This section of the News and Media Services department site tracks stories in print and broadcast media that feature Auggie faculty, students, and staff. The area also is home to material developed for University-related programs, events, and more.
ABC affiliate KSTP recently aired an interview with Joseph Erickson, professor of education at Augsburg College, about the Minneapolis School Board decision to replace Sergio Paez, their first choice for Minneapolis Public School’s vacant superintendent position. Erickson served on the board from 2002 to 2006 and was its chair for two of those years. During this period, the school board hired two superintendents.
“This is their job. Hiring the superintendent and setting policy is their job,” Erickson said. “They should take it very seriously.”
He also pointed out that the current board is in a rare situation: interim superintendent Michael Goar is still available should the board decide to offer him the position. Usually, a district’s second and third choices have moved on to other positions at this point in the process.
Video and text versions of the interview are available on the KSTP website, “Minneapolis Public Schools Still Searching for Permanent Superintendent.”
This month, Minnesota Public Radio and WCCO Radio sought input from Jeanne Boeh, professor of economics at Augsburg College, on the economic outlook for 2016. First she appeared on the “John Hines Show” to discuss the impact of a recent drop in the Chinese stock market on the U.S. economy.
Earlier this week, she joined Louis Johnston, a professor of economics at the College of Saint Benedict and Saint John’s University, on MPR’s “News with Kerri Miller and Tom Weber” for a conversation about U.S. and Minnesota economics in the new year. The professors discussed the apparent discrepancies between stock market losses coinciding with higher employment rates. Boeh points out that while the overall employment rates are rising, some groups, such as African-American Minnesotans, have seen employment rates drop.
Several media outlets have recently published curated lists of local events scheduled in celebration of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, which takes place on Monday, January 18. The lists published by the Saint Paul Pioneer Press, the Minneapolis Star Tribune, and Minnesota Public Radio News each included Augsburg College’s MLK Convocation, an annual event that honors the legacy of King with notable speakers addressing topics of race and social justice.
This year’s convocation will feature Chuck D, leader and co-founder of legendary rap group Public Enemy, author of two critically acclaimed books, and a political activist, publisher, radio host, and producer. He will give a presentation called “Race, Rap, and Reality: Supporting Our Youth in the Spirit of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. as They Face the Unique Challenges of Today.”
Minneapolis-St. Paul ABC affiliate KSTP recently aired a story on its Eyewitness News program about the ways in which Augsburg College’s Women’s Basketball team is mourning and honoring beloved coach Bill McKee, who passed away in August. The segment shares that the team has been remembering Coach McKee with patches on their jerseys, bracelets, and moments of silence before each game.
The segment features statements from Ted Riverso, the team’s new head coach and friend of McKee, and Allison McKee ’16, who is one of the team’s captains and the late coach’s daughter.
“It’s important to me because I want to keep him as much a part of this season as I can,” she said. “He was the most important person in my life.”
The life and accomplishments of physician, long-distance runner, and Augsburg College alumnus David Eitrheim ’79, who passed away on January 1, were the subject of a recent article published by the Leader-Telegram newspaper in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. After receiving a degree from Augsburg in biology and chemistry, Eitrheim attended the University of Minnesota Medical school.
A gifted athlete, the article states that Eitrheim had run over 40,000 miles since 1980 and competed in over 100 long-distance races, including 91 marathons and 14 100-mile ultra-marathons. To honor Eitrheim, two groups of friends and loved ones split a pair of his running shoes and delivered them, by walking and running, to the cemetery where he was to be buried.
Nearly 1,000 Augsburg College undergraduate students were named to the 2015 Fall Semester Dean’s List.
The 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.
Students who wish to notify their hometown newspapers of their achievement can do so at their discretion. Visit the hometown news announcement web page for more information.
Augsburg College alumna and KARE 11 news anchor Diana Pierce ’15 MAL will deliver a keynote address at Mentor Morning, an event to introduce young women to some of central Minnesota’s most powerful women leaders. Mentor Morning includes general networking opportunities and Pierce’s speech, which will focus on the importance of finding and working with mentors.
Pierce recently completed her master’s degree in leadership at Augsburg and believes mentoring is key to help develop upcoming leaders, according to a recent St. Cloud Times story on Mentor Morning.
“You’re always going to be in a position of leadership or being lead,” Pierce said in the article. “So the more tools you have in your tool kit the better off you are.”
David Lapakko, associate professor of communication studies, was interviewed on AM 950 radio on January 9. He discussed his competitive success at the Great American Think-Off, an annual exhibition of civil disagreement and argumentation.
Lapakko was crowned “America’s Greatest Thinker” at the 23rd Great American Think-Off held in New York Mills, Minnesota, in June 2015. The debate question was, “Does Technology Free Us or Trap Us?” and Lapakko argued for the liberating qualities of technology as he took home the prize.
The Star Tribune recently published an editorial column that featured an interview with Minneapolis DFL Rep. Frank Hornstein, a senior fellow in Augsburg College’s Sabo Center for Democracy and Citizenship. The column discusses the widespread use of Hitler and Nazi references in U.S. political rhetoric. The topic has both personal and professional significance for Hornstein; his grandparents were killed by the Nazis and he intends to author a book about the Holocaust’s impact on modern political discourse.
In regard to frequent comparisons between political opponents and Hitler, the article quotes Hornstein as saying, ““If everyone is Hitler, who is Hitler really? When you go right to a Hitler analogy, you’ve already lost the argument. You’ve cheapened the debate.”
The Minnesota Women’s Press recently featured a profile of Maria Cristina “Tina” Tavera, director of the McNair Scholars Program at Augsburg College, and her daughter Paloma Giossi. Tavera is an artist and activist whose work often focuses on the relationships between womanhood and culture. “My artistic mission is to create pieces that inspire conversations about topics, about how gender and cultural issues are viewed. I want to create access to arts for women,” Tavera said in the article.
The article also examines how Tavera’s own cultural heritage has impacted her work; she has dual-citizenship with the U.S. and Mexico. “Art has the capacity to teach non-Latinos about our Latino culture,” Tavera said. “To create a sense of community for Latinos, and to create places for conversation.”
Tavera’s work will be featured in “Reconfiguring Casta,” an exhibit in Augsburg College’s Christensen Center art gallery from February 29 to March 31. A reception will be held at the gallery on March 2 from 4 to 7 p.m. Additionally, Tavera has curated a collection titled, “Sus Voces: Female Printmakers from Mexico” that will be displayed at the Highpoint Center for Printmaking from February 5 to March 27 with a reception on March 4 from 6:30 to 9 p.m.
Read: Visualizing women’s stories on the Minnesota Women’s Press site for further exhibition and event details.
ABC affiliate KSTP recently aired an interview with Joseph Erickson, professor of education at Augsburg College, about the Minneapolis School Board decision to replace Sergio Paez, their first choice for Minneapolis Public School’s vacant superintendent position. Erickson served on the board from 2002 to 2006 and was its chair for two of those years. During this period, the school board hired two superintendents.
