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Auggies at Amnicon

amnicon_fullThree recent Augsburg graduates and one senior are spending their summer working as guides for canoe and backpacking trips around the heartland of Northern Minnesota, Michigan, and Wisconsin.

Erik Hinderlie ’07, Ted Fabel ’07, Brett Cease ’07, and David DeBlock ’08 (left to right) are guides at Camp Amnicon, an outreach of Central Lutheran Church in downtown Minneapolis. Continue reading “Auggies at Amnicon”

Auggies at the State Fair

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Minnesota State Fair, Aug.23 through Labor Day, Sept. 3, 2007

For more than ten years, Augsburg has hosted a booth at the Minnesota State Fair. The fair runs Thursday, August 23 through Labor Day, September 3.

The theme of Augsburg’s booth this year is “”Auggies are Everywhere: Taking Auggies Worldwide Since 1869″ with an emphasis on our global programs. The give-away will be luggage tags, and alumni stopping by the booth can “send” a postcard to a favorite on-campus professor or staff member telling them where they’ve been.

“The fair is a great way for us to connect with our alumni and our new students coming in and to make the community more aware of our programs,” says Julie Olson, vice president of enrollment management. Continue reading “Auggies at the State Fair”

Oren Gateway Center welcomes you

gate_movein_fullAfter planning and construction for more than three years, the Oren Gateway Center is receiving its finishing touches as students and staff begin to move in.

The Gateway Preview last Wednesday gave people on campus a first look at the spacious offices and trendy, industrial-looking finishes of a few of the residence hall rooms and apartments.

Students have already begun to move in, and all offices will be furnished and ready by Aug. 24. Nabo (the new café)—which garnered high praise on Wednesday for its gourmet sandwiches and cakes–opens this week. Continue reading “Oren Gateway Center welcomes you”

Augsburg Hosts AFS Students

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Christine Wagner and Juliane Moog (both Germanhigh school) try to put a banana back together during a exercise on family cohesiveness at the AFS workshop held on campus last week.

Last week, Augsburg hosted 182 high school students from 55 foreign countries as they began their yearlong stays in the Midwest through AFS Intercultural Programs.

“We’re basically the first stop on their adventure,” says Jodi Collen, Director of Events & Conferences at Augsburg.

Most students flew from their home countries to Chicago and were then bused directly to Augsburg, where they checked in and stayed overnight in Urness Hall. The exchange students arrive in groups from Wednesday through Saturday. Their daylong orientation includes lessons in American currency, budgeting money, family life, technology, being an ambassador, and understanding the culture of American high schools. Continue reading “Augsburg Hosts AFS Students”

Mothers tell their own stories in new theater project

engen_fullA new collaborative theater project tells the story of six mothers from different ethnic backgrounds and traditions, across generations, and how they juggle their numerous identities as care-giver, teacher, parent, worker, and leader. This new work, called “The Mother Project” will have a “raw” staging at Michael Sommer’s Open Eye Figure Theatre, 506 East 24th St., Minneapolis, on Sunday, Aug. 19 at 3 p.m.

“The Mother Project” was created through a collaborative process lead by Darcey Engen, assistant professor of theatre arts at Augsburg College. The six mothers, Jeany Parks, Nanci Olesen, Darcey Engen, Maria Asp, Sonny Case, and Erin Carlson Sutton, began to create the new work through writing exercises accounting their individual journeys through motherhood. Continue reading “Mothers tell their own stories in new theater project”

I-35W Bridge Collapse Information

bridge_e_lrgA Message from the President

The tragic event that took place yesterday with the collapse of the I-35W bridge over the Mississippi River is a grim reminder of how fragile life can be. Events such as this bring the community closer together and we all feel the pain and suffering that is present. We wish to extend our thoughts and prayers to all who were impacted by this tragedy.

Augsburg College remains open on Thursday, August 2.

Events will continue as scheduled.

Road Access to Campus

For more information about detours and access to campus, visit the Minnesota

Department of Transportation’s Web site. Continue reading “I-35W Bridge Collapse Information”

Spotlight on Tammera (Ericson) Diehm '93

diehmGrowing up in Coon Rapids, Minn., Tami Diehm was fascinated by the “inner city.” Her plan to be a social studies teacher changed when she took a class from political science professor Andy Aoki her freshman year.

“When I started college, I did not know exactly what I wanted to do, but I knew that I wanted to ‘make a difference’ in the world and have an impact on my community,” says Diehm. “Beginning with my freshman year at Augsburg, emphasis was placed on ‘giving back’ to the community. In one class, we volunteered with Habitat for Humanity and built houses in a Minneapolis neighborhood. In another class, we volunteered with elementary-aged children from a local school.” Continue reading “Spotlight on Tammera (Ericson) Diehm '93”

People and Nature in Augsburg's Past

his_environToo often, historians overlook the crucial role played by the physical world in the human past. Last fall, students in “Environmental History” (HIS 316) not only learned about the significance of nature in U.S. history, but also applied new perspectives and questions to a semester-long project on the environmental history of Augsburg College.

Using on-campus archives as well as collections at the Minneapolis Public Library, the Minnesota Historical Society, and the University of Minnesota, the nine students examined the history of Augsburg’s landscape, the history of waste, water, and energy flows in and out of campus buildings, the history of spatial relationships forged by social interactions on and off-campus, and the history of environmental awareness at the college. In the words of Alex Hoselton ’08, they “asked new questions about our history.” Continue reading “People and Nature in Augsburg's Past”

Film Minor Finds Major Success

Critics described the film as “a brilliant example of how good band documentaries can be” (Classic Rock) and “a truly vibrant and exciting slice of virtuoso filmmaking” (Record Collector). The rockumentary The Fearless Freaks, 2006 recipient of the Mojo Vision Award, was a film editor’s biggest challenge–it required 400 hours of footage following rock band The Flaming Lips spanning over 30 years to be edited into a 90 minute film.

Augsburg graduate and film minor JoLynn Garnes ’02 was up for the challenge.

At Augsburg, JoLynn studied studio art and film before film was a major. She got to know 16mm film teacher Phil Harder very well, who is also a well-known music video director. This relationship would prove integral to JoLynn’s future projects. Continue reading “Film Minor Finds Major Success”

Teachers open doors to students and one another

teacher“From my second year of teaching, my classroom has been a public place–to current and new teachers, to district official, politicians, and parents,” says Augsburg alumna Jacki Brickman, ’97.

She adds: “Teachers are at their best in their classrooms facilitating learning, and when teachers open their doors to one another and make their classrooms a public place, we are able lead and teach at the same time. Both the teacher observing and the teacher being observed can grow in their practices if they engage in reflective conversation after this shared experience.”

Teachers in Jacki Brickman’s school meet regularly in study groups to share their practices and strategies in order to help each other grow.” Continue reading “Teachers open doors to students and one another”