The Real Talk with Roshini radio show featured Augsburg University student Danny Reinan and English Professor John Schmit.

Reinan is a second-year student who has identified as non-binary transgender since 12. “I use pronouns they, them, theirs,” Reinan told host Roshini Rajkumar, during the November 17 live program. “When I use those pronouns, I need to be patient with people in my life; I try to educate them and understand that this is a process that’s still ongoing.”

Reinan told the WCCO audience that it’s best practice to just ask someone what pronouns they prefer to avoid making any assumptions.

The professor said that student pronouns are now in professors’ official rosters at Augsburg. “We have to think about how people want to be referred to. It’s a simple matter of respect,” Schmit said. “We make assumptions sometimes. You can’t tell just by looking at somebody what their pronouns or gender is.”

Listen to the WCCO segment here.

The new program director of Urban Investors at Augsburg University, Mike Christenson, was previously a key member of former Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak’s administration, Twin Cities Business reported.

Urban Investors, which recently moved to Augsburg, creates experiential learning opportunities for bankers and finance professionals who spend a year learning about urban issues to catalyze investment and community development that moves families out of poverty, revitalizes neighborhoods, improves schools, and builds economic opportunity. More information about the program can be found at this blog post published by Augsburg’s Sabo Center. 

Christenson told Twin Cities Business that he plans to work with students interested in banking careers and connect them to bankers in Urban Investors as well as other bankers he knows. “Business is one of the top majors at Augsburg,” Christenson said in the article. “Many Twin Cities-based banks “are getting white male candidates” for open positions, and they want to diversify their workforces. It’s very exciting for me to be involved in something that develops the next generation of leadership.”

Read the full article at the Twin Cities Business website.

German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine recently published the article “Mississippi in the Anthropocene: Whispering Waters.” The article explains the purpose of the trip and highlights some of the projects being executed throughout this journey.

“The aim of this expedition is to start a conversation,” the article says. “And it is for this reason that artists, authors, political activists, and scientists with very different interests will be present alongside the most numerous group: students of the River Semester at Minnesota’s Augsburg University. Their first mission: learning how to canoe.”

Read the full article here.

Related articles:

Media Advisory: River Semester students to canoe for 100 days with German scholars, artists

Augsburg University’s MBA program was named one of the top MBA programs by Twin Cities Business readers. The magazine’s annual subscriber survey recognizes Minnesota’s “Best of Business.”

Here are some fast facts about the program for prospective students.

• Earn your MBA in 26 months with a cohort model.
• Study abroad in Europe or Latin America.
• Collaborate with world-famous Mayo Clinic and Fortune 500 companies through experiential learning.
• Get an $8,000 scholarship toward your degree.
• New: Business Analytics class! Learn to utilize data to make decisions regarding product design, marketing, organizational structure, and strategic planning

Learn more about the MBA program.