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Congratulations to Auggies Named to the 2023 Summer Semester Dean’s List

University SealMore than 95 Augsburg University undergraduate students were named to the 2023 Summer Semester Dean’s List. The Augsburg University Dean’s List recognizes those full-time students who have achieved a grade point average of 3.50 or higher and those part-time students who have achieved a grade point average of 3.75 or higher in a given term.

View the 2023 Summer Semester Dean’s List.

Students who wish to notify their hometown newspapers of their achievement can do so at their discretion using a news announcement template.

Augsburg University Announces 2023 Alumni Awards

A cascade of red, white, and silver star balloons in Hagfors CenterAugsburg University is proud to announce the winners of the 2023 Distinguished Alumni Award, First Decade Award, and Spirit of Augsburg Award. These outstanding alumni will be recognized at a special ceremony and reception on October 13 as part of Augsburg’s 2023 homecoming and reunion weekend. Learn more about the 2023 alumni award winners.

Distinguished Alumni Award

The Distinguished Alumni Award recognizes significant achievement in vocation, for outstanding contribution to church and community, and for a life that exemplifies the ideals and mission of Augsburg University. The 2023 honorees are:

  • Jan Nelson Meslin ’72, immigration justice activist and community organizer (Cayucos, CA)
  • James Rodde ’74, choral conductor and professor, Iowa State University (Ames, IA)
  • Devoney Looser ’89, author, Jane Austen scholar, and professor of English, Arizona State University (Phoenix, AZ)
  • Tsehai Wodajo ’97, social worker and founder, Resources for the Enrichment of African Lives (St. Paul, MN)

First Decade Award

The First Decade Award is presented to Augsburg graduates of the past 10 years who have made significant progress in their professional achievements and contributions to the community, and in so doing exemplify the mission of the university. The 2023 honorees are:

  • Kacie Lucchini Butcher ’13, public historian and director, Rebecca M. Blank Center for Campus History, University of Wisconsin—Madison (Madison, WI)
  • Mychal Frelix ’19 MBA, co-founder and chief operating officer, TurnSignl (Chaska, MN)
  • Andre Creighton ’19 MBA, co-founder and chief financial officer, TurnSignl (Buffalo, MN)

Spirit of Augsburg Award

The Spirit of Augsburg Award honors alumni and friends of the university who have given exceptional service that contributes substantially to the well-being of Augsburg by furthering its purposes and programs. The 2023 honoree is Paul Mueller ’84, Mayo Clinic Health System regional vice president, former Board of Regents member, and chair, Great Returns: We’re All In campaign (LaCrosse, WI).

Augsburg Health Commons Bring Drop-In Care to New Locations

PA faculty member Vanessa Bester is seated on a stool providing foot care at a Health Commons location.The Augsburg Health Commons is expanding to bring its proven model of accompaniment-based care to more neighbors through new partnerships and locations.

Late last year, an agreement with M Health Fairview and Redeemer Center for Life formalized a partnership at the Living Room in the Harrison neighborhood of north Minneapolis, where a drop-in site based on the Health Commons model had operated since 2012. Following a disruption of in-person services during the COVID-19 pandemic, the site was re-opened in October 2022 under the leadership of Augsburg Physician Assistant Program Director Vanessa Bester.  

This summer, the first Health Commons in St. Paul opened in the Conway Community Center through a partnership with M Health Fairview, the Sanneh Foundation, and the East Side Health & Well-Being Collaborative. Health Commons Executive Director Katie Clark and Augsburg Board of Regents Chair Dennis Meyer will join St. Paul community leaders on August 16 for a ribbon-cutting ceremony at Health Commons East

These new locations join long-standing Health Commons sites at Central Lutheran Church in downtown Minneapolis and in the Cedar-Riverside neighborhood

“Our nursing and physician assistant faculty, along with our students, are committed to the vision of a drop-in center that focuses on the needs of the communities we serve to address health inequities and other deep-rooted issues faced when seeking care,” said Augsburg President Paul C. Pribbenow. “Augsburg is especially pleased to extend our efforts to the East Side St. Paul neighborhood.”

Augsburg’s Health Commons sites are health-focused drop-in centers led and organized by nursing and physician assistant faculty members, Augsburg students, volunteers, and community members. Developed by Augsburg nursing faculty in the early 1990s, the Health Commons model is founded on principles of hospitality and relationship development that leads to transcultural understanding and health benefits for all participants. 

The people who come to the Health Commons are from diverse cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds, and many are unhoused or marginally housed. Health concerns might include nutrition, medication, stress management, respiratory conditions, injuries, skin problems, and chronic disease such as diabetes and hypertension. Everyone is welcome, and all services are provided free of charge, without proof of need or time constraints. 

Augsburg’s PA program has taken on a growing role as new partnerships and locations have developed. The PA program has led the expansion of services at the Cedar-Riverside Health Commons, connecting with community members providing foot care, a need across many marginalized communities. 

“The PA program is humbled and honored to bring the model of accompaniment-based care into our curriculum and medical practice. Faculty, staff and students are able to build connections, meet people where they are at in their health journey, and learn how health inequities are impacting the people we care for every day. The Harrison neighborhood, Cedar-Riverside, Central Lutheran, and now East St. Paul are the paradigm of what providing health and care should look like in every community,” said Bester. 

To learn more, volunteer, or support the Health Commons, visit augsburg.edu/healthcommons.

MPR Highlights Growing StepUP Partnerships

MPR News logoA leader in the collegiate recovery movement for more than 25 years, StepUP® at Augsburg University is now poised to reach more students through new partnerships with Twin Cities-area colleges and universities. Minnesota Public Radio recently featured StepUP Director Ericka Otterson, Recruitment and Outreach Coordinator Nell Hurley, and Ethan Laugen ’24 in a story about the need for recovery support in higher education. 

StepUP provides an array of support services for students in recovery, including sober living college experience in Oren Gateway Center, weekly meetings with alcohol and drug counselors, and access to a strong alumni network. With new partnerships forming post-COVID-19, including a formal agreement with the University of St. Thomas, these resources will be available to more students from across the Twin Cities metro. 

“There’s no shortage of need, and students time and again will say the community has been the most valuable aspect of participating in this program,” Otterson told MPR. “So the larger the community is each year, the more opportunity there is for that.”

“This is my community,” said Laugen. “Instead of a student group or a frat, it’s StepUP. These are my people who get me, who understand me, who I get along with. And it has given me the college experience in the way that I needed a college experience.”

Listen or read more via MPR: “Amid addiction need, Augsburg’s student recovery program seeks more participants”

Making College Accessible to Foster Youth

Professor Tim Pippert talking with two students
From left to right: Madelyne Yang, Donovan Holmes, and Tim Pippert

Professor Tim Pippert and Madelyne Yang ’26 were recently interviewed by The Imprint about Augsburg Family Scholars, a program to narrow the opportunity gap for students with foster care backgrounds.

Augsburg Family Scholars builds on Minnesota’s Fostering Independence Higher Education Grant. This “last dollar” program provides state funding to cover tuition, fees, room and board and other expenses related to the cost of attending college. Pippert told The Imprint that the state grants are “a game changer,” but aren’t enough on their own. 

To bridge the gap, Augsburg Family Scholars supplements the state grant with comprehensive academic and community support. Last year, a dozen Augsburg students participated in the program, which provides help moving to campus, laptops, access to year-round housing, a dedicated lounge space on campus, community outings, and more. Pippert, the Joel Torstenson endowed professor of sociology, directs the program and serves as an advisor to the participants, helping them strategize how to navigate the demands of higher education. 

“If you’ve made it to college, you’ve overcome so many hurdles already,” he said. “If you’ve made it this far, it’s our responsibility to help students finish the job and get a degree.”

Read the full story from The Imprint or learn more about Augsburg Family Scholars

Najeeba Syeed Named to Interfaith Leaders in Higher Education Council

Najeeba Speed speaking at Interfaith eventInterfaith America has appointed Najeeba Syeed, El-Hibri chair and executive director of Interfaith at Augsburg, to the inaugural Interfaith Leaders in Higher Education Council. This council serves as a point of connection for educators dedicated to interfaith work both in their respective institutions and throughout the higher education field. The council will meet quarterly with the Interfaith Leadership Institute team to offer their expertise on undergraduate programming and expand their own interfaith leadership skills. “I’m profoundly thankful to Interfaith America,” Syeed says. “What an incredible group of leaders to serve and serve with, and a wonderful organization to be a part of.” 

Read more from Interfaith America: Meet the Inaugural Interfaith Leaders in Higher Education Council

Assistant Professor Shayna Sheinfeld Wins Outstanding Book Award

Image of book cover that shows a painting of a woman with dark eyes and heavy eyebrows. White text on a red background reads, "Jewish and Christian Women in the Ancient Mediterranean," Sara Parks, Shayna Sheinfeld, and Meredith J.C. Warren Shayna Sheinfeld, assistant professor of religion and philosophy, received the 2023 Frank W. Beare Award from the Canadian Society for Biblical Studies for her book, “Jewish and Christian Women in the Ancient Mediterranean.” 

Co-authored with Sara Parks and Meredith J. C. Warren, “Jewish and Christian Women in the Ancient Mediterranean” is the first undergraduate textbook dedicated to introducing women’s religious roles in Judaism and Christianity in a way that is accessible to students from all disciplines. In addition to contextualizing overviews, it includes explorations of specific topics in women’s religion, including leadership, domestic ritual, women as readers and writers of scripture, and women as innovators in their traditions. 

The Frank W. Beare award recognizes an outstanding book in the areas of Christian origins, post-biblical Judaism, and/or Graeco-Roman religions.

Great Returns Campaign Exceeds Goal

White text on maroon background reads "Great Returns," with smaller orange text beneath that reads, "We're All In"Today Augsburg University announced the close of its Great Returns: We’re All In comprehensive fundraising campaign. The largest campaign in Augsburg’s history, Great Returns raised over $128.8 million, surpassing the campaign goal of $125 million.

“I have had the privilege of meeting many Auggies during my time as chair of this campaign and it’s evident how much people love Augsburg,” said Regent Emeritus and campaign chair Paul Mueller ’84, MD. “The investments made by Great Returns benefactors will yield transformational results for Augbsurg students and faculty for generations to come.”

Nearly 15,000 alumni and friends of the university made more than 55,000 gifts over the course of the campaign. Campaign priorities included endowed funds for scholarships, teaching and programs; campus improvements; athletics; and unrestricted operating support to provide flexibility in responding to students’ needs in an ever-evolving higher education landscape.

Campaign highlights include:

  • Creation of the John N. Schwartz ’67 School of the Arts, an interdisciplinary hub for the visual and performing arts
  • More than 150 gifts of $25,000 and above to endowed scholarships
  • Six new endowed professorships and chairs in music, interfaith studies, business, entrepreneurial studies, and sociology
  • Improvements to athletics facilities, including the Donny Wichmann ’89 Weight Room and Patricia Piepenburg ’69 Women’s Locker Room
  • Gifts totaling over $10 million to endow the StepUP® collegiate recovery program
  • $6.1 million raised to support diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives
  • $1.6 million raised for the President’s Strategic Fund

“We are humbled and grateful for the extraordinary show of support for Augsburg’s mission and vision from the thousands of alumni and friends who participated in the campaign,” said Augsburg President Paul C. Pribbenow. “These investments will transform the lives of our students, who go on to lead and serve in their communities and throughout the world. From all of us at Augsburg: thank you.”

Senior Fellowships Anchor Collaboration Between Augsburg’s Interfaith Institute and the Oxford Interfaith Forum

El-Hibri Chair and Executive Director of Interfaith Institute Najeeba Syeed

Najeeba Syeed, El-Hibri chair and executive director of Interfaith at Augsburg, has been named a senior fellow of the Oxford Interfaith Forum. Reciprocally, Director of the Oxford Interfaith Forum Thea Gomelauri will join Augsburg’s Interfaith Institute as a senior fellow this fall. This mutual fellowship is a distinct characteristic of the institutions’ partnership, which will focus on issues of peace, justice, intercultural and interfaith education, and furthering interreligious learning across the globe.

Gomelauri is a faculty member of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies at the University of Oxford and has extensive experience in research, teaching, and consultancy in different international, and intercultural contexts. She is a member of the Jewish-Muslim Research Network, the Bible and Religions of the Ancient Near East Collective, and the British and Irish Association of Jewish Studies.

Director of the Oxford Interfaith Forum Thea Gomelauri

As Augsburg’s El-Hibri chair and executive director of Interfaith Institute, Syeed serves as a national ambassador for the interfaith movement and faculty advisor for Augsburg’s Interfaith Scholars. She is a professor, expert practitioner, and public speaker in the fields of interfaith studies, mediation, conflict resolution, deliberative democracy, and social, gender, and racial equity.

“This fellowship serves as an anchor for our collaborative work of Interfaith Institute at Augsburg University and the Oxford Interfaith Forum,” Syeed says. “We look forward to collaborating in the United States, United Kingdom, and across the globe.”

Congratulations to Auggies Named to the 2023 Spring Semester Dean’s List

University SealMore than 855 Augsburg University undergraduate students were named to the 2023 Spring Semester Dean’s List. The Augsburg University Dean’s List recognizes those full-time students who have achieved a grade point average of 3.50 or higher and those part-time students who have achieved a grade point average of 3.75 or higher in a given term.

View the 2023 Spring Semester Dean’s List.

Students who wish to notify their hometown newspapers of their achievement can do so at their discretion using a news announcement template.