Tuesday, November 14, 2023

submitted by rengifoj@augsburg.edu

Interested in earning class credit with Augsburg classmates and an Augsburg professor for a short time in May? Sign up today for one of these amazing opportunities!

***Innovation & Resistance: Photography and History in Paris and Berlin***

Travel Dates: May 15th-May 30th

Faculty Leaders: Jacqueline deVries and Christopher Houltberg

This is a 2-class program, and you’ll earn 8 credits, as well as Augsburg Experience. You’ll choose one History and one Photography course:

• HIS 195 – Topics in European History, fulfills Humanities liberal arts foundation requirement, OR

• HIS 390 – Topics in European History,

​and

• ART 133 – Introduction to Digital Photography, fulfills Fine Arts liberal arts foundation requirement, OR
• ART 333 – Advanced Digital Photography

***Explorations in Greece: Economy, Ethics and Culture***

Travel to Greece

Travel Dates: May 12 – 27, 2024

Faculty: Stella Hofrenning and Phyllis Kapetenakis

Course options: All students must choose one course:

KEY 490 – Keystone

BUS 490 – Keystone

ECO 495 available by arrangement with professors

This program also fulfills the Augsburg Experience requirement.

Visit businesses of all kinds, enjoy guest lectures from Greek business professionals and experts, visit museums, try fresh, local foods, and more!

***Arts, Culture, and Community in Cuba***

Study Abroad in Cuba in May

– fine arts class for all majors

Have the experience of a lifetime–sign up for a summer fine arts study abroad program, led by professor Beliza Torres Narvaez. Spend 12 days in Cuba this May exploring arts and culture!

Travel: May 12-23, 2024

Course: THR 295 – Topics: Arts, Culture, and Community in Cuba, (Fine Arts requirement), 4 credits fulfills Augsburg Experience, too!

Click here to learn more about the programs

submitted by harrisdd@augsburg.edu

My name is Dean Harris, and I am a doctoral student in the Clinical Psychology Department at Augsburg University. I am conducting this study as partial fulfillment of my doctoral degree, with Dr. Patricia Hopkins-Smith as my advisor.

You are being invited to participate in a research study on investigating influences of intrapersonal factors on the relationship between casual sex and mental health. Our study focuses on experiences of casual sex in individuals who identify as single or recently single (i.e., have not been in a relationship longer than one month). As such, if you indicated you were in a relationship for longer than one month, you do not meet our study eligibility criteria. We respect and appreciate individuals in various types of relationships, including open or ethically non-monogamous ones, but our current study’s scope is limited to investigating casual sex in those who identify as single (or recently single). If you agree to this study, I will ask you to complete a survey via Qualtrics. This survey will take approximately 20 minutes to complete. After completing all the survey questions, you will be invited, if you wish, to provide contact information to enter in the raffle to win one of three $50 gift card prizes, and/or emailed the results at the end of the study’s conclusion.

If you have any questions now or later, you may contact me, Dean Harris at 612-239-2534 or harrisdd@augsburg.edu. You can also contact my advisor, Dr. Patricia Hopkins-Smith at 612-330-1567 or hopkinss@augsburg.edu. If you contact me or my advisor, understand that your anonymity cannot be guaranteed; however, if you decide to participate, your data will not be connected to your name. If you have questions about your rights as a research subject or want to discuss problems/complaints about the research study, send an email to IRB@augsburg.edu.

Sincerely,
Dean Harris
Doctoral Student in Clinical Psychology Department at Augsburg University

Survey Link

submitted by windnag@augsburg.edu

Open Enrollment is the only time of year when you may elect or change your benefits for the coming year, unless you experience a qualifying life event.

During open enrollment, no action means no coverage.

Employees who fail to act by November 20 will not have coverage effective January 1, 2024, and must wait until the next open enrollment period to elect coverage, unless a qualifying life event occurs.

How to Access the 2024 Enrollment Form: Inside Augsburg > Administrative Tasks > Open Enrollment

Every benefits-eligible employee must act by electing or declining health, dental or vision insurance coverages and a flexible spending or health savings account. Your 2023 elections WILL NOT automatically carry over to 2024. You are required to complete the online enrollment form for the 2024 elections even if you elect to waive your 2024 coverage.

Attend an Open Enrollment Session to learn more:
11/14, 3:00 p.m. – General Open Enrollment Session, Hagfors Center 150B

Need help completing your form? Come to an open enrollment help session:
11/15/23 — 3:00pm – 5:00pm, Sverdrup 206

Visit the HR website to view recorded information sessions: https://sites.augsburg.edu/hr/employees/benefits/open-enrollment/

Email hr@augsburg.edu with any questions.

2024 Benefits Guide

submitted by gilmerje@augsburg.edu

Camp Nenookaasi – located at East 24th Street and 13th Avenue South, Minneapolis – is a community based healing camp rooted in native practices & inclusive of all unsheltered relatives.

Some ways to help:

Call your council person and ask the city to provide porta potties and daily trash pick-up.
Daily trash pick-up: Given the camp’s size, trash pick-up needs to happen daily at a minimum. Currently, dedicated volunteers are hauling away 90% of the trash.

Volunteer: Join a morning kitchen shift or security shift. If you are new, volunteers will greet you at the door and work with you to train you in. We also need volunteers in the afternoons, to help do whatever is needed on a given day. And, we could even use volunteers today to help organize the kitchen storage area!
Follow this link to sign up for a shift: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1epHxM0D8ottaFgJLg5U6RWbQ48Ycy_EKgPx0CxbZgkY/edit#gid=208145268
Contribute food and supplies: Keeping 150 people fed, protected from the elements, and safe requires constant supply runs. It would be exceptionally helpful to have more people dropping off food and supplies on a regular basis, such as peanut butter, jelly, bread, sugar, disposable hot cups (no lids needed), disposable plates, bowls, and paper napkins. If you or your faith community or group of friends can commit to a daily delivery of these goods, even better.
Contribute money: You can also contribute money via Venmo (@Nenookaasi-Camp) or cash app ($Nenookaasi) accounts.
Ready to help? Please email or text Delaney at delaneyrussellmn@gmail.com or 612-598-9508. Delaney will either get back to you or connect you with someone else who will.

Also follow on Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/campnenookaasi/), Twitter (https://twitter.com/campnenookaasi), and Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/people/Camp-Nenookaasi/61551908157100/) for ongoing updates, needs, and calls to action.

submitted by phalp1@augsburg.edu

Hiiii!

Please make sure to save the date as we introduce you to the Sound Healing sessions here at Augsburg. It is another way that you can heal and relax your mind through the waves of sounds.

Dates: Tuesday, November 14th
Time: 7:00 pm-8:00 pm
Location: Student Lounge

Don’t forget to join us! We hope to see you there

https://www.instagram.com/p/CxvY12RrqX2/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

submitted by millerd1@augsburg.edu

If you have questions regarding your HSA or FSA account(s), either existing or new in 2024, you are encouraged to contact HR Simplified directly for the most accurate and up-to-date information. They have experts who specialize in the complex rules and regulations governing these plans, and Augsburg relies on our partnership with HR Simplified to ensure accurate information will be provided to our employees during open enrollment and throughout the plan year. They can be reached at 888.318.7472, Option #1. Their customer service hours are 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. CST, Monday through Thursday, and 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. CST on Fridays. You may also email them at fsa@ascensus.com. Please contact HR Simplified as your first resources for all of your HSA/FSA questions and concerns. Thank you!

submitted by fleigr@augsburg.edu

Hello Auggies! I am a graduate student seeking participants for a research study. I am exploring how one’s ability to recognize and regulate their own and others’ emotions may relate to feelings of depression and social disconnect. Participation in this study will involve completing a series of behavioral health inventories and a demographic screener that will take approximately 15 minutes to complete. These inventories will ask if you have experienced symptoms of depression or loneliness and ask how intensely you experience your everyday emotions. Following completion of these inventories, participants will complete a test online that will walk participants through a variety of different tasks, such as recognition of facial expressions and implied social meanings. This test will take approximately 45 minutes to complete. All participation in this study is done online from the comfort of your own home. Students are invited to participate in this study if you: (1) are between the ages of 18 and 31; (2) have not been diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder, schizophrenia, or a personality disorder; (3) have not experienced an interpersonally traumatic life event (i.e., assault by another human being); and (4) are not currently experiencing a major health concern (i.e., life threatening illness/injury or significant transplant/removal surgery).

For your time, participants will be entered into a random lottery drawing for one of three $100 Amazon gift cards!

If you have any questions or concerns regarding participation in this study, please contact me at fleigr@augsburg.edu. If you would like to participate in this study, please click the link below. You will be taken to a secure, online survey where you will be presented with a consent form followed by the demographic screener and brief inventories. Upon completion of these, you will be shown the link to the final assessment.

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/7LPN7K3
Thank you!