Faculty Archives - News and Media

River Semester Sets Sail

Posted on September 11, 2025September 15, 2025

In the fall of 2015, a hardy crew started paddling down the Mississippi for a learning adventure that took 鈥渆xperiential learning鈥� to a new level鈥擜ugsburg鈥檚 first River Semester. Ten years later, the sixth iteration of this one-of-a-kind study away program has set off once more.听

Associate Professor Joe Underhill will lead a group of 10 students, three staff, and periodic visitors from the headwaters of the Mississippi to the Gulf of Mexico, mostly by boat. The students鈥攆ive Auggies plus students from Macalester College, the College of the Atlantic, and Agnes Scott College鈥攚ill each complete an individual research project, with topics ranging from benthic macroinvertebrates to sewage infrastructure in rural communities. Along the way, they鈥檒l be joined by researchers, artists, and experts on coastal restoration and environmental justice. In collaboration with partner organizations throughout the Mississippi watershed, they鈥檒l visit a wild rice harvesting camp, a life science research station, and a backwater flood control project. They鈥檒l camp and sail or paddle approximately 800 miles before concluding their voyage in Biloxi, MS, in mid-December.听

in a piece on September 13, interviewing Underhill and Summer May ’26. “It’s bridging the connection between knowledge and application, and mind and place. We are directly interacting with the river,鈥� May said.

Follow along with the group鈥檚 progress on the , where students will periodically post daily log entries with description of the day’s activities, sightings, adventures, learnings, and personal reflections.

Learn more about River Semester:

River Semester homepage
鈥擳he Minnesota Star Tribune, August 2023
From a small-town book club to paddling the Mississippi River, learning gets bigger outside the classroom鈥擜ugsburg Now, February 2022

Star Tribune Highlights Funding Uncertainty for Federal TRIO Programs

Posted on August 11, 2025

海角社区 Assistant Professor of Psychology Gisel Suarez Bonilla ’18 and TRIO McNair Scholars Program Director Maria “Tina” Tavera were recently interviewed by the Minnesota Star Tribune about funding uncertainty for federal TRIO programs. TRIO includes eight programs targeted to serve and assist low-income individuals, first-generation college students, and individuals with disabilities to progress through the academic pipeline from middle school to postbaccalaureate programs.

“Each [program] helps a slightly different population get into college or be successful in college,鈥� Tavera said. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e setting an example and they鈥檙e guiding the whole family to learn about the academic system.”

Augsburg operates two TRIO programs. TRIO Student Support Services provides comprehensive academic, financial, and personal planning and support for up to 160 students as they progress toward graduation. TRIO McNair Scholars supports 26 juniors and seniors annually in preparing for graduate study.

Memorial Lecture Lifts Up the Legacy of Jennifer Diaz

Posted on May 29, 2025

Augsburg鈥檚 annual campus professional development conference, Days in May, typically attracts strong participation from faculty and staff. But the crowd that filled Hoversten Chapel on May 15 was larger than usual. Faculty, staff, alumni, family, and students packed the house to celebrate and remember the legacy of Associate Professor of Education Jennifer Diaz, who passed away in 2024.听

Sponsored by the Education Department, the Office of the President, and the Office of Faculty Development, the keynote speaker for the Professor Jennifer Diaz Memorial Lecture was Dr. Gloria Ladson-Billings, professor emerita and former Kellner Family Distinguished Professor of Urban Education at the University of Wisconsin鈥揗adison. Ladson-Billings is an influential scholar of culturally relevant pedagogy and critical race theory in education, a former president of the American Educational Research Association, and the author of critically acclaimed books, including 鈥淭he Dreamkeepers: Successful Teachers of African American Children鈥� and 鈥淐rossing Over to Canaan: The Journey of New Teachers in Diverse Classrooms.鈥澛�

Diaz studied with Ladson-Billings during graduate school at UW鈥揗adison. After completing her Ph.D., Diaz joined Augsburg in 2015, where her scholarly work focused on interrupting 鈥渄eficit narratives鈥� in mathematics education. 鈥淢ath was her vehicle, but not her purpose,鈥� said Ladson-Billings, reflecting on Diaz鈥檚 work to identify and challenge inequitable systems through attention to context, cultures, and teacher effectiveness. 鈥淛ennie Diaz believed in her students.鈥澛�

Diaz shared her personal vocation story in her own words in November 2023 as part of the 鈥淯ncovering Vocation鈥� series at Augsburg. She spoke about being encouraged by a former teacher to give her gifts freely to the world, expecting nothing in return.听

鈥淚n any conversation with Jennie, you knew you mattered,鈥� said Professor Audrey Lensmire. 鈥淪he believed that our work was a collective effort toward equity.鈥澛犅�

Augsburg Faculty Recognized With 2024鈥�25 Outstanding Teaching and Service Awards

Posted on May 16, 2025

On May 8, the 海角社区 community gathered to recognize outstanding faculty contributions during the 2024鈥�25 academic year. This annual celebration recognizes length of service; tenure and promotions; committee, program, and department leadership; grant applications; and individual awards chosen by students and faculty peers.

Tenure and Promotion to Associate Professor

Three individuals were recognized for their achievement in receiving tenure and promotion to associate professor, effective Fall 2025.

Moumita Dasgupta, physics
Amy Larson, computer science
Juyoung Lee, music therapy

Promotion to Full Professor

Three individuals were recognized for their promotions to full professor effective Fall 2025, in recognition of their exemplary practice and mastery in teaching, scholarship, and leadership.

George Dierberger, business and economics聽
O. Evren Guler, psychology
Robert Groven, communication studies

Augsburg Day Student Government Excellence in Teaching Award

Andy Aoki, political science

Faculty Innovation Award

John Zobitz, mathematics and data science

Excellence in Teaching Award (Adjunct Faculty)

Steven Brehmer, physics聽

Early Career Teaching Award聽聽

Mallory Alekna, music education

Excellence in Teaching Award (Full-Time Faculty)

Kao Nou Moua, social work

Service to the Community Award

Katie Martin, nursing

Distinguished Service to the University Award

Stacy Freiheit, psychology

Augsburg Students Chosen for National Interfaith Fellowship

Posted on March 5, 2025March 6, 2025

Augsburg students Theo Coval and Augusta Nepor Sowa traveled to Utah for the first annual gathering of the Interfaith BRAID (Bridgebuilders Relating Across Interfaith Differences) Fellowship at the end of February.听

The is an Interfaith America initiative designed in response to increasing prejudice and polarization. This program equips student fellows with skills, training, education, and experiences to collaborate effectively with communities close to home and across the country.听

“It is so meaningful to have the opportunity to work with Interfaith America and meet so many passionate campus leaders,鈥� said Coval. 鈥淚t was a genuine honor to be included amongst the peers I met in Salt Lake City, and I am very excited to be working on a campus project as part of the fellowship.”

Coval and Sowa were selected from a national pool of applicants. The program is designed to help students become interfaith bridgebuilders on their campuses and in their communities. Najeeba Syeed, El-Hibri Endowed chair and executive director of the Interfaith Institute, serves as a BRAID Fellowship mentor and works closely with these students as well.听

鈥淏eing part of this opportunity means stepping beyond conversation and into connection, where diversity isn’t just acknowledged but engaged with, where differences aren’t just tolerated but honored,鈥� said Sowa. 鈥淚t鈥檚 about choosing pluralism, embracing the richness of perspectives, and discovering unity in diversity. In a world where everyone wants to be heard, this experience has taught me the true power of listening with an open heart.鈥�Learn more about the Interfaith Institute at 海角社区.

Augsburg鈥檚 Lindsay Starck Among Minnesota Book Award Finalists

Posted on February 3, 2025

Lindsay Starck has been named a Minnesota Book Award finalist for her second novel, 鈥淢onsters We Have Made.鈥� Starck is an associate professor of English and director of Augsburg鈥檚 MFA program. Published by Vintage Books/Penguin Random House in March 2024, 鈥淢onsters We Have Made鈥� is a poignant and evocative novel that explores the bounds of familial love, the high stakes of parenthood, and the tenuous divide between fiction and reality.

The Friends of the Saint Paul Public Library organizes the annual Minnesota Book Awards to honor Minnesota writers, illustrators, and artists across 10 different categories. The 2025 Minnesota Book Award winners will be announced on April 22, 2025.

Learn more about Lindsay Starck鈥檚 work and 鈥�.鈥�

Augsburg Builds Pipeline of School Social Workers and Counselors

Posted on January 21, 2025

Amid an urgent need for more support personnel in K-12 schools, 海角社区 is piloting a new program to train the next generation of school social workers and school-based therapists.

鈥淟ots of social work students want to work in education,鈥� says Associate Professor Erin Sugrue, who chairs Augsburg鈥檚 social work department. But the requirement to complete at least one year-long internship in a school setting creates a structural hurdle for students who can鈥檛 afford to spend a year or more in an unpaid position. As a result, many internship placements in public schools go unfilled each year.听

Augsburg鈥檚 new program, developed by Sugrue and led by Assistant Professor Christopher Thyberg, aims to support a cohort of students through the critical internship year and ultimately into careers in education. In its first year, 28 undergraduate and master鈥檚 social work students are interning as school social workers and school-based mental health providers. Participants receive a monthly living stipend and reimbursement for transportation and licensure expenses thanks to .听

In addition to financial support, the students gather multiple times a semester to build community and explore key issue areas in education. These sessions have tapped into the expertise of faculty colleagues in Augsburg鈥檚 education department, delving into topics like multilingual learners with Assistant Professor Yacoub Aljaffery and special education with Assistant Professor Sergio Madrid-Aranda during the fall semester. Sugrue hopes that this collaboration will lead to more formal partnerships between the education and social work programs in the future, including co-listed classes.听

Augsburg participants in the initial cohort are completing internships in K鈥�12 school districts throughout the metro area, including Minneapolis, Saint Paul, Robbinsdale, Rosemount鈥揂pple Valley鈥揈agan, Champlin, Brooklyn Park, Anoka鈥揌ennepin, Spring Lake Park, Hopkins, Columbia Heights, and charter schools. After graduation, they will be prepared to pursue careers as either school social workers or school-based mental health providers. Both play a key role in supporting students in K-12 settings.

鈥淪chool social workers serve as the link between family, home, and school,鈥� said Sugrue, who spent more than a decade as a school social worker herself. 鈥淭hey are concerned with students鈥� overall emotional, psychological, and social well-being.鈥� Typically employees of the school district, school social workers triage many different issues that may arise in a day, including attendance, conflict resolution, and substance use.听

School-based mental health providers focus more specifically on students鈥� mental health concerns. While they deliver counseling and other therapeutic services on-site at school, they are often employed by an outside agency and can bill insurance.听

To date, Augsburg has received $411,000 to develop the new cohort model from the state , administered by the Minnesota Department of Education. The grant program aims to support students in completing accredited programs and becoming licensed school psychologists, school nurses, school counselors, and school social workers, and to increase the number of student support personnel providers who identify as people of color or Indigenous. A separate $125,000 grant from the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development supports students in the program with a specific interest in becoming school-based mental health providers.听

Learn more about Augsburg鈥檚 Master of Social Work and Bachelor of Social Work programs.

Professor Najeeba Syeed Highlights Interfaith Collaboration Following L.A. Fires

Posted on January 13, 2025January 21, 2025

Najeeba Syeed, El-Hibri Endowed Chair and executive director of the Interfaith Institute at 海角社区, was interviewed by national media about the devastating fires in Southern California, which have destroyed at least a dozen houses of worship in the Los Angeles area.听

In a with Religion News Service, Syeed called attention to the long history of interfaith cooperation in Altadena, CA, where religious leaders have banded together to support victims of the fires even as they mourn the loss of sacred spaces.听

“They鈥檙e helping their own communities, but they鈥檙e also stepping up and stepping beyond and helping each other,鈥� she said. “That鈥檚 part of the story鈥攆aith communities, even when they are damaged, still show up for the broader community.”

Religion News Service published a by Syeed highlighting the ways that local youth have led volunteer recovery efforts across faiths, ethnicities, and languages. “[Our teens’] continued service and their steady moral compass make me excited to see the world they will run,” she wrote. “A world in which we don鈥檛 need a litmus test on your beliefs before we offer care, where your story is important to share no matter which income bracket you come from. A world in which the measure of our humanity is how much we show up for each other with an embodied empathy that asks, “What do you need, dear friend, who I may not know? Let me be there for you.””

Syeed was also interviewed for a about calls from local leaders to focus on equity and justice in rebuilding. In it, she lifted up the long-standing interfaith connections in Pasadena and Altadena. “People knew each other in the neighborhood and worked together before the fires,鈥� she said. “What you鈥檙e seeing now is an outpouring of those relationships.”

Scholars, Church Leaders Object to Misuse of Bonhoeffer鈥檚 Theology and Life

Posted on October 30, 2024

An international group of scholars has issued a statement denouncing the misuse of the legacy of Dietrich Bonhoeffer in support of political violence and Christian nationalism in the U.S. Augsburg faculty member Lori Brandt Hale, an internationally recognized Bonhoeffer scholar, co-authored the statement alongside several members of the , where she serves as president of the English Language Section. Brandt Hale was interviewed by about the project.

Bonhoeffer, a German theologian and anti-Nazi dissident, was executed by the Nazi regime in 1945 for his participation in a conspiracy against Hitler.听

鈥淎ny attempt to invoke Dietrich Bonhoeffer and his resistance against Hitler as a reason to engage in political violence in our contemporary context must be strongly opposed,鈥� the reads. 鈥淒ietrich Bonhoeffer himself provides the best defense against these misuses of his life and work. He did not ask, 鈥渉ow far will you go?鈥� He did not ask, 鈥渋s this a Bonhoeffer moment?鈥� Bonhoeffer鈥檚 life was defined by the question, 鈥淲ho is Christ for us today?鈥� With this question, Bonhoeffer teaches us that Christ is to be found in the presence and suffering of the neighbor, whether across the street or across the border. With this question, he has inspired Christians and non-Christians around the world to work for a society based on solidarity and humanity.鈥�

The statement has been co-signed by prominent scholars and church leaders in the U.S., Canada, and Europe, including Elizabeth A. Eaton, presiding bishop, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America; Mark S. Hanson, presiding bishop emeritus, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and former president, Lutheran World Federation; Susan C. Johnson, national bishop, Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada; Karen Georgia Thompson, general minister and president/CEO, United Church of Christ; Konrad Raiser, general secretary emeritus, World Council of Churches; Kirsten Fehrs, acting chair, Council of the Protestant Church in Germany; Christian Krieger, president, Conference of European Churches; and Rowan Williams, former Archbishop of Canterbury.听

Following the release of the statement, 86 of the 100 living descendants of the Bonhoeffer siblings published an open letter, echoing the scholars鈥� concerns. It is the family鈥檚 first public statement about Dietrich Bonhoeffer since 1945.听

Professor Brandt Hale specializes in Bonhoeffer鈥檚 life and legacy in her research, teaching, and public scholarship. She is the co-author, with Stephen Haynes, of 鈥淏onhoeffer for Armchair Theologians鈥� (Westminster John Knox, 2009) and the co-editor, with W. David Hall, of 鈥淒ietrich Bonhoeffer, Theology, and Political Resistance鈥� (Lexington Books, 2020). She was a keynote panelist at 鈥淒emocracy and Discipleship鈥擫essons from Dietrich Bonhoeffer in Polarized Times,鈥� a two-day conference hosted at Augsburg in July 2024. Professor Brandt Hale currently also serves as the director of Augsburg鈥檚 school of humanities and social sciences and teaches in the department of religion and philosophy.