The Norman and Evangeline Hagfors Center for Science, Business, and Religion hosted its grand opening ceremony in style on Saturday, January 27, 2018. Approximately 1000 guests attended the celebration, which included a ribbon-cutting ceremony, remarks by President Pribbenow and Campaign Chair Mike Good ’71, live music, gourmet food stations on each floor, and exclusive access to many parts of the new, four-level building. Some of the Hagfors Center artists who contributed to the Art and Identity campaign also attended and were available to discuss their artwork in detail with attendees. Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey joined the celebration and expressed his admiration for the building.
President Paul Pribbenow addressing guests at the grand opening.Rory Wakemup discussing his interactive art work with Paul and Nancy Mueller.
The open house began at 3 p.m., and guests were able to visit a multitude of classrooms and laboratories, where they could view the impressive state-of-the-art communications and scientific equipment, and participate in a variety of activities, including liquid nitrogen ice cream tasting, a chemical instrument tour, and a fruit-leather-making demonstration.
Dr. Peter Agre ’70 was celebrated with placement of a replica of his Nobel Prize award just outside the suspended Hagfors Center Gundale Chapel. A number of other people who have been integral in making the Hagfors Center a reality were also celebrated with mini-receptions throughout the building.
Guests had plenty of opportunity to socialize with alumni, staff, donors, and other friends of the College, while enjoying the gourmet food stations, which included a fresh vegetable-and-dip platter, a build-your-own macaroni cheese stand, and a delectable dessert station.
The event was a resounding success, and a good spirit prevailed among all who came to celebrate Augsburg University’s newest building.
The Norman and Evangeline Hagfors Center for Science, Business and Religion.
Many adults would likely freeze in place if asked to teach a middle school class, much less try to interest those students in theater. Then there are those special people for whom such work just comes naturally. Ertwin “Ert” Jones-Hermerding ’69 was such a person.
Ert’s Augsburg mentor, the late Ailene Cole (who taught theater at Augsburg for 29 years), saw it early on, insisting that his talent was definitely with the younger kids—the high-schoolers, sure; but more so, the younger ones. It was at Augsburg that Ert knew he wanted to be a teacher.
Football and Theater
When Ert found an opening for a speech teacher at Plymouth Junior High in the Robbinsdale, Minn., school district, he jumped at the chance because it gave him the opportunity to also coach football. As a speech/communication teacher and football coach in Robbinsdale for 34 years, Ert endeared himself
Ertwin “Ert” Jones-Hermerding, recipient of Augsburg’s 2003 Distinguished Alumni Award
to countless junior high (middle school) and high school students, and many of them went on to pursue interesting professional careers due to his strong influence. His students included Darcey Engen ’88 (Theatre Arts professor at Augsburg), Mad TV’s Mo Collins, and actor Steve Zahn, who once donned a curly wig in junior high and did a memorable, gut-splitting impersonation of TV exercise personality Richard Simmons.
“Herm,” as he was affectionately known by his students, found ways to interest athletes in the drama program, and speech students in the football program, increasing the pool from which to draw and surprising many students who may not have otherwise considered such involvement.
Herm was, most notably, the first to teach improvisational theatre at the junior high level, creating a new model that was replicated in many other schools. When he died suddenly in a one-vehicle motorcycle accident two years after retiring, the online posts from former students said it all—“Brought me out of my shell.” “Favorite teacher.” “Made learning fun.” “Creative and passionate.” “I was fat and unpopular…he cast me in the lead…he lit me up.” “Great mentor to so many kids.”
Herm’s students would often sit together at school lunch to write their own plays. With parental permission to miss some school, they would crowd into a conversion van to take their shows to local elementary schools. Using only milk crates as sets, and maybe a mic for the narrator, they often drew huge groups of youngsters.
When asked how her late husband came to have such a heart for young people, Pat Jones-Hermerding says she isn’t sure how you can understand what’s at someone’s core, but she knew Ert had found his calling. He opened up his ideas to his students, and he had the kind of personality to which they gravitated—a big personality that could take over a room. Everything became a story, says Pat, and it usually grew into an even bigger story. He was energetic and funny—and fit right in with the kids. She takes special pleasure in reminders of Ert’s legacy, particularly when encountering former students who have gone into theater, or played sports for a college, or become teachers.
The Apple Tree
The apple tree was dedicated on campus in October, thanks to the efforts of Ert’s Auggie roommate and longtime friend, Glen J. Peterson.
In October, when more than 20 family members and friends of Ert gathered next to Foss Center to dedicate a young apple tree in his memory, those attending were unaware of the tree’s interesting history. They were just grateful for the tree’s healthy start, and for the opportunity to designate a different tree on campus since the tree they had originally dedicated to Ert’s memory in 2009 had become diseased and died.
The history of the replacement tree, they later learned, was tied to Augsburg student Emily Knudson ’15, who had planted three apple trees as part of her senior Keystone p
To symbolize various aspects of the sacred nature of the dedication, Ert’s longtime friend, Karl Sneider (dressed in black at the right), used four colored flags as he offered a Lakota blessing. Those gathered enjoyed eating big, juicy apples to celebrate.
roject. With this project, and through the Minnesota Project’s Fruits of the City program, Knudson was able to enter the network of hundreds of other tree owners and volunteer gleaners statewide who donate tens of thousands of pounds of fresh fruit each year to local food shelf partners. The newly placed plaque by the tree honors both Knudson’s project and Jones-Hermerding’s memory.
The Auggie Friendships
Among those who gathered at the tree’s dedication were two of Ert’s long-time Auggie friends, Glen J. Peterson ’69 and Karl Sneider ’71. All three had been members of Gamma Phi Omega, a campus/community service fraternity active on campus in the late ‘60s and ‘70s. Though participation in athletics was not a requirement for membership, many Gammas were involved in sports, which served to deepen many of the friendships. Peterson says that he and Ert were dorm mates as freshmen, and decided to join a third friend to live in a house by Riverside Park for their remaining three years. Peterson chuckles as he recalls that, since there were only two beds in the house when they moved in, Ert was content to sleep temporarily on a mattress on top of the kitchen table.
As Peterson reflects on those college days, he is reminded of how diligent a student Ert was, studying long hours for his language course. He was introspective, hard-working, and intense—in the best sense of that word—and those qualities applied to all areas of his college life: academics, football, track, and theater. He also exerted outsized influence in the life of his young brother, Mike.
If Peterson were to summarize Ert’s legacy in a few words, “integrity” would quickly come to mind. Ert was honest and trustworthy, says Peterson, and dedicated as an educator and as a person. Then he adds, “People would strive to be like him because Ert was adamant about caring about people.”
Augsburg celebrated the holiday period in true Norweigian style, and nearly fifty Augsburg Associates volunteered at the 2017 Velkommen Jul festivities on December 1. Many volunteers were busy putting in extra days to make special Norwegian treats, and arrived early to help butter bread and lefse, and ensure that the event was a huge success.
There was exceptional student participation, including the Associates scholarship students who served waffles to hungry patrons. The event celebrated long-standing Augsburg friendships, and encouraged guests to create new friendships from our diverse community. Guests expressed their appreciation with kind words and contributions, and the scholarship baskets gathered a superb $1190.
Mike Scott ’71 admits that talking about friendship isn’t his strongest point, but he’s more than happy to acknowledge that his Augsburg friendships were the best part of his Augsburg experience. Mike and four of those Auggie friends—Larry Stewart ’72 , Tim Casey ’71, Mike Good ’71, and Bruce Santerre ’71—have maintained communication since graduation, and their friendship has survived the test of time. As a group of five, the men have put a priority on keeping in touch; they have celebrated marriages together, consoled each other in difficult times, and gotten to know each other’s children. As far as friendships go, these men share a connection so strong they consider themselves ‘almost’ family.
When Four Became Five
The five men pulling their infamous pose.
In the fall semester of 1967, the academic year was pushed back for a short period of time to accommodate the completion of Urness Tower. All non-commuting football players were accommodated in Memorial Hall until the semester started and they could be placed in permanent residence halls. It was there that Mike Scott met his very first college roommate, Larry Stewart, as well as Tim Casey and Bruce Santerre, who roomed next door. Besides playing football, the men shared another common thread; they were all from rural out-state. The four men connected as teammates, as neighbors, and by their rural upbringings—and they became friends. When the fall semester eventually started, the four were moved to Mortensen Hall where they would be living on a full-time basis. As chance would have it, on moving day Mike Scott encountered a familiar face and an old acquaintance, Mike Good. The young men had met years earlier through coincidence, when Mike Good was visiting family in Mike Scott’s hometown of Renville. If this was not surprising enough, the men discovered that Mike Good had been assigned to be Tim Casey’s roommate. This sealed the deal; the initial group of four quickly became five and a friendship blossomed that would span the course of the rest of their lives.
Say Cheese
As the delayed academic year trickled into summer, on one lazy afternoon when they were feeling bored and desperate for entertainment, the five men, along with some fellow Mortensen Hall buddies, decided to take a hilariously posed photograph where they flexed their arm muscles or “guns.” Little did they know at the time that this photograph would be the start of a picture-taking tradition that would mark the significant times of their lives, like weddings and reunions.
Throughout college, the five either lived together, or within one house of each other. As life took them on their individual journeys, they continued to support each other and strengthen their friendship. From babysitting one another’s children, to taking on important duties for each other (Larry is the godfather of Mike Scott’s son, Kelley), to incorporating spouses and ‘special’ friends – their friendship has never wavered.
Today, although the friends are not physically together (due mainly to career paths that led each to his own location), the group continues to share an incredibly strong bond. At the 2017 Augsburg University Homecoming in October, the five men reunited for another photograph. Although time has changed the faces in the photographs, the deep friendship of these funny freshmen who were inspired by boredom to take a silly photograph in 1968, lives on.
Reunited at Homecoming 2017 (L-R Tim Casey, Mike Scott, Bruce Santerre, Larry Stewart and Mike Good)
Celebrate and respect our veterans and our men and women in service by joining the Augsburg University Alumni Association for the 6th Annual Minnesota Wild Beyond The Yellow Ribbon Awareness Night at the Xcel Energy Center on Thu, Nov 2 at 7:00 p.m.!
The Wild take on the Montreal Canadiens in a game that shouldn’t be missed… tickets include a new custom designed Grunt Style T-Shirt and entry into a raffle for autographed items.
Ticket collection will take place in the lobby of the Xcel Energy Center at 6:00 p.m on Thursday, November 2. Tickets cost $40 and can be purchased at: http://www.augsburg.edu/alumni/events/
Auggie Talks are back at Homecoming 2017! Please register for all Auggie Talks and any other Homecoming event you want to attend here.
Below is a schedule of the 2017 Auggie Talks:
Friday, October 13
3:30 p.m: Teaching the Bible, Faith and Vocation at Augsburg.
Auggie Talk #1- Hosted by the Class of 1967 @ Sateren Auditorium
This talk will feature Augsburg Legends Phil Quanbeck Sr ’50 and Rev. Dr. Phillip Quanbeck II reflecting on their last 50 years at Augsburg. This talk is sponsored by the class of ’67.
Saturday, October 14:
11:00 a.m: David Murr ’92
Auggie Talk #3 – Hosted by the Class of 1992 @ Lindell 301
Led by David Murr ’92, a journey though the typical progression through an Augsburg Major and an a-typical progression through a life
12:00 p.m: Peace Prize Forum
Auggie Talks #4- Hosted by the Class of 2007 @ Lindell 301
Nobel Peace Prize Forum: Past, Present & Future
Led by Bettine Hoff Hermanson, Managing Director, Nobel Peace Prize Forum. After a successful return of the Forum back to Augsburg’s Campus learn about this important event and our ties to this Norwegian institution.
12:00 p.m: What’s in a Name
Auggie Talk #5 @ Lindell Lower Level Class room
What’s in a Name?
Hear the behind-the-scenes story of “Project Montague,” our internal name for all the work required to change Augsburg College to Augsburg University. The project includes everything from designing new logos with alumnus Samuel Gross ’03 to updating signs and graphics all over campus and beyond, from registering a new trademark to restaining the gym floor, from working with MNDOT on highway signs to telling the world why we believe this rose by another name will smell even sweeter. Led by Stephen Jendraszak, Director of Marketing, Augsburg University and Samuel Gross ’03, Principal, 144design
1:00 p.m: Music Theater
Auggie Talk #6 @ Tjornhom-Nelson Theater
Auggies in Music Theater
Featuring presentations by Ivey Award winning composer Aaron Gabriel ’99, and Brian Halaas ’08 Director of Conference Programming at Arts Midwest. Brian, Aaron and Sonja will help to resurrect some of the history of the Music-Theater club and share where their journeys living lives in the arts has led.
1:00 p.m: Flute Ensemble
Auggie Talk #7 @ Sateren Auditorium
Please join Flute Studio Artist Trudi Anderson ’77 and Augsburg flutists from all eras – including Leah Abdella ’76, Rebecca Hartwig ‘15, Julie Johnson ’98, Kou Lee ‘11, Bonnie (Schwendeman) Maffitt ’78, Sheryl (Lium) Wilhelm ’76, just to name a few! – as they join together to make merry music as a flute ensemble, including alto, bass, and contrabass flutes!
2:00 p.m: Celebrating Torstenson
Auggie Talk #8 @ Oren Gateway Center 100
Join us in celebrating the life and legacy of Joel Torstenson! Led by Elaine Eschenbacher, Director of the Sabo Center.
2:30 p.m: Walking Tour
Auggie Talk #9 departing from the Oren Gateway Center Lobby
Steve Peacock, Director for Community Relations at Augsburg, leads a walking tour of the Cedar-Riverside neighborhood like no other!
Sod House Theater, which was founded by Augsburg alumni co-artistic directors Darcey Engen ’88 and Luverne Seifert ’83who are also husband and wife, presents “Hoopla Train” with Yard Master Yip and his Polkastra starting on September 21 through October 15. “Hoopla Train” is an event performed in old vaudevillian tradition with live music, singing and sketch comedy and is a show that welcomes the whole family. Dancing, with music provided by the Chmielewski Funtime Band, will be encouraged throughout the show, and free dance
Luverne Seifert ’83
lessons are offered one hour prior to the show time. Along with this, there will be a live talent show contest for audience members and prizes will be given out.
“We are interested in bringing the young and old back into the ballroom to revisit its magical splendor and its power in building community,” said Darcey Engen, “We were enthralled with the polka and waltz dancers of greater Minnesota, and witnessed a passionate commitment to this kind of community engagement. We are thrilled to bring “Hoopla Train” to the Twin Cities.” “Hoopla Train” has been performed previously in 14 historic ballrooms and dance halls across Minnesota.
The cast stars Darcey Engen, Elise Langer, Jim Lichtscheidl, Eriq Nelson, Kimberly Richardson, Luverne Seifert, Andrea Wollenberg and the Chmielewski Funtime Band. Tickets for “Hoopla Train” are $20 for adults; $10 for children, students and seniors and can be purchased at www.sodhousetheater.org or 612-414-2032.
As a child growing up in Chicago, Danielle Stellner ’07 heard mixed messages in her community about the importance of education. But in her family–a family of modest means–there was never any doubt that excelling in school was non-negotiable. Her mother made that clear.
Then, at the age of 18, Stellner herself became a mother. She knew her son was a real blessing. She also knew she yearned for something more in life, but she wasn’t sure what.
As she looks back over the years now, she is impressed at how dramatically access can change one’s life and trajectory. Access to college, access to job opportunities, access to mentors.
Danielle and her partner Herbert on a trip to Peru
One such mentor for Stellner was Erik Nycklemoe, an early supervisor in her career whom she sees as the first person to care about her career and life development. He made it possible for her to earn her B.A. from Augsburg, she says, making her the first in her family to earn an undergraduate degree. Access to evening/weekend study at Augsburg’s Weekend College (now Adult Undergraduate program) was a real break for Stellner, who needed to balance studies with being a working mom.
Moving to Minnesota in search of a safer life for Deion, her three-year-old son, Stellner landed an internship at a 24-hour news station in downtown Minneapolis, then moved on to editing, producing, and hosting. This experience helped hone her skills in content creation and delivery, and she later joined Minnesota Public Radio (a “happy accident”), where she now serves as Managing Partner of Business Planning. She sees public radio as more relevant today than ever. “You can trust public radio to rise above the pack and provide not only relevant news without slant, but arts and cultural programming that consumes you,” she says, and then quotes Thomas Jefferson: “…wherever the people are well informed, they can be trusted with their own government….”
She also found time to complete an MBA from the Carlson School of Management, where she had access to another mentor, Lisa Bittman–a Godsend, and a grounding force through some tough years, she says.
In the whole process, Stellner fell in love with Minnesota and with her now-husband, Herbert Stellner, and they later welcomed two more children into the family, Herbert Stellner IV (9) and Clara Gem Stellner (7).
Stellner completed her MBA at the Carlson School of Management
Stellner recalls her student days at Augsburg with gratitude, especially the fantastic lecturing of Dr. David Matz (sociology). In recent years she has reconnected with her alma mater, thanks to Shelby Andress ’56, who introduced her to the Augsburg Women Engaged (AWE) group–”the most incredible group of women I’ve ever met,” says Stellner. She is grateful to now be serving as co-chair of the AWE Council.
Stellner also serves on the board of Friendship Academy of the Arts, a blue-ribbon school that serves predominantly African American students, and on the board of Isuroon, an organization committed to self-sufficiency of Somali women and their families. Recently elected board secretary, Stellner is drawn to the organization by its dedication to changing the narrative that is portrayed in mainstream media to one that more accurately reflects the true family values of Somali culture.
Even with a demanding work schedule, Stellner and her family manage to keep a garden, and take delight in eating the fruits of their labors. But they wouldn’t mind some additional time with no agenda–time for family play, reading for pleasure–and perhaps a few extra hours of sleep. During Homecoming this fall, Stellner will be honored with Augsburg’s First Decade Award.
Perhaps this title conjures up confrontational images from the evening news—or memories of last year’s election. But for Stephanie (Lein) Walseth ’00 and Sam Walseth ’00, politics and drama are their lifeblood, and they co-exist amicably in their household.
Both Stephanie, whose theater experience in the Twin Cities is extensive, and Sam, who is president of a lobbying firm near the state capitol, are pursuing careers that are fulfilling and energizing to them. However, balancing the demands of their work schedules with their home life gets somewhat tricky these days. Two reasons for that are Graham (4-1/2) and Madeline (21 months), who can keep them scrambling.
But Sam says that being a daddy means everything to him—and that being a parent changes one in so many ways. “It’s the most awesome and difficult job” he’s ever had, and he particularly enjoys wrestling with them. As a lobbyist for clients who are mostly public-sector, nonprofit organizations in the areas of public education, youth development, and human services, Sam is on call 24/7 when the legislature is in session. With that reality, having friends and family who are willing to help with the kids in a pinch is a blessing. The jury is still out on whether he will have time to return to his guitar lessons, or whether Stephanie will get a chance to complete the kids’ scrapbooks.
How does one become a lobbyist? Sam’s involvement in student government at Augsburg led to his candidacy for an internship in his senior year. That internship, in turn, led him to the state capitol and, he says, he “hasn’t been able to get away since.” As president of Capitol Hill Associates, he takes satisfaction in succeeding on behalf of his clients, especially when he feels good public policy has actually been made. One of his most memorable days at the capitol involved securing major levy authority for rural school districts to take care of deferred maintenance issues. “This doesn’t sound very sexy,” he says, “but it closed a huge funding inequity and really helped rural school budgets.”
For Stephanie, there was no mystery about career choice; she knew as a little girl that theater would be her vocational path. She loved it then and still does. She is continually impressed with the multitude of ways one can be involved in the performing arts, and she has not been timid about pursuing numerous avenues. Her Augsburg experience was, she says, “pivotal” to her artistic philosophy and career, and she went on to complete an MA and PhD in Theatre Historiography at the University of Minnesota.
With professional theater experience that includes acting, directing, dramaturgy, playwriting, and stage management, as well as arts administration, and educational work within academia and theater companies, Stephanie now finds herself at an interesting crossroads. The career possibilities that are most compelling include some combination of freelance artistic work, full-time work in the nonprofit sector, and positions within higher education. Whichever direction she veers, her work and life will likely focus in some way on social justice, a topic that has always been a passion for her.
Sam and Stephanie have stayed in touch with many Auggie classmates, including Erica Huls ’01, who snapped the family photos that accompany this story. Stephanie grew up around Augsburg since her mother, Cindy Peterson, served for 35 years on the staff (American Indian Student Services, and Scholastic Connections), retiring just last August. In her theater work on the Augsburg faculty (she has taught as an adjunct in the department since 2011), Stephanie has especially enjoyed becoming a colleague of the professors who taught her, such as Darcey Engen ‘88 and Michael Burden ’85.
Further solidifying the “Augsburg connection,” the Full Circle Theater Company, which Stephanie co-founded with four other Twin Cities theater professionals in 2013, has brought together her Augsburg prof/advisor, Martha Johnson (co-artistic director), and Johnson’s husband, Rick Shiomi (other co-artistic director), who was also the artistic director of Mu Performing Arts and Stephanie’s boss when she was managing director for that company. For Stephanie, the name of the company—Full Circle Theater—reflects not only the intent to address the multiracial, multicultural, multi-generational realities of contemporary America in all of its nuanced complexity, but also Stephanie’s own full circle in “coming home” to work with friends Martha and Rick. The company has created an opportunity for her to return to her roots as a practicing artist, and to expand the circle to include even more theater-makers, artists, and audiences.
Sam and Stephanie first met each other in the chapel on the first day of their freshman orientation. Years later, they were married by Pastor Sonja Hagander in the very same space, and both Graham and Madeline were baptized by Pastor Sonja there as well. Augsburg definitely feels like home to them!
For a young man born in a Kenyan refugee camp and immigrating to the U.S. at age 12 through the persistent efforts of his hard-working mother, to now be chosen as one of 31 young Fellows from 25 countries to participate in the 2017 World Innovation Summit for Education (WISE) Learners’ Voice Program may seem unlikely. And for Awale (“Wally”) Osman ’15, it is “surreal.” But this opportunity is one of many that have energized him.
And, for him, this year’s conference topic is very close to home—Global Forced Migration and Refugee Crisis.
Osman has just returned from the first residential session, held in Athens, Greece, where the Fellows had a chance to study how Greece was handling its own refugee crisis and the challenges that affect a refugee community. The group heard from established experts on the topic, studied where crises were occurring, and proposed possible solutions. They heard from those working “on the ground” and did volunteer work with individuals having to go through the process of seeking asylum. The session in Athens (“an extraordinary experience,” says Osman) and a second residential session, to be convened during the summer in Madrid, Spain, will culminate in the WISE conference in Doha in November.
As Osman looks back on the many opportunities he has been granted, he is consistently motivated to give back. He mentions his ESL (English as a Second Language) teachers in the U.S., who played a pivotal role in conquering his first major barrier (and that of most refugees)—language. Those teachers also put him in touch with Boys & Girls Club, where he became involved; Upward Bound, which prepared him for college; and TRiO/Student Support Services, which helped him persist in earning his bachelor’s degree. These are part of the Federal TRiO programs funded through the U.S. Department of Education and focusing on providing comprehensive academic support, integrated learning courses, learning communities, academic English enhancement, and leadership development for low- to moderate-income, first-generation college students and students with disabilities.
Osman sees these TRiO programs as the “main pillars” that helped him grow personally and professionally. They enabled him to set goals and find connections to resources. They evaluated his progress, held him accountable, and served as a source of emotional support. And they kept him connected, even as he worked to support his family (most of whom now live in the States). Continue reading “The Joy of Circling Back”→
