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2019 Christensen Symposium

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Headshot photos of Dr. Hamdy and Bishop Younan next to presentation title "Suffering and Hope in the Midst of Conflict"Thursday, October 3
11 AM – 12 PM
Hoversten Chapel, Foss Center

Speakers:

  • Hamdy El-Sawaf, founder and psychotherapist at the Family Counseling Center and imam of Masjid Al-Iman in Minneapolis
  • Munib Younan, retired bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land and former president of the Lutheran World Federation

Hamdy El-Sawaf and Munib Younan will share personal experiences and their religious faith perspectives on hope, reconciliation, and resiliency in the midst of suffering and struggles that often are intensified by religious convictions and differences.

About the Christensen Symposium:

Each year, the Christensen Symposium provides the opportunity to explore and apply the lessons rooted in former Augsburg President Bernhard M. Christensen’s legacy:

  • Christian faith liberates minds and lives.
  • Diversity strengthens vital communities.
  • Interfaith friendships enrich learning.
  • The love of Christ draws us to God.
  • We are called to service in the world.

The 2019 Christensen Symposium is co-sponsored by the Christensen Center for Vocation and the newly created Interfaith at Augsburg: An Institute to Promote Interreligious Leadership.

Note: This session may be audio recorded. If you would like to be alerted as soon as the audio is available, please email ccv@augsburg.edu

For requests related to accommodations at the Symposium, email events@augsburg.edu or call 612-330-1104.

Interview with AYTI Program Assistant Marty Wyatt, former participant and mentor

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Group of students and staff in the chapel, Marty Wyatt is in the middleAYTI Ambassador Ian Heseltine interviewed Marty Wyatt, AYTI Program Assistant, to learn more about the impact of Marty’s participation in Augsburg’s Youth Theology Institute. In 2007, Marty was a youth participant, and he was a mentor in 2008 and 2009. In addition to his role at Augsburg, Marty is pursuing a masters of divinity at Luther Seminary.

Here is Marty’s response: 

Honestly, the week [of Youth Theology Institute] made me want to come to Augsburg for my undergrad. Looking back this is the biggest impact because of how going to Augsburg impacted my life. I would have never met the people I did or experienced the city if I didn’t go to Augsburg, and that started with the Theology Institute. The Institute introduced me to Augsburg’s campus, professors, students, and staff. They seemed to genuinely care about people and the community. It made me want to get to know them better and be a part of this community that cared so deeply for each other.

I think during the week my faith was renewed. High school can be a hard and isolating time for some and the Institute reignited my faith in a powerful way. I learned (or re-learned?) to look for God in everything, from the mundane to the exceptional. The Institute opened a way of thinking about faith differently than I had before. I began to think critically about what I believe and why, which over time led to a deepening of my faith that I wouldn’t have if I didn’t critically examine it first.  Continue reading “Interview with AYTI Program Assistant Marty Wyatt, former participant and mentor” →

Meet Morgan – 2019 AYTI Mentor

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Morgan BaumbachMy name is Morgan Baumbach. I’m from Farmington, Minnesota and going into my third year of college. I absolutely love Augsburg because of its location. It’s right down in the heart of the Twin Cities, and I love being a part of it all! I also love Augsburg because of its choice of Majors!! I was able to transfer and then double Major and Minor in my two dream Majors/Careers: Theatrical Design and Technology AND Theology and Public Leadership, with a Youth Studies Minor. When I graduate, I want to tour with a band/music group or theatre production nationally and internationally and travel the world. Then once I settle down I want to go into youth ministry. Last summer I worked at Camp Wapo as a Camp Counselor and absolutely loved it. I am SO excited to be able to be a mentor at AYTI this summer and bring a little bit of that camp feel to the big city!!

Learn more about this summer’s Augsburg Youth Theology Institute at https://www.augsburg.edu/ayti/

Meet Mallory – 2019 AYTI Mentor

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Mallory HarrisMy name is Mallory Harris. I’m from the south side of Chicago. I am a junior at Augsburg, majoring in communication studies. My future goals include being a director of photography and a motivational speaker. My favorite thing about being an Auggie is the commitment and foundation built on helping others. I’m excited to engage with students and get to be a part of something larger than myself.

Meet Lizzy – 2019 AYTI Mentor

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Lizzy HoverstenHello! My name is Lizzy Hoversten, and I am from Viroqua, Wisconsin. I just finished my first year at Augsburg University, studying Management with a minor in Communication Studies.

At Augsburg I have enjoyed finding myself in new settings and getting to know new people. There are a number of paths I could pursue, and I have very specific hopes for my Management degree, but if those do not pan out I will hopefully go to law school. I am incredibly enthusiastic for this summer’s AYTI theme of Stewarding Creation in our Neighborhoods: Science and Theology in Action. I will be taking a week break from working at a summer camp to come back to Augsburg and engage with youth who are passionate about theology and want to learn how we are called to be faithful stewards to our habitat.

Meet Ian – 2019 AYTI Mentor

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Ian HeseltineHello!

My name is Ian Heseltine. I’m a second year at Augsburg University. I am majoring in Music, Media & Management with a minor in Religion. My hometown is Alexandria, MN, two hours west of Minneapolis. In the future I hope to be managing artists or their tours.

My favorite thing about Augsburg is how connected you are to your friends, faculty, staff, and administration. Our average class size is 16, so you really get to build a relationship with professors and in return they become invested in your education.

I’m so excited to be returning this summer to be an AYTI mentor again! Which is such an incredible and indescribable week that I believe all youth should experience! I can’t wait to have all of our 2019 AYTI students here at Augsburg to learn more about God, reflect on God, and serve their communities through God.

Learn more about this summer’s Augsburg Youth Theology Institute at https://www.augsburg.edu/ayti/

2019 VOCATION OF A LUTHERAN COLLEGE CONFERENCE

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Beyond Privilege: Engaging Diversity, Inclusion and Equity

JULY 15-17, 2019
Augsburg University, Minneapolis, MN

Each year, members of Lutheran colleges gather to explore the distinctive roles we play in higher education.

The theme this year is Beyond Privilege: Engaging Diversity, Inclusion and Equity. This year we will examine the intersection between privilege, inclusivity, and vocation.

View the 2019 Conference Agenda Draft

The conference is open to everyone from ELCA colleges or universities, but institutions are encouraged to register participants who have a particular interest in or campus responsibility for advancing their institution’s vocation to engage and expand campus diversity and to further equity and inclusion for all. Each college or university is also urged to send a campus delegation, composed of a mix of administrators and faculty. The make-up of delegations, however, is the decision of each college or university. Students are welcomed—if appropriate—as members of a campus delegation, but each college/university will be responsible for the supervision of student participants.

REGISTRATION

ELCA colleges and universities are invited to send delegations of up to five persons at a subsidized rate of $150 per person. More information about registration was sent to school representatives through the ELCA. Contact Melinda Valverde at melinda.valverde@elca.org for more information or if your college or university has questions.

Registration is closed.

Registration questions may be also be directed to 612-330-1403 or voalc@augsburg.edu.

The Vocation of a Lutheran College conference is supported by the Network of ELCA Colleges and Universities.

Meet Kali – 2019 AYTI Mentor

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Kali Kadelbach

Hi! My name is Kali Kadelbach. I’m from Cloquet, Minnesota. I’m in my third year of college but first semester at Augsburg. I’m majoring in Theology and Public Leadership with a concentration in Youth Studies. My favorite thing about being an Auggie is the community we have around and within campus and the way that all students and staff come together to help each individual be successful and happy. My future goal is to work alongside others to share the Word of Christ through outdoor ministry and youth. I would like to be a leader in faith–not just in the United States but all over the World. I’m looking forward to getting to know all the students and to see the growth this week has within myself, other staff and students.

Learn more about AYTI and this summer’s theme at http://www.augsburg.edu/ayti/

Spring Vocation Lunch with Ben Stottrup

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Augsburg Faculty and Staff, you are invited to attend the spring vocation lunch with Ben Stottrup, Department Chair and Associate Professor of the Physics Department.

Tuesday, April 9
12:00 PM – 1:15 PM
East Commons, Christensen CenterBen Stottrup and family

Ben Stottrup joined Augsburg’s Physics Department in 2005. Since then, he has enjoyed a front row seat to watch and assist Augsburg’s science majors start their careers and pursue their own adventures.  While at Augsburg, he has built a research lab focused on biomaterials, soft, and squishy interfaces. This work has been funded by the National Science Foundation, the Minnesota Space Grant Consortium, as well as private donors and foundations.  In the classroom, he has taught across nearly the entire physics curriculum with a focus on how experiential education in science labs can build professional skills for students. Through his Science of Food and Cooking course he hopes to share his curiosity and interest in biomaterials to Augsburg’s wider community.

The Christensen Vocation Lunch is an event that strengthens the concept of vocation at Augsburg for faculty and staff by providing role models from within the community to share a presentation on their sense of call and life journey.

Fall Vocation Lunch with Pastor Sonja Hagander

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Augsburg Faculty and Staff, you are invited to attend the fall vocation lunch with Sonja Hagander, University Pastor and Director of Ministries.

Friday, November 9
11:15 am – 12:25 pm

Note: Spaces for the lunch are full. If you would like to listen to the talk without the meal, there will be chairs in the back of the East Commons for you to sit. Note Sonja’s presentation will begin about 11:40 am.

Sonja Hagander

PASTOR SONJA HAGANDER brings a deep passion for helping young adults explore Christian vocation and creating lives of faith and service. She has also led several interfaith initiatives at Augsburg, the ELCA’s most diverse college. In that context, she plans and leads worship each week in a challenging but very energizing urban multi-faith community. She has served as Pastor-Theologian at the Center of Theological Inquiry, Princeton University, and as Chaplain and emcee to the ELCA Youth Ministry Extravaganza Conference which hosts more than 1,000 pastors and youth leaders. She has been a contributor to “Word and World” and the ELCA e-zine for women, “BoldCafe.org.”  She lives in the Twin Cities with her family. They love all things water: paddleboarding, skiing, canoeing, swimming, sailing, and kayaking. She most recently co-authored a book entitled, “Faith in Action: A Handbook for Activists, Advocates and Allies”, for Fortress Press.

EDUCATION
B.A. Concordia College, Moorhead, MN
M.Sc. University of Edinburgh
M.Div. Luther Seminary, St. Paul, MN

The Christensen Vocation Lunch is an event that strengthens the concept of vocation at Augsburg for faculty and staff by providing role models from within the community to share a presentation on their sense of call and life journey.