As of fall 2025, news and media updates have been integrated with the Augsburg Now alumni publication. This site archives news stories from before September 16, 2025. Please visit augsburg.edu/now or select "Augsburg Now" from the left navigation for current news.
Leading neuropsychologist Rick Hanson speaks Oct. 16
Each of us has the power to change the ways we think in manners that will increase our happiness, improve our resilience, and promote inner calm. Attendees of “Hardwiring Happiness: Turning Passing Experiences into Lasting Inner Strength and Peace” at Augsburg College will learn practical tips and proven methods from a leading, national neuropsychologist during a one-hour presentation that includes time for audience questions.
Who
Rick Hanson is a neuropsychologist and senior fellow of the Greater Good Science Center at University of California, Berkeley. He is an author of numerous books, including the 2013 New York Times bestseller, “Hardwiring Happiness: The New Brain Science of Contentment, Calm, and Confidence.”
Kuoth Wiel ’13 visits Twin Cities for advance screening of ‘The Good Lie’
Augsburg alumna Kuoth Wiel ’13 finished the final semester of her undergraduate education from afar, trading the College’s Minneapolis campus for film sets in Georgia and South Africa. Wiel is featured in a supporting role in “The Good Lie,” a drama about refugees from Sudan learning to navigate life in the United States with the help of a character played by Oscar winner Reese Witherspoon.
Wiel, a psychology major with Sudanese heritage, has been touring to promote “The Good Lie” since the film premiered at the Toronto Film Festival in early September. She will introduce the Twin Cities’ first screening of “The Good Lie” on October 14, and the Augsburg College community has been invited to take part in the event. Auggies also can acquire free tickets to an advance screening on October 16.
Ticket information is posted in the October 10 edition of Augsburg’s Daily A-mail.
The American Indian Science and Engineering Society’s Winds of Change magazine has selected Augsburg as one of the Top 200 Colleges for Native American and Alaska Native students pursuing degrees in science, technology, engineering, and math.
The list features colleges and universities “where American Indians are going to school in significant numbers and where the community, Native programs, and support are strong enough for these students to enjoy college and stay on to graduation,” according to Winds of Change. Likewise, this year the list includes data measuring undergraduate degrees in science, engineering, technology and mathematics-related disciplines for all students and for American Indians.
Augsburg College was one of only five Minnesota institutions to make the Top 200 list, which was published in an annual special college issue designed to inform and inspire college-bound students and their parents, teachers, and counselors.
A redevelopment project by Augsburg College alumnus Devean George ’99, a former professional basketball player, was mentioned in a Star Tribune business article by Neal St. Anthony. The story explores two projects on the North Side of Minneapolis that recently broke ground. George heads Building Blocks, a group working to revitalize urban areas by building affordable housing with accompanying retail spaces. Read “St. Anthony: Two north Minneapolis projects launch” on the Star Tribune website.
Augsburg College alumna Kuoth Wiel ’13, an actress in the film “The Good Lie” starring Reese Witherspoon, was featured by the Pioneer Press just before the film was set for release in Los Angeles and New York. Wiel balanced her studies and the filming of “The Good Lie” as a fourth-year student at Augsburg. Read, “‘The Good Lie’ is a survival story – and Minnesota woman’s story,” on the Pioneer Press website.
(MINNEAPOLIS) – Two leaders in the addiction recovery community will be recognized for their commitment and generosity to Augsburg College’s StepUP® program for students in addiction recovery. Kevin and Polly Hart of White Bear Lake, Minn., will receive the Toby Piper LaBelle Award at the Augsburg College StepUP Program Gala on Oct. 24 at the Hyatt Regency Minneapolis.
“Kevin and Polly have brought so much value to the StepUP program, the students in recovery we serve, and the recovery community as a whole,” said Augsburg College President Paul C. Pribbenow. “We are blessed to call this dedicated couple our friends and are proud to honor them with this award.”
The Harts have given significant time and resources to the College’s program, which is a leader and award-winning model for residential addiction recovery communities at campuses across the nation. Kevin serves on the advisory board for the StepUP Program where he helps guide and shape the program. He also is a board member of The Retreat, a recovery program in Wayzata, Minn. The Harts volunteer countless hours for these programs and also mentor youth in recovery.
The Vincent L. Hawkinson Foundation for Peace & Justice has awarded Augsburg student Atlese Robinson ’15 the 2014 Hawkinson Foundation Scholarship. This scholarship was created by the Foundation to encourage students who have already demonstrated a commitment to peace and justice to strive for those values in their educational pursuits and in their personal and professional lives.
Robinsonis majoring in theater at Augsburg. Her artistic background includes the Penumbra Theatre’s Summer Institute and the St. Paul Central High School’s Central Touring Theatre. When she was attending Central, Robinson wrote a poem highlighting racial inequalities within the school system. She then went on to perform the poem, with others, for groups of teachers and administration in the St. Paul Public Schools.
Robinson has served as editor of The Echo newspaper, a student publication at Augsburg College. She also has performed her original spoken word as part of the College’s Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Convocation celebration.
The Pioneer Press provided a round up of top spots in the Twin Cities area to take in the fall colors. The row of Maple trees on the south side of the Lindell Library made the list. To learn of other places to see peak fall colors from Oct. 5-21, read “Fall colors in the Twin Cities: where to find them.”
The Uptake wrote about “17 Debates that Could Determine Minnesota’s Future” in a recent online article. The Augsburg College-hosted debate between two candidates for position of Minnesota Secretary of State was among the featured debates. Bob Helland, Bob Odden, Dan Severson and State Rep. Steve Simon will square off at 7 p.m., Oct. 28. The event is sponsored by the Minnesota League of Women Voters. Read more on The Uptake website.
Information about the debate also was shared by Minnesota Public Radio. Read the blog entry “Debates!”
Augsburg College is committed to fostering an environment where students of different backgrounds and perspectives can grapple with challenging topics. The College is committed to supporting students in determining their own decisions and actions relative to challenging topics.
Harts to be recognized at StepUP® Program Gala
