Wednesday, March 31, 2021

Index

Public Safety and Facilities Announcements

Teaching and Learning

General Announcements

Event Announcements

Keeping Track of Auggies

Classifieds

Public Safety and Facilities Announcements

Teaching and Learning

Want to Teach, Study, or Research Abroad with Fulbright?

submitted by kundell@augsburg.edu

The Fulbright US Student Program offers college graduates the opportunity to participate in diplomacy in over 140 countries. Your experience could include teaching English, working on a Master’s degree, or performing research in any field, including performance studies and the creative arts. You may apply in the summer before/fall of your senior year or after you graduate. URGO offers advising, application support, and interviews for endorsement by Augsburg University for both current students and alumni.

If you are interested in this opportunity, please contact urgo@augsburg.edu for more information. All current students and recent alumni are welcome to inquire, even if you won’t be eligible to apply for the coming application cycle.

Fulbright US Student Program Website

CTL Hosting NAMI “Wellness in Color” Discussion

submitted by maherk@augsburg.edu

It’s hard to ignore our emotional, psychological, and social well-being today when it’s being inundated with MAJOR stressors that affect how we think, feel, and act. Please join CTL fellows and other faculty/staff for a discussion of mental health, especially related to communities of color. We will be facilitating a discussion on NAMI Minnesota’s Wellness in Color podcasts. Please listen to three of these podcasts (available at https://namimn.org/education-and-public-awareness/podcast-episodes/) and come discuss what you’ve learned on a Zoom meeting with other faculty and staff members. We will be meeting on Monday, April 12 from 3:10 pm to 4:10 pm to listen to so that we will have things in common that we can discuss. Please listen to the following podcasts: “Blurring Tradition,” “Flipping the Status Quo,” and “Between Two Worlds.”

If you need any disability-related accommodation to fully participate in this event, please contact University Events at events@augsburg.edu or 612-330-1104. Please allow for sufficient time to arrange the accommodation. Use the linked RSVP form to let us know you would like to join.

Wellness in Color Podcast Discussion | Monday, April 12 | 3:10 pm – 4:10 pm | ZOOM

RSVP for the Wellness in Color Discussion

Office Hours April 6 and April 7: Degree Audit System

submitted by maherk@augsburg.edu

All faculty are invited to join the upcoming deans’ office hours (Tuesday, April 6 from 2:30 pm – 3:30 pm and Wednesday, April 7 from 10 am – 11 am). These two sessions will include a very brief demonstration of the new degree audit tool, followed by an opportunity for Q&A.

The encoders have developed a series of short training videos and posted them on Augsburg’s Community Moodle site. There are 15 videos with a total viewing time of about 2.5 hours. If possible, we encourage you to review these videos before the office hours next week.

We will also be conducting one Q & A session during 3 Days in May to answer any further questions.

If you have any questions, feel free to contact Hope Blatchley manocchi@augsburg.edu or Christine Berkenpas berkenpa@augsburg.edu.

If you need any disability-related accommodation to fully participate in this event, please contact University Events at events@augsburg.edu or 612-330-1104. Please allow for sufficient time to arrange the accommodation.

Zoom Information for Office Hours (must have Augsburg login to view)

Updates from the Academic Affairs Committee

submitted by maherk@augsburg.edu

Here are the recent approvals from the Academic Affairs Committee:

*COM 281 was approved to become an upper-division course. It will not be COM 301.
*RLN 397: Part of a track where students will complete their B.A. and M.Div. in five years. They will enroll in a 3 credit course for a 15 week paid internship.
*ENL 223: Makes this course an LAF that satisfies a Humanities requirement in the core curriculum.
*URGO Policy Proposal: Reduces the number of hours required for the AE (through the URGO program) from 100 to 80.
*PSY 100: A new non-major GenEd LAF topics course that can be paired with AugSem sections.
*ART 220: Have observed a Screen Printing course as a special topic, and it is now a permanent course.
*Registrar/Advising Policy Proposal: Allows students to retake topics classes with different titles to replace a previously taken course.
*ACA 100: This class supports a population of our first-year class transition to Augsburg.
*PHI 295: Adds a course description to the catalog and ask for approval as a Humanities LAF course.

The committee is also working on a policy around requirements for a Minor. In addition, they heard updates from the TEL subcommittee, who is working on a proposal to become a standing committee. TEL also recommended a suspension in necessary review of Hybrid/Asynchronous delivery throughout the summer/fall.

Information about AAC can be found at https://inside.augsburg.edu/facultysenate/aac/. You will find meeting minutes, proposal information, and spreadsheet that tracks all of the AAC approvals. This tracking spreadsheet is also linked below.

AAC Tracking Spreadsheet

General Announcements

Now Hiring: Human Resources Student Assistant

submitted by cswanson@augsburg.edu

If you’re looking for a dynamic on-campus position, check out this exciting opportunity for Spring and Summer 2021! We are now hiring a Human Resources Student Assistant. Click below to view the job description and apply now, or check it out on Handshake.

Contact studentemployment@augsburg.edu with questions.

Human Resources Student Assistant

A New “Enrollment Development” Purpose for the Graduate and Adult Degree Completion Enrollment Team.

submitted by gouldr2@augsburg.edu

I am very happy to inform you of several new appointments that represent our initial success in building a contemporary Enrollment Development team for Graduate and Degree Completion programs. Please see details in the announcement linked below.

Announcement

Mental Health Matters – New Student Organization

submitted by chikkalj@augsburg.edu

Mental Health Matters is an open, safe, and friendly community regarding mental health, and the group will work to end mental health stigmas by educating students on mental illness, coping, and managing stress. We will host guest speakers and provide resources to end stigma. This organization does not provide counseling and is not a support group. Our first event will be on April 5th at 6 p.m. and there will be more details in the next week. We will meet every other week Monday nights at 6 p.m. Feel free to contact Jasmine Chikkala at chikkalj@augsburg.edu

Deadline Extension: Global Movements for Racial Justice

submitted by hardaker@augsburg.edu

The deadline has been extended for the summer Minneapolis-based course, “Anti-Apartheid and Black Lives Matter: Global Movements for Racial Justice.” Apply by Friday, April 2nd to enroll in this course that will satisfy your Augsburg Experience requirement.

In this two-week course, students will critically analyze the global racial unrest movements of the Southern Africa Anti-Apartheid system, and the racially motivated murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis. This experience will introduce students to the understanding of how these movements became historical events and impacted policy and the visibilities on racial inequities that impact the Pan-Afrikan diaspora and all BIPOC communities. Hear from activists and experts in Minnesota, as well as those from South Africa and Namibia.

We will be in person in Minneapolis, and will visit sites of historic and cultural importance in Minnesota, such as the Mille Lacs Indian Museum and Trading Post, the Duluth Lynching Site to visit the Clayton-Jackson-McGhie Memorial, and George Floyd Memorial Square.

Dates are May 17 to May 28.

More information and apply

HR and Payroll Offices Closed Friday, April 2: Due Date for Forms is Thursday at Noon

submitted by cswanson@augsburg.edu

HR & Payroll Offices will be CLOSED Friday 4/2 for the Good Friday Holiday.

HR or Payroll Forms:
Due date for HR or payroll forms will be one day early. Please submit any change forms you may have for your benefits to HR by noon THURSDAY, April 1 to be processed on the April 9 pay date. This includes routine forms for HSA, retirement, direct deposit and tax withholding changes. Email payroll@augsburg.edu if you have questions or need help.

Timesheets:
Please submit your timesheets at the end of the week so your supervisor has time to approve it by the Monday noon deadline.

Secure Link to Human Resources & Payroll
To protect your information, forms containing sensitive data such as bank accounts or social security numbers should not be emailed. For a secure delivery link go to https://augsburg.leapfile.net/ for submission. Please contact hr@augsburg.edu for questions.

Thank you so much! -Your HR & Payroll Team

Nominations for Staff Senate and University Council Representatives

submitted by dames@augsburg.edu

Augsburg University Staff Senate has two important elections this spring. We are currently taking nominations for Staff Senate Representatives and University Council Staff Representatives.

Staff Senate Representatives: Augsburg University’s Staff Senate is composed of six members who are nominated and elected by their peers for a two-year term as well as two additional at-large members, appointed by Staff Senate. All members have the option to serve a third year. We are currently filling four positions. For more information on Staff Senate visit our about page. https://inside.augsburg.edu/staffsenate/about/

University Council Staff Representatives: There is one opening on the University Council for an elected staff representative. For an overview of the full process, go to our University Council tab. http://inside.augsburg.edu/staffsenate/university-council/

Staff may nominate other eligible staff or self-nominate for either Staff Senate or University Council using this form https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdjuUUQMPgMH-QvUSfexHabRUoW6g-r4ls_Xxx2E7P2QW1YpQ/viewform

Nomination deadline for both Staff Senate and University Council is April 9, 2021. Please email staffsenate@augsburg.edu with questions. Thank you for your participation in this important process.

Augsburg University Staff Senate

Janice Dames, Campus Ministry
Deanna Davis, Professional Studies
Nancy Huynh, Academic Advising*
Ilse Rolf, Institutional Advancement
Stewart Van Cleve, Lindell Library
Jackie Voigt, Athletics
Uriah Ward, Student Financial Services
Tessa Wegenke, Finance & Administration*

*2020-21 co-chairs

Staff Appreciation: Nominate a Colleague Before April 10

submitted by vanclev1@augsburg.edu

This year, the Staff Senate will host a virtual Staff Appreciation Event on May 10. We are celebrating Augsburg staff in several ways:

– We are now accepting nominations to honor outstanding staff and outstanding newcomers at Augsburg. Here is a link to the nomination form: https://forms.gle/Lg8T2b6B5WLeiDZz8

– Nominations for the Outstanding Staff and Newcomer Awards will be accepted through April 9th. Nominations are welcomed from any current member of the campus community – staff, faculty, or students.

– We are also inviting Augsburg staff to tell us: what are you proud of this year? Did you pick up a new hobby, accomplish a difficult task, or just make it through a challenging year? Share your story with the Augsburg community by filming a short (less than 1 minute) video that will be featured during the Staff Appreciation Event. Videos can be submitted through this link: https://forms.gle/Ha5vZM36kx1dNQp37

The Staff Appreciation Program is intended to recognize staff members who have made an important contribution to the campus community over the past year. Recipients of the Outstanding Staff Award provide exceptional service to others, work collaboratively across divisions or departments, demonstrate a clear commitment to equity and inclusion, and enhance the objectives of their department and the mission of Augsburg University through creativity, innovation, and hard work.

The Newcomer Award recognizes a staff person who has made a significant impact on campus life in a short amount of time. Staff who have been at Augsburg for two years or less (as of March 1, 2021) are eligible to receive this award.

Staff Senate will award five Outstanding Staff awards and one Newcomer award during the virtual event on May 10.

Visit the Staff Senate web page for additional information: https://inside.augsburg.edu/staffsenate/staff-appreciation/

Registrar’s Office Zoom and In-Person Services

submitted by enriquej@augsburg.edu

The Registrar’s office staff are now available to meet in-person at the enrollment center window. You can stop by Monday thru Friday between 10am – 2pm for assistance with registration, transfer, petition and graduation questions. Please make sure you wear a mask and continue to practice social distancing.

Additionally, the Registrar’s office will offer zoom drop-in hours during the registration period. Please refer to the calendar for dates and details.

Registration Period Zoom Drop-In Hours

Podcast of Liturgy of the Hours

submitted by dames@augsburg.edu

You are invited to listen to a podcast of the Liturgy of the Hours presented by Luther Seminary Chapel and Augsburg University Campus Ministry.

The Liturgy of the Hours by Luther Seminary Chapel and Augsburg University Campus Ministry for Holy Week. Using liturgy and hymns adapted from Evangelical Lutheran Worship, scripture from the New Revised Standard Version, a blessing from Julian of Norwich, and original compositions, Andy and Pastor Elise Pokel offer this week’s night prayer: Holy Week through Mary’s eyes, heart, voice, and body. There is grief here; grief and joy. The lullaby of Mary for her son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

Liturgy of the Hours

Event Announcements

#StopAsianHate Virtual Candlelight Vigil

submitted by mitche13@augsburg.edu

Augsburg Asian Student Association (AASA), Hmong Women Together (HWT), and Pan Asian Student Services(PASS) recognizes that anti-AAPI (Asian American Pacific Islanders) prejudice is only one form of systematic racism that continues to spread in our nation. Together, we appreciate the outpour of outreach and attention from Administration, peers and allies in support of the recent events in Georgia last week and our daily lived experiences.

We hope that there will be work in solidarity from Augsburg to take a stand against the structures that perpetuate and fuel discrimination for all BIPOC and specifically recently more heightened assaults on Pan-Asians in our communities, and to identify actionable ways to address this and all forms of prejudice, stigmatization, and racism.

We hereby recommend for you to join us in the following spaces at Augsburg to continue these conversations and to help us come together in community:
-Join us next week for our #stopasianhate Virtual Candlelight Vigil on Tuesday, March 30, 2021 4:30pm- RSVP on the Auggie Life page: https://augsburg.campuslabs.com/engage/event/7026755
-Save the date and participate in AASA’s Pan Asian Week (PAW) on March 29-April 2, 2021- https://fb.me/e/cXbghe8sq
-For BIPOC Faculty, Staff and Students, consider joining Augsburg for a discussion on Thursday April 1, 2021 from 10:30am-11:30am, holding a space via Zoom that will be centered around BIPOC students, staff, and faculty gathering in discussion to process current events regarding racial violence in the United States, including but not limited to the Derek Chauvin trail in Minneapolis and the shootings in Atlanta that targeted Asian American communities. RSVP on the Auggie Life page –https://augsburg.campuslabs.com/engage/event/7015191
-Consider attending the following conference to learn more about these AAPI issues at the 2021 APAHE national summit on April 15, 2021–http://www.apahenational.org

Conversations on Healing and Justice: Confronting Racial Violence in the US

submitted by coxe@augsburg.edu

On Thursday April, 1 at 10:30-11:30 am Campus Life will be holding a space via Zoom that will be centered around BIPOC students, staff, and faculty gathering in discussion to process current events regarding racial violence in the United States, including but not limited to the Derek Chauvin trail in Minneapolis and the shootings in Atlanta that targeted Asian American communities. RSVP on the Auggie Life page.

https://augsburg.campuslabs.com/engage

Register for “Abolition Praxis as a Moral Compass: A ‘Radical Imaginary’ in Higher Education”

submitted by koh@augsburg.edu

Wednesday
April 7th, 4-6pm

This event is co-sponsored by the Augsburg Day Student Government (ADSG) and the Batalden Applied Ethics Program

This co-sponsored panel event will feature David Stovall (Professor of Criminology, Law and Justice at the University of Illinois, Chicago) and Augsburg undergraduate student panelists, Reuben Kitto Stately (’22) and Taiwana Shambley (‘21). Critical race theorist and abolition scholar Professor Stovall invites us into “a radical imaginary” that “challenges us to think about the world as it is while committing to a process that systemically changes it” (2018, p. 53). Students who identify as Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) in traditionally White institutions (TWIs) must navigate a covert White supremacist infrastructure (Safehouse Progressive Alliance for Nonviolence, 2005) and a White milieu in higher education (for example, “White talk moves,” see Finders & Kwame-Ross, 2020). This proposed panel seeks to move us toward abolition democracy (DuBois, 1998; Davis, 2005) using Ella Baker’s participatory democracy model.

For us to embrace abolition democracy as a TWI, we must all be held accountable. Indeed, abolitionist Bettina Love (2019) has argued for accountability: “Abolitionist teaching asks us to question the piece of the oppressor that lives in us all” (p. 122).“ Thus, there is a moral imperative to use abolition praxis – defined as a “practice theory of change” (Roberts, 2019) – to guide our collective “radical imaginary.”

Pre-registration is required: https://augsburg.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJwuce6orDgsGdFOtRr0mYkMB5rx_YDrkbtn

The Augsburg Day Student Government/Batalden planning committee includes (in alphabetical order by last name): Zoe Barany, Berlynn Bitengo, Thin Thin Kaing, Bibiana Koh and, Knaunong “Birdy” Xiong).

Funding for this public event is generously provided by Paul ’63 and LaVonne (Olson) Batalden ’63, and Stephen ’67 and Sandra Batalden.

https://augsburg.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJwuce6orDgsGdFOtRr0mYkMB5rx_YDrkbtn

Art and Activism Panel with Great Artists

submitted by truem@augsburg.edu

Join the Sabo Center for our 3rd installment of Social Change Virtual Dialogue Series on Thursday, April 1st from 4:30pm-5:45pm. We will be joined by 3 artists and activists (Art and Design Professor Leon Wang, Theatre Professor Beliza Torres-Narvaez and musician Taylor Seaberg) will talk about the intersection where art and activism meet. We will discuss how art influences social change as well as hear about the work the artists and activists are doing in their communities, and students will have the change to engage with our guests on the topic. Guest panelists:
Check out the speakers’ bios here! (https://docs.google.com/document/d/12K6oEAaH3dNRC0SI5f7bl139qqNqQsSOaJS5wwD-3eU/edit)
This event will be via Zoom.
Register here:
https://augsburg.campuslabs.com/engage/event/7026758

https://augsburg.campuslabs.com/engage/event/7026758

Coalition of Asian American Leaders: Unheard Stories: Asian Americans Experiencing Hate

submitted by mitche13@augsburg.edu

The Coalition of Asian American Leaders (CAAL) is hosting Unheard Stories: Asian Americans Experiencing Hate.

Unheard Stories: Asian Americans Experiencing Hate in being hosted by the AsianMinnesotan Alliance for Justice (AMAJ) as a public community event to hear from
leaders and community members about what has been occurring in Minnesota and
nationwide, and how to work together to take action against violence and hate.

Wednesday, March 24, 2021, 5:00PM – 6:30PM CST
Register at caalmn.org

Speakers include: U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar, MDHR Commissioner Rebecca Lucero, CAAL
Network & Executive Director Bo Thao-Urabe, and others.

https://secure.everyaction.com/j3jHz8Wxb0aKRnHQfokpUA2?emci=c859d71a-f081-eb11-85aa-00155d43c992&emdi=4f71d141-f381-eb11-85aa-00155d43c992&ceid=9611101

Keeping Track of Auggies

Auggies wins a Goldwater Scholarship

submitted by shafer@augsburg.edu

Maxwell Bannister, who will graduate spring 2022 with degrees in biology and chemistry, won the prestigious Goldwater Scholarship award. Out of 1256 nominees, 410 Goldwater Scholars were selected. Each school can only recommend 4 nominations, making the pool of candidates formidable.

After his first year at Augsburg Maxwell did summer research with Augsburg’s plant biologist, Dr. Leon van Eck. This past summer and currently Maxwell is doing research in the Department of Pharmacology at the U of M’s Medical School and will return to the same lab this upcoming summer.

In addition to being involved with research, Maxwell was an AugSEM leader and an Orientation leader. Post-Augsburg Maxwell will be attending a MD/PhD program.

Congratulations, Maxwell, on such an impressive accomplishment.

Kei Heltemes Receives Prestigious NSF-GRFP

submitted by stottrup@augsburg.edu

Senior chemistry and physics major Kei Heltemes was awarded a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship (NSF GRFP), which provides a $34,000 stipend per year for three years for graduate study. Kei was among 2,074 students named an NSF GRFP out of over 13,000 applicants. For the past two years Kei has worked with Dr. Jeff Walter, conducting research in materials science of magnetic materials, and prior to that worked with Dr. Amanda Case. While at Augsburg, Kei has been named a Rossing Scholar by the ELCA as well as an NSF S-STEM Scholar. In addition to public funding, Kei’s work has been funded by Terry Lindstrom as well as the M.A. Cargill Foundation. He is a co-author on a 2020 Science Advances paper entitled ” Voltage-induced ferromagnetism in a diamagnet.” This work drew national media attention from outlets such as Popular Mechanics. He has presented research findings at numerous regional and national conferences. Kei will be pursuing a PhD in Materials Science and Engineering at the University of Minnesota starting in the fall.

Popular Mechanics write-up

Classifieds

The Echo is Hiring Editors for 2021-22

submitted by sosaz@augsburg.edu

We are hiring for the fall semester! If you are looking for a welcoming and supporting environment to be in while gaining experience in writing, editing, amplifying student voices, and keeping our community informed – this is the place for you!

Available positions are:
Opinions Editor
Arts & Culture Editor
News Editor
Managing Editor

Interested individuals should send in a resume and a cover letter (or two page writing sample.) Please include previous student leadership experience, what you can add to our team, and why you’re interested in the Echo. Reach out to us for detailed job descriptions or check out our most recent Instagram post: @augsburg_echo

Send applications to echo@augsburg.edu as soon as possible.
Thank you for your interest!

Augsburg Echo website