Pics of the Day
The Pic of the Day is featured on student and faculty pages, as submitted by members of the Augustana community. Here are some recent images. (Click on a photo to see a caption.)
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The IACAC (Illinois Association for College Admissions Counseling) posthumously honored Courtney Wallace with a career achievement award named in her honor, the Courtney E. Wallace Distinguished Service Award. Her family, friends, colleagues and Admissions team members (pictured here) attended dinner in Peoria last week as part of the annual IACAC conference.
Madison Cloman '25, a CSD student, and Ms. Alexandra Jones '16, a clinical supervisor and professional faculty, attended the National Black Association of Speech Language and Hearing last week. The first day included "School Representation" day. This is Cloman's second year attending the conference to improve her professional development, while Jones was nominated for the 2025 Clinician of the Year.
Standing at the heart of campus, Old Main is more than just a historic landmark. Built in 1889, this iconic building has been a cornerstone of the Augustana experience for generations.
Geology major Zoe Heiar '25 (right) has been studying the exhalation of radon from soils for her Senior Inquiry research through the Geology Department's ongoing Radon Survey of the Quad Cities initiative. Heiar partnered with United Township High School science teacher Jackie Leach '97 to educate and empower 30 students to become citizen scientists. Heiar trained the students to deploy RadonEye detectors at their own homes and instructed them on how to analyze their data with help from project advisor Dr. Mike Wolf and future radon researchers Hannah McKoon '26 and Naoto Fukuoka '26.
Last week geography students spent a day in Chicago learning about urban and community planning initiatives on the North and South sides of the city, including a visit with Bernard Turner, executive director of the Bronzeville-Black Metropolis National Heritage Area.
TRIO-SSS students had an amazing day in Milwaukee! The group, led by TRIO counselors Christiana Headley and Anna Badamo, visited the Milwaukee Art Museum, Third Ward, Mitchell Park Domes (pictured here) and Marquette University. What a great day of exploring arts, culture and graduate school opportunities.
Thank you to everyone who helped greet and cheer on future Vikings at our annual It Begins with A celebration last weekend! We can't wait to welcome the Class of 2029 to campus this fall. 💙💛✨
Mackenzie Monroy '25, Hana Bui '25, and Anna Ramberg '25 presented their research projects at the March ASIANetwork Conference in San Antonio. Mackenzie's project, "The Advertising of Beauty Products Towards the Male Population in the United States Compared to South Korea," and Anna's project, "The Asian-American Experience Through the Eyes of a Chinese-American Adoptee," were their Asian Studies capstone projects with Dr. Elizabeth Lawrence (History) as their advisor. Dr. Ann Ericson (Business Administration) was Hana's advisor on her independent project, "Gen Z TikTok Food Reviews and Their Impact on Food Service and Quality in Post-COVID Vietnam."
Last weekend Aaron Rogers '26 and Brian Felleson '27 from Augustana's Student Investment Fund attended the Student Managed Investment Fund Consortium (SMIFC) in Orlando, learning from faculty, professionals and fellow students from over 50 schools. It was a great environment to connect, exchange ideas and get inspired. Highlights include a presentation from Professor Ronald Mushock about how to run a student-managed fund like the pros and talks on technical strategies, ethical investing and preparing for the CFA.
On Sunday, members of Augie Acres and Chi Alpha Pi joined together to help prepare the garden for spring planting. Afterward, they enjoyed a grillout courtesy of Chi Alpha Pi. Join Augie Acres again on April 27th as they plant their crops for the season!
Last week, TRIO SSS students met Congressman Eric Sorensen for lunch and shared their experiences as TRIO students. Pictured (from left): Anna Badamo, Brooke Brincks, Jamiah Riley, Eric Sorensen, Amy Arteaga, Zion Williams and Christiana Headley.
This semester Nico Benvenuto '26, a political science and geology double major from Milan, Italy, has had the privilege of serving as an intern in the office of U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth. Last month, as part of the Senator's recent visit to the Quad Cities, Nico was thrilled to accompany her on a tour to Parr Instrument Company in Moline which has designed, manufactured and sold high-quality laboratory instruments and apparatus for conducting chemical reactions and for testing fuels for 125 years.
Yesterday admissions hosted out-of-state counselors from high schools across Texas, Colorado, Missouri, Ohio and Nebraska. The counselors spent time in the Quad Cities, toured campus, met with admissions staff, interacted with an out-of-state student panel and had lunch in Gerber with President Talentino. Our guests remarked on the warm community feeling, engagement of students in multiple majors and extracurriculars, strong academic programs and of course the beautiful campus. It was the first visit to Augustana for all of the counselors. Thanks to Eric Rowell for hosting the counselor fly-in program!
This group of dedicated student leaders helps guide 80-100 student workers throughout the year, making the admissions team's work possible. This photo features current members and new faces joining for the 2025-26 year: Maggie Berger, student operations chair; Fati Talibi, summer admissions lead; Lindsay Debuhr, ambassador training chair; and Andy Frieden (not pictured, but still awesome). The admissions team thanks this team's passion, energy and commitment to welcoming future Vikings. 💙💛
The National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) has been emailed to first-year and senior students. If you're in this group, we ask that you please complete the survey. Why? We want to know how it's going for first-year students. And seniors, we want to know about the quality of your Augustana experience. We use the results to assess the quality of the education we provide you, focusing on your engagement in college and what you gain from your experience. First-year and senior students, please check your email to access the survey.
Last month the Student Investment Fund had the pleasure of hosting Chip Chaon, CEO of LattaHarris LLP. Chaon shared valuable insights into the transformative impact of AI on public accounting, highlighting how it's revolutionizing the industry at an unprecedented pace. A big thank you to Chip for taking the time to engage with SIF members and for providing such a thought-provoking session!
During spring break, Dr. Jeff Strasser and 11 dedicated and proud senior geology majors made their way to Erie, Pa., to present their Senior Inquiry research at the Geological Society of America's Joint NE+NC section meeting. Dr. Strasser also served as a technical session co-chair.
Student Investment Fund President Aaron Rogers teaches first-year member Simeon Ommen about new fundamental analysis techniques!
Dr. Kirsten Day, professor of Classics, received the CAMWS College Teaching Award, honoring excellence in post-secondary school teaching, at the 2025 annual conference of the Classical Association of the Middle West and South (CAMWS). She attended the conference with Iratze Aceves '25, who received her third award in three years for her scholarship in Classics.
Admissions hosts three Spring Preview Days for high school juniors and seniors, including two over spring break. We're grateful for our dedicated student workers who give up part of their break to help us welcome visiting families!
EDGE Center Director Doug Tschopp (left), Assistant Director Andy Shearouse (right) and EDGE interns and students snapped a fun, celebratory picture on Monday showing off some festive wear for St. Patrick's Day.
Student Tyrone Stone and APEP Executive Director Dr. Sharon Varallo recently visited the Illinois Statehouse in support of HB2466, a bill to overturn a ban on educational funding for incarcerated students. Their testimony was cheered on by sponsor Rep. Carol Ammons and supporter Rep. Gregg Johnson.
TRIO Counselors Christiana Headley and Anna Badamo took TRIO students to the QC Storm hockey game! The group got a tour of the facilities and learned about the teamwork it takes to pull these games together.
The Office of Student Inclusion and Diversity partnered with Career Development for an empowering trip to Dress for Success Quad Cities, a local nonprofit that provides job search and career development services for women. Students gained tips on building confidence and professional style. From insightful advice from our guest speaker to shopping for internship and job ready outfits, students walked away feeling inspired and prepared to dress for success!
Congratulations to Paloma Martinez Palomares '26 on her internship offer from Amazon as an Area Manager Intern this summer.
Have your own success to share? Stop by the CORE Commons during business hours to ring the Success Bell and celebrate your achievements, from internships to job offers and grad school acceptances.
Dr. Nodulman's Communication Studies rising seniors advising group kicked off their senior year planning with a fun and productive advising session this week!
Rachel Gustafson, Zach Bohrer, Beth Melton and Wendy Kelley from the Admissions team are celebrating Viking Score Wednesday! They love what their friends in CORE do for students! What's YOUR Viking Score?
Students in CSD-205: Anatomy, Physiology and Science of Speech are modeling t-shirts they created as part of a lab project to demonstrate their understanding of the respiratory system. This was a two-part project, with the first part consisting of identifying and drawing the bones and the second part of adding the muscles and supporting structures for respiration.
Last Tuesday, the Jenny Lind Vocal Ensemble hosted 75 local high school students from Davenport Central, Davenport North and Pleasant Valley High Schools for a rehearsal and performance of "Anne Frank: A Living Voice."
Students in German 102 learned about and got to take part in a German celebration of Karneval, which includes parties, parades, costumes and music in the days leading up to the start of Lent.