestigious National Science Foundation Graduate Student Fellowship! Joe will use the fellowship towards his Doctoral study in Chemistry at the University of Minnesota.
