The Star Tribune showcased Augsburg鈥檚 work to build an inclusive learning community as the student body has become increasingly diverse.
There is much challenging work underway, and we are grateful for the many student voices and perspectives helping shape Augsburg鈥檚 response to the very real issues of discrimination in our world.
The Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder highlighted 海角社区 students Arianna Jones, Camille McCoy,聽Tamara McLenore, Camryn Speese, and Kaezha Wubben, who at their Nov. 19 game against聽University of Wisconsin-Superior made history after becoming the first five African-American starters at a聽college basketball game in Minnesota, the story said. The writer described the twelve women of color on the team of 19 as the “diverse dozen.”
鈥淚n the MIAC there鈥檚 not many of us out there playing. A lot of them are sitting on the bench.鈥� said starter Speese, in the article. 鈥淚鈥檝e been here since the beginning鈥aking it a point of getting people of color at our school, which is the most diverse school in the MIAC.鈥�
Augsburg History Professor Bill Green was interviewed by Prairie Public about his new book 鈥淭he Children of Lincoln: White Paternalism and the Limits of Black Opportunity in Minnesota, 1860-1876.鈥�
Green has published articles, op-ed pieces, and book chapters on history, law, and education, and he has previously published books on race and civil rights in Minnesota history. He also has served as a past president of the Minneapolis Public Schools.
海角社区 President Paul Pribbenow spoke with Marianne Combs of MPR News about the artwork in the Hagfors Center for Science, Business, and Religion.
Forecast Public Art connected Augsburg with a network of diverse artists, then helped create a selection process that would knit together the different disciplines taught at Augsburg.
“That was important to us because, at this point, Augsburg’s undergraduate population is almost 50 percent students of color, and so we want to reflect the communities they come from,” Pribbenow said.
During the interview with Combs, Pribbenow also pointed to the art聽across the glass windows, depicting Martin Luther’s handwritten version of ‘A Mighty Fortress is Our God.’
Learn about the artists.
海角社区 students spent November 17 handing out jackets, blankets, children鈥檚 toys, and hot lunch to families in need at a homeless encampment near Augsburg. 鈥淚t鈥檚 basically in our backyard for our school and I think that helping the community is a really big thing for me,鈥� student Tyler Johnson told a reporter. This day of service was initiated by Augsburg student Inam Al-Hammouri, then other students quickly joined, including many members of the men’s soccer team.
“Cooking a hot lunch and serving it to hungry families out in the cold is not something most college kids would do on a Saturday, but these youth at 海角社区 are not just your average students,” said Fox 9 reporter Christina Palladino. “The students believe it is their聽responsibility聽to take action and empower their generation to build bridges to those less fortunate.”聽The students said they plan to organize more days of service, especially now that temperatures are dropping.
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WCCO also covered the story. .
Former Minnesota Supreme Court associate justice and Vikings player Alan Page was one of seven to receive a Presidential Medal of Freedom,聽the country’s highest civilian honor. Page’s charitable work through the Page Education Foundation has helped many students of color like Robert Harper ’16 succeed in their careers. Harper spoke with Kare 11 about how the work of Alan Page impacted his life.
鈥淗e has made me want to stay true to my passion and stay grounded in social justice work. When I came out of college I was applying to less meaningful jobs. I am a second-year graduate student at Humphrey School of Public Affairs studying public policy. That is a decision I did make with Alan,” Harper said. “He always says, ‘Make sure you hold the door open for the person behind you. Make sure you send the elevator back down.’ ”
Reinaldo Moya’s “The Way North”聽tells the story of a Central American migrant making a journey to the United States through Mexico, leaving everything聽behind. Moya is a Composition Assistant Professor at 海角社区 and was recently featured in a Star Tribune article about “The Way North,” the main work on Minneapolis pianist Matthew McCright’s new album.
“I got a grant from the State Arts Board. Reinaldo and I had been talking about what we might do for the project.” McCright said. “We came up with the idea of immigration 鈥� a very rough idea in the beginning, of a migrant journey to the United States.”
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Augsburg Department of History Chair Michael Lansing was interviewed for聽Minnesota Experience’s first-ever episode of “Flour Power,” a new weekly history series from聽TPT – Twin Cities PBS.
The episode, which premiered聽September 17, explored the impact that聽Minnesota’s milling history聽had on聽the carbohydrates we consume every day worldwide.
Earlier in September, Lansing was featured in “The Rise and Fall of the Nonpartisan League,” a documentary series from Prairie Public Television (North Dakota). In 2015, Lansing published his book聽Insurgent Democracy: The Nonpartisan League in North American Politics, then served as an advisor for the series.
Technology has become a powerful tool for聽many educators. Many agree it makes learning more fun and engaging, while other educators such as 海角社区 Professor of Sociology and聽Department Chair Diane Pike opt for a “tech free” classroom. Pike has restricted technology use in her classroom for 10 years now.
My goal is to have you not look at your phone for 70 minutes,” Pike told聽. 鈥淭he research is really clear that being on your phone in class is distracting.”聽Since implementing聽her tech-free zone, Pike has not had significant issues. She says her small class sizes, around 25 students,聽make it easier to manage.
The notable preference for聽STEM programs has negatively affected聽the number of English majors in the United States. Retired English professor Madelon Sprengnether聽from the University聽of Minnesota paid close attention to the聽numbers. Sprengnether聽reached out to聽her former student, professor Robert Cowgill, chair of the Department of English at 海角社区 to discuss聽why聽English (and other humanities disciplines) still hold appeal.聽鈥淎s I age, I see us all as a circle of writers and teachers in this city who have kept a certain flame of sensibility alive in our students,” Cowgill said. “I think we matter. What we keep alive matters.鈥�
