As in the May commencement ceremony, both the featured speaker and honorary degree recipient are well known for their distinguished careers related to science and education.

Augsburg is honored to welcome Eric J. Jolly, PhD, president of the Science Museum of Minnesota, as the June commencement speaker. Jolly is a member of the Augsburg College Board of Regents and is recognized for his commitment to science and mathematics education, striving to educate young people as the future workforce and to create an informed citizenry that engages science in public policy issues.

An honorary degree will be conferred upon Jane Lubchenco, PhD, administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and under secretary of commerce for oceans and atmosphere. She is the first woman and first marine biologist to lead NOAA.

Prior to joining the Science Museum of Minnesota, Jolly was vice president and senior scientist at the Education Development Center, a research and development organization that provides curriculum and innovative education programs around the world. In 1994 Jolly founded the National Institute of Affirmative Action and was a founding partner of the national “Collaboration for Equity” project.

Author of books, scholarly articles, and curricula, he most recently co-authored Engagement, Capacity, and Continuity: A Trilogy for Student Success, a study on education and careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM).

A member of the Cherokee Nation, Jolly is recognized for his work in the Native American community as a traditional storyteller and fiber artist, with several of his pieces in private and public collections including the Swope Museum and Gallery, the Smithsonian Institution, and the Quisenberry Collection. He is a life member of Native Americans in Science.

Jolly earned master’s and doctoral degrees in psychology at the University of Oklahoma. His undergraduate studies were in psychology and physics at the University of Rhode Island.

Jane Lubchenco was confirmed in March 2009 as administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and under secretary of commerce for oceans and atmosphere. She is the first woman and first marine biologist to lead NOAA.

Lubchenco is one of the most highly respected and cited ecologists in the world and has championed the importance of science and its relevance to policymaking and human well-being. Since 1977 she has taught at Oregon State University and serves as the Wayne and Gladys Valley Professor of Marine Biology and Distinguished Professor of Zoology. For 10 years she led the Partnership for Interdisciplinary Studies of Coastal Oceans, an interdisciplinary team of scientists who study the marine ecosystem off the West Coast of the United States.

Lubchenco earned her doctoral degree in ecology at Harvard University and taught there for two years. She also holds a master’s degree in zoology from the University of Washington and a bachelor’s degree in biology from Colorado College.

A complete schedule of June commencement activities is available at .

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Stacy, a mother of two, began her college career at Augsburg in 2006 and completed her program, graduating with highest honors, in just over 2 years. She not only moved through the degree program with unusual swiftness, she did so while maintaining the roles of full-time employee at Mayo Clinic, mother, wife, and community leader.

In the last couple of years, she has worked to develop an active neighborhood association in Rochester. When first out of high school and living on her own, Stacy experienced a series of break-ins and robberies that heightened her sensitivity to the issue of personal safety. Given, as she observed, that close neighborhoods produce safe neighborhoods, she got involved in starting and leading a neighborhood association.

She serves today on the Meadow Park Neighborhood Association board as its marketing director. Last year, she developed a neighborhood newsletter and then the business plan that allowed the newsletter to be printed, folded, and distributed in exchange for ads by local businesses.

Identified by the Post-Bulletin newspaper as the city’s largest, most informative neighborhood association, Meadow Park received Rochester’s “Project of the Year” award for its neighborhood newsletter. Several Post-Bulletin articles have included pictures of Stacy and quotes from her, one in which she named Augsburg College’s Rochester location as the place where she developed ideas for the organization’s projects.

In her responsibilities at Mayo Clinic, Stacy is involved in developing an integrated supply chain system to increase efficiencies and contribute to the viability and strength of healthcare providers. The goal is to have a uniform international code, allowing all providers to compare and contrast vendor products with regard to quality, availability, and price.

This spring, Stacy completed an internship related to this project. She began a process where six regional Luther Midelfort hospitals, clinics, and pharmacies will be included in Mayo’s electronic resource program, thereby integrating them with Mayo’s supply chain, disbursement, accounts payable, travel, and human resources functions.

Stacy cited Augsburg business courses as beneficial to the project. “I was able to complete this large task within an aggressive timeline with skills learned in computer application and project management courses at Augsburg. Furthermore, using skills learned in management, I designed a plan to standardize and add the remaining 17,000 Luther Hospital items to the Mayo platform.”

As a requirement for graduating summa cum laude, Stacy completed a paper and oral examination. During her summa interview, Stacy was asked what she envisioned herself doing in 10 or 20 years. Though she said she felt a bit embarrassed about it, her response to the committee was that she had begun to look at being the president of Mayo Clinic as a worthy objective.

Karl Wolfe, director of the Rochester program, said, “After she left and the committee discussed her interview, we agreed that president of Mayo may be shooting too low. We think president of the country may be an attainable goal for Stacy.”

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The schedule for commencement activities follows:

Friday, June 27

Rehearsal

5:30 – 6:15 p.m.

Si Melby Hall

Sunday, June 29, 2008

Eucharist Service

8 – 8:30 a.m.

Hoversten Chapel, Foss Center

Baccalaureate Service

9 – 10 a.m.

Hoversten Chapel, Foss Center

Refreshments and Line-up

10 a.m.

Students line up in the Christensen Center lobby promptly at 10:15 a.m.

Commencement Ceremony

11 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.

Si Melby Hall

— Commencement Speaker: Bishop Mark S. Hanson

— : Ambassador Koryne Horbal and Bishop Medardo E. Gomez

Department and Program Receptions

12:30 – 1:30 p.m.

— Fine Arts and Humanities – Foss Center, Arnold Atrium

— Natural and Social Sciences – Old Main

— Education, Health and Physical Education, and Master of Arts in Education – Christensen Center, Coffee Shop

— Business Administration and Master of Business Administration – Oren Gateway Center, Lobby and Adeline Johnson Conference Room

— Social Work and Master of Social Work – Christensen Center, East Commons

— Nursing and Master of Arts in Nursing – Christensen Center, Minneapolis Room

— Master of Arts in Leadership – Christensen Center, Marshall Room

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Koryne E. Horbal

Ambassador Koryne E. Horbal has worked tirelessly throughout her life to empower women around the world and to give voice to their issues.

A native of Minneapolis, Horbal became involved in politics at the grassroots level and has been active in the Minnesota Democratic Farmer Labor (DFL) Party at every level from precinct to national committee for over 40 years. She was the first woman to serve as state chairperson, and was a founder of the Democratic Party Women’s Caucus.

She is most acclaimed for her work in the United Nations, which took her around the world meeting with women and striving to bring their issues to national and international agendas. In 1976, President Jimmy Carter appointed her as Fifth Ambassador to the United Nations and U.S. representative to the UN Commission on the Status of Women, part of the UN Economic and Social Council–a post she held for four years.

In 2007 Ambassador Horbal was honored by the Minnesota Democratic Women’s Leadership Coalition and the DFL Feminist Caucus with the creation of the “Koryne Horbal Fearless Award,” given annually to a woman who, among other things, “speaks truth to power, to allies, to friends and to self.”

With Augsburg’s Anne Pederson Women’s Resource Center, Horbal has been a loyal and energetic supporter for events, fundraising, and the annual lecture series that bears her name. It is through her connections that Augsburg has welcomed such noteworthy feminist speakers as Robin Morgan, Jane Fonda, and Gloria Steinem.

Medardo E. Gomez Soto

For 20 years Bishop Medardo Gomez Soto has served as the only bishop of the Lutheran Church in El Salvador. The Salvadoran Lutheran Synod, an independent church within the Lutheran World Federation, was founded in 1952 as part of the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod. It has grown rapidly and currently has more than 60,000 members.

During the violent civil war in El Salvador between 1982 and 1992, and under constant threat and at great risk, the Lutheran Church offered refuge and aid to victims of the war. Bishop Gomez was jailed and tortured during this period and forced to seek asylum away from El Salvador for a time. Upon his return home, he was instrumental in negotiating a peace agreement between the government and the leftist liberation group.

Numerous honors have been bestowed upon Bishop Gomez for his humanitarian work, most notably a nomination in 1992 for the Nobel Peace Prize. In 1990, he was a co-recipient of the Rothco Chapel Oscar Arnulfo Romero award for dedication to truth and liberty, received the David W. Preus Prize for Leadership from Luther Seminary, and was awarded the Wittenberg National Prize from The Luther Institute in Washington, D.C.

Bishop Gomez remains undeterred and continues to speak out on behalf of the Salvadoran people, as they have continued to be challenged by violence and insecurity, hurricanes, and devastating earthquakes.

Visit for information about events surrounding the June commencement ceremony.

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The commencement speaker is Mark S. Hanson ’68, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Prior to his first term as presiding bishop, he was bishop of the Saint Paul Area Synod. Ordained in 1974, he has served three congregations in the Twin Cities.

Augsburg will also present honorary degrees to Medardo Gomez and Koryne Horbal at the June ceremony.

Medardo E. Gomez Soto

For 20 years, Bishop Medardo Gomez Soto has served as the only bishop of the Lutheran Church in El Salvador.

During the violent civil war in El Salvador between 1982 and 1992, and under constant threat and at great risk, the Lutheran Church offered refuge and aid to victims of the war. Bishop Gomez was jailed and tortured during this period and forced to seek asylum away from El Salvador for a time. Upon his return home, he was instrumental in negotiating a peace agreement between the government and the leftist liberation group.

Numerous honors have been bestowed upon Bishop Gomez for his humanitarian work, most notably a nomination in 1992 for the Nobel Peace Prize.

Koryne E. Horbal

Ambassador Koryne E. Horbal has worked tirelessly throughout her life to empower women around the world and give voice to their issues. A native of Minneapolis, she has been active in Minnesota politics for more than 40 years. She was the first woman to serve as state chairperson and was a founder of the Democratic Party Women’s Caucus.

She is most acclaimed for her work in the United Nations, which took her around the world meeting with women and striving to bring their issues to national and international agendas. In 1976, President Jimmy Carter appointed her as Fifth Ambassador to the United Nations and U.S. representative to the UN Commission on the Status of Women, part of the UN Economic and Social Council — a post she held for four years.

With Augsburg’s Anne Pederson Women’s Resource Center, Horbal has been a loyal and energetic supporter for events, fundraising, and the annual lecture series that bears her name.

Visit for information about events surrounding the June commencement ceremony.

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