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River Semester media attention grows as class travels down-river

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Screen Shot 2015-09-02 at 2.35.52 PM[Updated November 13] — The Augsburg College River Semester, created and led by Joe Underhill, associate professor of political science, departed from St. Paul’s Harriet Island on September 1. As part of the kickoff, the River Semester class was joined by a group of nearly 100 students, parents, high school students and members of the Augsburg College community who paddled in a flotilla of 24-foot voyageur canoes from St. Paul to South St. Paul. Students participating in the semester-long program will earn as many as 16 credits in the arts, humanities, and sciences as they travel nearly 2,000 miles of the 2,350-mile Mississippi River.

The River Semester kickoff garnered a range of attention. Gov. Mark Dayton proclaimed September 1 “Augsburg College River Semester Day” and many media outlets covered the launch of the class.

Since the students and faculty departed on their voyage, print and broadcast media have been sharing the story of this hands-on, interdisciplinary program. In fact, multiple stories have been picked up by the Associated Press and shared through the AP’s member media throughout the nation.

A snapshot of the ongoing media coverage is below. As additional coverage occurs, it will be added to this post.

November 9

  • Shorewood native spending college semester paddling Mississippi River, Shorewood (Wisconsin) Now

October 16

  • The Mississippi River is their classroom, The Hawk Eye, Burlington (Iowa)

October 15

  • College student trekking down the Mississippi, White Bear (Minnesota) Press

October 8

September 29

Continue reading “River Semester media attention grows as class travels down-river” →

ELCA scholarship recipient Sarah Abendanon is interviewed by
The Lutheran

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The LutheranAugsburg College student and Suriname citizen Sarah Abendanon was interviewed for an article in The Lutheran, the magazine of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. The story detailed a scholarship program for women leaders from the “global south,” which is comprised of Africa, Central and Latin America, and most of Asia.

Noticing a lack educational access for women in these areas, the ELCA Churchwide Assembly voted in 2013 to raise $4 million over a five-year period in order to provide scholarships for 200 women.

“My religion professor asks what we think about our readings and encourages different points of view. In Suriname schools, what the teacher says goes,” Abendanon explained.

As far as the outdoor climate, Abendanon has prepared for winter by purchasing a large winter coat. “Bring it on!” she said in the article.

Read: Women of purpose – ELCA scholarships prepare emerging leaders from the ‘global south’ on The Lutheran site.

Jodi Collen quoted on event planning

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Jodi Collen, director of event and conference planning at Augsburg College, recently was quoted by the Associated Press in an article that also was published by ABC News and the Boston Herald. Collen’s input and expertise was sought due to her role as the president of the International Special Events Society, a professional organization for event planners. The article discusses the trend of using live animals at holiday events, an initiative that makes sense from an event planning perspective, according to Collen.

Star Tribune reports on Augsburg College’s participation in
Ripken Foundation field day

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Minneapolis Star TribuneThe Star Tribune recently published an article covering a field day held in north Minneapolis by the Cal Ripken Sr. Foundation in partnership with Minneapolis Jeep Dealers. The event paired roughly 50 young athletes with coaches and players from Augsburg College’s baseball team as well as athletes from the University of Minnesota. Minnesota Twins mascot TC Bear also participated, at one point serving as a soccer goalie.

According to the article, the Maryland-based Ripken Foundation develops youth programs and partners with cities to create parks in distressed communities. Augsburg baseball head coach Keith Bateman is quoted as saying of the young participants in the multi-sport event, “They might not remember some of the stuff we say, but hopefully they remember when they think back [and say] man, I really had a good time. I want to do that when I get older.”

Read: Ripken Foundation brings together college athletes, local kids for field day on the Star Tribune site.

Finance and Commerce reports on Hagfors Center

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Finance and CommerceBusiness newspaper Finance and Commerce recently published an article covering Augsburg College’s successful private funding campaign and future plans for building the Norman and Evangeline Hagfors Center for Science, Business, and Religion. The article states that the Center will more than double the school’s capacity for physics majors as well as provide new facilities for their biology, business, chemistry, computer science, math, psychology, and religion departments.

The article states that Augsburg hopes to begin construction in May and complete the building in time for spring semester classes in 2018. Currently, the building’s design is being developed. While preliminary drawings have been made available on the college’s website, a final design has yet to be approved by the school’s board. The building will be built on Seventh Street South between 20th and 21st avenues.

Community reactions to the proposed project have been positive, though the article indicates that issues such as traffic flow and pedestrian access have been raised as concerns. The article quotes Minneapolis City Council member Cam Gordon, whose ward includes Augsburg College, as saying, “Generally speaking, people are supportive.”

Read: Augsburg preps for $73M multi-discipline center on the Finance and Commerce site (subscription required).

Michael Lansing book signing announced

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Pioneer Public Television and the Chippewa County Historical Society have announced that they will co-sponsor a reading, book signing, and discussion with Michael J. Lansing, associate professor of history at Augsburg College. Lansing will read from his new book “Insurgent Democracy: The Nonpartisan League in North American Politics.”

According to the announcement, Lansing’s book gives a historical account of the Nonpartisan League, a political movement active from 1915 to 1920 as a means of limiting corporate influence in politics in favor of an empowered citizenship. Lansing argues that the League’s success and collapse offer valuable lessons that are applicable to popular movements in modern politics.

The event will take place on November 19 at the Montevideo Chippewa County Public Library.

Lakeshore Weekly News covers Excellence in Coaching Award presented to Brad Anderson ’88

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Minnetonka’s Lakeshore Weekly News recently published an article detailing the accomplishments of Augsburg Excellence in Coaching Award winner Brad Anderson ’88. Anderson received the honor in recognition of his outstanding success as a high school football coach in Wayzata, where he has been the head coach for 17 seasons. The article states that Anderson has a .802 winning percentage with a record of 150-37. Four of his former players have gone on to careers in the NFL, according to the article.

Read: Wayzata’s Coach Anderson receives Augsburg Excellence in Coaching Award on Lakeshore Weekly News.

Rachel Kruzel discusses how technology helps students with disabilities at Augsburg

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Rachel Kruzel, head of the Augsburg College CLASS Office’s Groves Technology Lab, recently wrote an article for HigherEd Tech Decisions that discusses how Augsburg is embracing technologies that help students with learning disabilities. In the article, “How Augsburg College Helps Students Disabilities Take Better Notes with Technology,” Kruzel states that Augsburg has begun offering a software package that helps students record and organize audio of their lectures in lieu of traditional written notes, which can be difficult for students with dyslexia or ADHD.

Kruzel shares that about 5 percent of students at Augsburg have some type of learning disability. She hopes that this technology will help students perform at a level that more accurately reflects their capacity.

“These students’ level of intelligence may be above average, but because they struggle with the traditional college notetaking format, they may fail to reach their potential,” she writes.

MinnPost interviews Lars Christiansen on city planning

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MinnPostMinnPost recently included an interview with Lars Christiansen, associate professor of sociology at Augsburg College, in an article examining the importance of civic engagement in city planning. The article cites ongoing controversies such as the proposed soccer stadium in St. Paul as indicative of a problematic lack of both transparency and residential participation in public processes. Earlier this year, Christiansen published an article in the Journal of Education Planning and Research detailing his study of the St. Paul Friendly Streets Initiative and its public process for a bike lane project.

Moving beyond public processes that merely pay lip service to community inclusion takes time, according to Christiansen. The MinnPost article quotes him as saying, “The community organizing approach to public engagement [that I prefer] takes a lot longer. Like any other community organizing, it involves trust building, relationship building, and lengthy listening. It’s really aiming for co-creation.”

In the article, Christiansen stresses that one important aspect of processes that successfully engage the public in city planning projects is timing. The earlier that planners can involve the public and establish communication with them about a project, the more likely it is that their involvement and communication will see a project through to completion. “The holy grail is the notion of inclusion. How do you do it for the whole duration of the project?” Christiansen says in the article.

Read: While we’re talking parking meters and a stadium, what is ‘public process’ anyway? on the MinnPost site.

Augsburg College global education program touted for excellence in serving students of diverse backgrounds

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An article published by the Association of American Colleges & Universities commented on the successes Augsburg College’s Center for Global Education and Experience has had in serving students of diverse backgrounds as they travel to locations around the globe. The article, titled “Global Learning: Key to Making Excellence Inclusive,” described why global experiences are recognized as an essential dimension of a liberal education and how a variety of institutions support increased student participation.

In particular, the article noted that Augsburg maintains permanent centers for global learning in Mexico, Nicaragua, and Namibia. The centers have deep-rooted connections to local communities, and staff members understand the diverse needs of the Augsburg students.

“For example, Augsburg has arranged culturally appropriate homestay placements for single parents who needed assistance with childcare, safe home environments for LGBTQ students, sober homestays for students in recovery (in addition to connecting students in Alcoholics Anonymous or Narcotics Anonymous programs with sponsors), and access to mosques for Muslim students. This commitment to creating environments for student success is a hallmark of Augsburg’s study abroad programs,” the article said.

Visit the AAC&U website to read the story in its entirety.