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Augsburg Nursing Faculty Focus on Infant Health Through MDH Grant

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A woman holds a baby at Health Commons. Both are wearing winter hats and jackets.
Health Commons visitors

Augsburg University Assistant Professor of Nursing Katie Martin is the recipient of a $160,000 grant from the Minnesota Department of Health to support infant health in the Cedar-Riverside neighborhood. Martin is a certified midwife who has been providing care to expecting mothers in the area for over 20 years. Since beginning her academic tenure at Augsburg in 2021, she has become a coordinator at the Health Commons and the director of the BSN-completion program in addition to her teaching responsibilities.

“I have been honored to work at the Health Commons in Cedar Riverside over this past year and am so excited that this generous grant allows us to be able to expand the work we do,” Martin says. “We’ll restart programs that were happening pre-pandemic centered on maternal and infant health through community-led programming and community-based research.”

The funds from this grant will support new projects at the Health Commons in Cedar-Riverside, a health-focused drop-in center that is offered through a decade-long partnership between Augsburg, M Health Fairview, and the East Africa Health Project. Aligned with the grant program’s goal to reduce infant mortality in Minnesota, Martin and the Health Commons team are focused on three objectives: 

  1. Infants in the Cedar-Riverside community are born at term and at a healthy weight.
  2. Infants in the Cedar-Riverside community survive and thrive in their first year of life.
  3. East African Immigrants trust and feel safe with their health care providers in the Minneapolis metropolitan area.

This grant-funded work will be led by an Infant Health Advisory Committee organized by Martin. Much of the activities of the grant include offering infant health educational courses, distributing safe cribs, increasing safe sleep messaging and prenatal care, and hosting monthly birth celebrations at the Health Commons in Cedar-Riverside. Additionally, graduate students will be able to complete a paid internship through this grant and assist in a research project. This grant will also support ongoing programming and health services currently offered at the Health Commons, such as blood pressure checks and movement and mindfulness classes.

“This grant was extremely competitive and is a tribute to Dr. Martin’s expertise in infant health, health equity, and her relationships in Cedar-Riverside,” said Associate Professor Katie Clark, chair of Augsburg’s department of nursing and executive director of the Health Commons.  “Congratulations, Dr. Martin!”

Learn more about Augsburg’s Health Commons locations, range of services, and operating hours.

Announcing the Lindstrom Endowed Professorship of Chemistry at Augsburg University

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Augsburg University is pleased to announce the establishment of the Terry ’73 and Janet Lindstrom Endowed Professorship of Chemistry.

Terry and Janet Lindstrom have generously supported Augsburg for over 40 years. Their philanthropic support includes the Augsburg Fund, summer research opportunities, the Student Emergency Fund, and the Hagfors Center. After a distinguished career in drug discovery and development at Eli Lilly and Company, Terry retired in 2010. He joined Augsburg’s Board of Regents in 2018, where he chairs the enrollment management committee.

Endowed professorships like the Lindstrom Endowed Professor of Chemistry play a vital role in supporting faculty, promoting academic excellence, and ensuring the long-term success of students. “This transformative gift affirms Augsburg’s longstanding commitment to excellence in the natural sciences,” said President Paul Pribbenow. “In a time when scientific knowledge has itself become contested, we are incredibly grateful to the Lindstroms for this investment to strengthen the critical leadership of our faculty.”

Learn more about the Lindstroms and the Lindstrom Endowed Professorship.

Chris Stedman ’08 Talks Religious “Nones” With MPR

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MPR News logoOn March 5, Chris Stedman ’08 joined Minnesota Public Radio to talk about religious “nones”—people who check the “none” box when asked about their religious affiliation. Stedman, who teaches in Augsburg’s Department of Religion and Philosophy, is working on a book that explores the cultural forces behind the rise in “nones.” His conversation with Cathy Wurzer was part of a new Minnesota Now series called “Faith in Minnesota.”

“I don’t think it’s that religion is going away,” Stedman said. “Rather I think there are these cultural forces that are pushing people out of religious institutions and institutions more broadly, as you say, things like consumerism that pushes us to think of ourselves as individual consumers rather than part of this larger whole, things like increasingly precarious employment, which makes it harder to participate regularly in things and makes us feel like religion or spirituality is something we have to do on our own time fitted in between all our other commitments and obligations if we have time to think about it at all.

“So to me, if people are worried about the decline of religious affiliation or participation, the biggest thing they can do honestly is to work toward a more equitable and just world where people have more time to consider life’s big questions, to get engaged with the world around them, and connect and participate and belong. And this is why I love teaching this religion class I teach at Augsburg because my main goal there is simply to help carve out space in my student’s busy, demanding lives to reflect on what matters to them and why and on their responsibility to the world around them, all the kinds of questions that religion at its best puts before people.”

Listen to the complete interview via MPR: “Faith in Minnesota: who are religious ‘nones’?”

New York Times Quotes Professor Michael Lansing on Historic All-Female St. Paul City Council

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New York Times wordmarkMichael Lansing, professor and chair of history at Augsburg University, was quoted in a January 10 New York Times article about the swearing-in of St. Paul’s first all-female city council. For the first time, all seven city council members are women; they are also younger and more racially diverse than any council in St. Paul’s history. 

Lansing, an active public historian, spoke to the Times about demographic shifts in recent decades that helped lay the groundwork for this historic election. The election of seven women to city council is “a turning point for St. Paul,” he told the Times.

“They’re all under 40, they come from these different backgrounds, they’re probably going to be in politics for a while,” he said. “What do they do? What can they change? How do they see things differently?”

Read the article via the New York Times: “All-Female City Council Marks a ‘Turning Point’ for a Twin City”

‘Humble Listening’: Najeeba Syeed Featured on Interfaith America Podcast

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Najeeba Syeed is wearing a pink heaadscarf, round gold earrings, and a purple shirt while posing against a blue and purple background.Najeeba Syeed, El-Hibri Endowed Chair and executive director of the Interfaith Institute at Augsburg University, was a recent guest on the Interfaith America Podcast with I’m Eboo Patel. The conversation explored the ethics and future of interfaith work amid deep divides across religious communities, the impact of global wars and crises on religious communities, and the role of institutions in promoting interfaith understanding through open-mindedness and deep listening. 

Towards the end of the podcast, Professor Syeed reflected on fostering constructive interfaith conversations in the classroom and on campus:

“To me, the confidence that I have in being Muslim and the teachings and the capacity is not impinged upon by being present for people of other faiths,” she said. “I can walk into a space and I have a deep belief that I’m there because of the calling of being a Muslim. It isn’t a threat to me to show up and exhibit rahma or which is compassion. It comes from the root word Rahmah, the same in Hebrew around the idea of the womb to express compassion for others because it isn’t a threat to my own interpretation of who I am. … It’s a position of strength and not a position of deficiency.”

“That to me is a spiritual lesson that interfaith can bring to so many of the dialogues that we’re trying to have on our campus, is that maybe the position of strength is actually doing this humble listening.”

“The position of strength doesn’t mean that we move to a diluted, common understanding of the world where we all accept one interpretation, a universal theology, or one diluted version. Maybe the strength is that we listen to each other.” 

Listen to the podcast via Interfaith America: “How Can We Engage in “Sacred Witness” Amid Deep Conflict?”

MPR Interviews Religion Instructor Chris Stedman ’08 About Award-Winning Podcast and Britney Spears

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MPR News logoChris Stedman ’08 joined MPR’s Cathy Wurzer on Minnesota Now on October 25 to discuss his podcast, “Unread,” and its connection to Britney Spears, who recently released a new memoir. “Unread,” which was named one of the best podcasts of 2021 by Vulture and the Guardian, among others, is a four-part series that explores friendship and grief following the death of a close friend of Stedman’s. 

“As I was processing his death and trying to make sense of what happened, I found myself thinking so much about why he loved Britney and the resonances that he felt with her and her story, which ultimately is what led me to make Unread,” says Stedman in the interview with MPR. “And really, that’s one of the sort of things that I explore in that podcast in addition to this Britney-related mystery that he left for me when he died, which was kind of what started my exploration is just, why is it that so many people who seem to struggle in life in some way, as he did, see themselves reflected in the experiences of Britney?”

Stedman teaches in Augsburg’s Department of Religion and Philosophy. In addition to “Unread,” he is the author of “IRL: Finding Realness, Meaning, and Belonging in Our Digital Lives” and “Faitheist: How an Atheist Found Common Ground with the Religious.” For the 2023–24 academic year, he is also serving as the Augsburg Interfaith Institute’s inaugural research fellow. 

Listen to the full interview via MPR: “Local podcaster shares Britney Spears’ impact amid release of new memoir”

Augsburg Health Commons Bring Drop-In Care to New Locations

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PA faculty member Vanessa Bester is seated on a stool providing foot care at a Health Commons location.The Augsburg Health Commons is expanding to bring its proven model of accompaniment-based care to more neighbors through new partnerships and locations.

Late last year, an agreement with M Health Fairview and Redeemer Center for Life formalized a partnership at the Living Room in the Harrison neighborhood of north Minneapolis, where a drop-in site based on the Health Commons model had operated since 2012. Following a disruption of in-person services during the COVID-19 pandemic, the site was re-opened in October 2022 under the leadership of Augsburg Physician Assistant Program Director Vanessa Bester.  

This summer, the first Health Commons in St. Paul opened in the Conway Community Center through a partnership with M Health Fairview, the Sanneh Foundation, and the East Side Health & Well-Being Collaborative. Health Commons Executive Director Katie Clark and Augsburg Board of Regents Chair Dennis Meyer will join St. Paul community leaders on August 16 for a ribbon-cutting ceremony at Health Commons East. 

These new locations join long-standing Health Commons sites at Central Lutheran Church in downtown Minneapolis and in the Cedar-Riverside neighborhood. 

“Our nursing and physician assistant faculty, along with our students, are committed to the vision of a drop-in center that focuses on the needs of the communities we serve to address health inequities and other deep-rooted issues faced when seeking care,” said Augsburg President Paul C. Pribbenow. “Augsburg is especially pleased to extend our efforts to the East Side St. Paul neighborhood.”

Augsburg’s Health Commons sites are health-focused drop-in centers led and organized by nursing and physician assistant faculty members, Augsburg students, volunteers, and community members. Developed by Augsburg nursing faculty in the early 1990s, the Health Commons model is founded on principles of hospitality and relationship development that leads to transcultural understanding and health benefits for all participants. 

The people who come to the Health Commons are from diverse cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds, and many are unhoused or marginally housed. Health concerns might include nutrition, medication, stress management, respiratory conditions, injuries, skin problems, and chronic disease such as diabetes and hypertension. Everyone is welcome, and all services are provided free of charge, without proof of need or time constraints. 

Augsburg’s PA program has taken on a growing role as new partnerships and locations have developed. The PA program has led the expansion of services at the Cedar-Riverside Health Commons, connecting with community members providing foot care, a need across many marginalized communities. 

“The PA program is humbled and honored to bring the model of accompaniment-based care into our curriculum and medical practice. Faculty, staff and students are able to build connections, meet people where they are at in their health journey, and learn how health inequities are impacting the people we care for every day. The Harrison neighborhood, Cedar-Riverside, Central Lutheran, and now East St. Paul are the paradigm of what providing health and care should look like in every community,” said Bester. 

To learn more, volunteer, or support the Health Commons, visit augsburg.edu/healthcommons.

Najeeba Syeed Named to Interfaith Leaders in Higher Education Council

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Najeeba Speed speaking at Interfaith eventInterfaith America has appointed Najeeba Syeed, El-Hibri chair and executive director of Interfaith at Augsburg, to the inaugural Interfaith Leaders in Higher Education Council. This council serves as a point of connection for educators dedicated to interfaith work both in their respective institutions and throughout the higher education field. The council will meet quarterly with the Interfaith Leadership Institute team to offer their expertise on undergraduate programming and expand their own interfaith leadership skills. “I’m profoundly thankful to Interfaith America,” Syeed says. “What an incredible group of leaders to serve and serve with, and a wonderful organization to be a part of.” 

Read more from Interfaith America: Meet the Inaugural Interfaith Leaders in Higher Education Council

Assistant Professor Shayna Sheinfeld Wins Outstanding Book Award

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Image of book cover that shows a painting of a woman with dark eyes and heavy eyebrows. White text on a red background reads, "Jewish and Christian Women in the Ancient Mediterranean," Sara Parks, Shayna Sheinfeld, and Meredith J.C. Warren Shayna Sheinfeld, assistant professor of religion and philosophy, received the 2023 Frank W. Beare Award from the Canadian Society for Biblical Studies for her book, “Jewish and Christian Women in the Ancient Mediterranean.” 

Co-authored with Sara Parks and Meredith J. C. Warren, “Jewish and Christian Women in the Ancient Mediterranean” is the first undergraduate textbook dedicated to introducing women’s religious roles in Judaism and Christianity in a way that is accessible to students from all disciplines. In addition to contextualizing overviews, it includes explorations of specific topics in women’s religion, including leadership, domestic ritual, women as readers and writers of scripture, and women as innovators in their traditions. 

The Frank W. Beare award recognizes an outstanding book in the areas of Christian origins, post-biblical Judaism, and/or Graeco-Roman religions.

Senior Fellowships Anchor Collaboration Between Augsburg’s Interfaith Institute and the Oxford Interfaith Forum

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El-Hibri Chair and Executive Director of Interfaith Institute Najeeba Syeed

Najeeba Syeed, El-Hibri chair and executive director of Interfaith at Augsburg, has been named a senior fellow of the Oxford Interfaith Forum. Reciprocally, Director of the Oxford Interfaith Forum Thea Gomelauri will join Augsburg’s Interfaith Institute as a senior fellow this fall. This mutual fellowship is a distinct characteristic of the institutions’ partnership, which will focus on issues of peace, justice, intercultural and interfaith education, and furthering interreligious learning across the globe.

Gomelauri is a faculty member of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies at the University of Oxford and has extensive experience in research, teaching, and consultancy in different international, and intercultural contexts. She is a member of the Jewish-Muslim Research Network, the Bible and Religions of the Ancient Near East Collective, and the British and Irish Association of Jewish Studies.

Director of the Oxford Interfaith Forum Thea Gomelauri

As Augsburg’s El-Hibri chair and executive director of Interfaith Institute, Syeed serves as a national ambassador for the interfaith movement and faculty advisor for Augsburg’s Interfaith Scholars. She is a professor, expert practitioner, and public speaker in the fields of interfaith studies, mediation, conflict resolution, deliberative democracy, and social, gender, and racial equity.

“This fellowship serves as an anchor for our collaborative work of Interfaith Institute at Augsburg University and the Oxford Interfaith Forum,” Syeed says. “We look forward to collaborating in the United States, United Kingdom, and across the globe.”