News Center

Reflections from Harvard Divinity School

Seniors Victoria Gillon and Leah Shelton reflect on their experience in the fall of 2015 attending the Diversity and Explorations program at Harvard Divinity School.

Hund '97 receives outstanding teaching award

Alycia Hund '97 will be honored with an Outstanding University Teacher Award from Illinois State University, where she is a professor of psychology. She has guided more than 5,800 students in face-to-face, blended and online course since joining ISU in 2003. Hund has mentored 83 undergraduate research assistants, 41 undergrad teaching assistants, 14 graduate research assistants, 10 dissertation students and 16 thesis students.

A grad student's top 10 childhood books

Christine Hedlin '11 is a Ph.D. candidate in English at the University of Illinois. After the holidays back home she was inspired to reflect on her favorite childhood reading memories. "I wouldn’t point to any of these moments and say, 'And that’s why I became an English major.' Yet I can also safely say that I wouldn’t be where I am without these kinds of moments." Hedlin majored in English and Spanish and minored in Classics at Augustana.

Theatre grad directs Shakespeare classic at MHS

Calvin Vo '13, a theatre and English major at Augustana, charged his Moline High School (MHS) students with creating a unique production of Shakespeare's "A Midsummer Night's Dream." The 16th-century comedy will be transported to 19th-century Moline. "One of my big pushes here at Moline is to emphasize dramaturgy," which was a major focus at Augustana, Vo said.

Construction of new theatre center underway

Crews are hard at work renovating the College Center into what will become the Kim and Donna Brunner Theatre Center. The $4.2 million project includes construction of a new mainstage theatre, black box theatre, outdoor pavilion venue and scene/costume shops. The work is expected to be done in time for the building to open for the 2016-17 academic year.

Internship on, off the court brings growth to Motzel's game

Senior Brandon Motzel interned at the Texas Medical Center last summer. While there, he played against players from Rice University in pick-up basketball. That is paying off for Motzel, whose play has helped set a tone for the Vikings since he moved into the starting lineup this month.

Video: River Readings with essayist Eula Biss

In the second 2015-16 installment of the River Readings series, essayist Eula Biss reads from two of her books, "On Immunity: An Inoculation" and "Notes from No Man's Land: American Essays."

Lundahl exhibit features landscapes and the 'everyday'

WVIK interviews Claire Kovacs, director of the Augustana Teaching Museum of Art, about "A Place Called Home: Frank Lundahl and the Quad Cities" on display through Feb. 12. Lundahl made a living painting interior murals, but the exhibit includes paintings Lundahl created for himself.

Anderson '60, chronicler of the nursing profession, dies at 77

Peggy Anderson '60, who never wanted to become a nurse but wrote a best-selling book to correct stereotypes about the profession, died Sunday. Her second book "Nurse" (1978), was on the New York Times best-seller list for 30 weeks and is still in print. "Nurse" was also the basis for a CBS-TV series. Anderson returned to Augustana in 2011 to participate in the River Readings.

Youth take a seat at the civil rights table

At 14, Cyrus Diaz is already aware of the preconceptions that often surround police and community relations. Perceptions, and misconceptions, were among issues Mr. Diaz and other community members sought to address at the Passing the Torch Community Youth Forum held at Augustana. It was a preamble to an evening event honoring Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Tallitsch's human anatomy class supports classmate

Dr. Bob Tallitsch's human anatomy class wore hats and wigs during the first class following Christmas recess, and not just because it was one of the coldest days of the year so far.

Augustana holds interfaith forum ahead of Iowa caucus

With the Iowa caucus fast approaching, Augustana will hold a discussion about the implications of the election for Christians, Jews and Muslims on Monday, Jan. 18 at 7 p.m. in Wallenberg Hall.

The discussion will be led by Imam Saad Baig from the Islamic Center of the Quad Cities, Rabbi Jeffrey Lipschultz from the Tri-City Jewish Center and Pastor Richard Priggie from Augustana.

Hynes '96 puts West Chicago on the map

Vicki (White) Hynes '96 has created standards for participation and judging of a new annual event which showcases the work of Geographic Information Systems professionals. She was recognized last fall by the Illinois GIS Association for her contributions. Hynes majored in geography and environmental studies at Augustana. She worked for eight years for Naperville, followed by a year of consulting work, before joining the City of West Chicago in 2002.

Internship leads Robertson '82 on different path

Rev. Bryan Robertson '82 majored in English at Augustana before going to seminary. His intention was to eventually teach Christian religion at the college level. But an internship in the church resulted in Robertson’s decision to become a pastor. He has served in Rock Island; Decorah, Iowa; and most recently in Waupaca, Wis.

Five faculty teaching at 37th CommUniversity

CommUniversity, a series of Sunday classes taught by area experts, will begin its 37th year in February. The annual non-profit event is coordinated by a board of directors from local colleges, churches, libraries and other community organizations. Five Augustana faculty will teach classes at CommUniversity this year.