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Jodi Collen

Collen is the current international president of the International Special Events Society and is a past president of the ISES Minneapolis-St. Paul chapter. Visit the Twin Cities Business website to read, “.”

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Collen, director of Event & Conference Planning at Augsburg, is a previous president of the International Special Events Society’s Minneapolis-St. Paul chapter and has been a member of the International Board of Governors for the past five years. She was inaugurated at the association’s Annual General Meeting, which took place in New Orleans.

Collen’s achievement was recognized by the following organizations:

• Incentive Travel & Corporate Meetings
• Exhibition World
• Conference News
• BizBash
• Event Planner Spain

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Jodi, who is now the Midwest Regional Vice President for ISES after serving as president of the local chapter in 2005, spoke at the ISES International Education Conference in Montreal, Quebec, in August of this year. She represented seven chapters in the Midwest, including Chicago, Cincinnati, Columbus, Indianapolis, St. Louis, Minneapolis/St. Paul and Columbus.

The Spirit of Excellence award recognizes chapters that are excelling in the areas of communications, membership, programming and education, and special projects. Jodi also won an “ISES Esprit” award for “Best Team Effort” with a team of 11 other event professionals from the Minneapolis-St. Paul area. The award was given for the “ISES Minnesota Star Awards,” a local awards ceremony Jodi started three years ago for ISES members. 

“The awards are the evidence that we’re doing great things in the Twin Cities,” says Jodi, “and I look forward to bringing the events that are being done at Augsburg to the national scene!”

ISES is a professional organization for people in the events industry with 5,600 members worldwide. Once a year, ISES members participate in 3 days of world-class education and networking opportunities at the conference.

“My involvement with ISES and with the ISES Conference has been the best professional development experience that I’ve ever taken part in for my career,” says Jodi.  “The fact that I’ve been able to collaborate with other event professionals from the Twin Cities area, and from the around the world for ISES projects, makes me better at my job at Augsburg – and has provided me with a great network of people to utilize for ideas and resources when needed.”

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Last week, Augsburg hosted 182 high school students from 55 foreign countries as they began their yearlong stays in the Midwest through AFS Intercultural Programs.

“We’re basically the first stop on their adventure,” says Jodi Collen, Director of Events & Conferences at Augsburg.

Most students flew from their home countries to Chicago and were then bused directly to Augsburg, where they checked in and stayed overnight in Urness Hall. The exchange students arrive in groups from Wednesday through Saturday. Their daylong orientation includes lessons in American currency, budgeting money, family life, technology, being an ambassador, and understanding the culture of American high schools. Minnesota high school students and AFS returnee volunteers join adult orientation leaders in preparing incoming students for their year in the US. Each of the three orientation days ends in Murphy Square where students meet their host families for the first time and go home to begin their exchange year.

“Our goal is to equip the students to understand some of the differences they will experience,” explained Deb Dahlberg, director of the Welcome Orientation program and AFS volunteer. “One-half of the host families are from the Twin Cities, and the other half are from Southern Minnesota, Northern Minnesota, South Dakota, North Dakota, and the border of Minnesota and Wisconsin.”

Augsburg was chosen as the host site for the orientation upon the recommendation

of art professor and AFS orientation leader, Tara Sweeney, whose children have been AFS exchange students. Upon volunteering at another venue for the orientation, Sweeney encouraged the planning team to consider switching its venue to Augsburg. This is the second year Augsburg has hosted the group.

Each year, more than 11,000 people worldwide participate in AFS programs, with approximately 2,500 students studying in American high schools. For information on hosting or sending a student, visit

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