Interfaith America has appointed

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Augsburg University announced today that Jeremy Myers, associate professor of religion and executive director of the institution’s Christensen Center for Vocation, has been appointed to serve as the next Bernhard M. Christensen Professor of Religion and Vocation, effective on July 1, 2022. Myers will succeed Martha Stortz, PhD, who retired and was granted emerita status in 2020.

“It is a remarkable testament to Augsburg’s leadership at the intersection of faith, learning, and service that we have in our own faculty ranks a scholar so well prepared to continue the work begun by Marty and her predecessor, David Tiede,” said Augsburg President Paul C. Pribbenow. “Jeremy is an innovative problem-solver, a collaborative colleague, and a creatively critical theologian.”

The Christensen Chair was established in 2005 to honor the legacy of Bernhard M. Christensen, who served as president of what was then known as Augsburg College and Seminary from 1938 to 1962. The chair provides public leadership in interpreting and advancing Augsburg’s educational mission, pursues scholarship and teaches in the religion department, and serves as counsel to the president and Board of Regents.

“Jeremy has thought deeply about President Christensen’s legacy at this university and the lessons his leadership continues to have for Lutheran higher education in the current age,” Pribbenow said.

“Dr. Myers’ vision for the Christensen Chair is grounded and shaped by the five lessons of Bernhard Christensen, the Augsburg University mission statement, and the realities and challenges of the 21st century, especially the 21st century church,” said the members of a faculty and staff discernment committee that met with Myers about the role. “This vision aligns with his innovative work guiding churches in ‘place-based vocational discernment’ and will help guide our Augsburg community in new and rich reflection on our own—individual and communal—vocational discernment. In candid conversation with Dr. Myers, we explored the expectations and opportunities of this position and his ability to meet those expectations and expand the opportunities. We think he is the right person for the job.”

Myers, who earned his bachelor’s degree at the University of Minnesota and his master’s and PhD from Luther Seminary in St. Paul, Minnesota, is a distinguished scholar in vocation and congregational ministry. In addition to many articles and chapters, he is the author of Liberating Youth from Adolescence published by Fortress Press and a sought-after speaker at conferences and in congregations. He has secured millions of dollars in grants to support the work of the Christensen Center for Vocation at Augsburg and has served on the steering committee of the Association of Teaching Theologians and on the board of the ELCA Youth Ministry Network.

Myers said the concept of vocation is a critical lens for thinking about transformational solutions to the problems we face in today’s world. “The key ingredients of vocation—the neighbor, the self, the common good, and God (or something larger than us all)—give rise to a method of discernment and discovery that is different from any other method currently being used to address society’s biggest issues. These ingredients produce a creative tension that leads to innovation, accountability, mutuality, and hope, and this approach to public life cannot be reserved for those who claim to live a religious life. The tables where vocation is being discussed and discerned need to become long and wide.”

Myers will offer his inaugural address as the Christensen Professor at a symposium at Augsburg in September.

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A problem exists, according to Conrad, that new leaders can believe their first priority is to develop new game plans independently rather than to get to know staff members to solve problems collectively. Read Conrad’s column, “New leaders should learn to listen,” for tips on how to create an effective workplace communication system.

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Augsburg College’s Dave Conrad, assistant director of the Rochester MBA program, wrote in his most recent column for the Rochester Post-Bulletin about the steps that allow a new leader to cope with a history of ineffective leadership in the workplace.  Read “When you follow an incompetent leader

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Penh Lo, director of Pan-Asian student services at Augsburg, started the leadership survival camp last year as a way to give Augsburg student leaders a unique opportunity to discover nature and also to gain insight into their roles as leaders.

From Thursday to Sunday, students canoe, hunt and fish for their food, and participate in some challenging survival simulations. In one drill, they capsize a canoe and learn how to tip it back up. “In the midst of this,” Lo said, “I go out and tell them I can save one person who they pick.” After the simulation, the group talks about why they saved the person they chose. “This leads to discussion about why we choose people to work with us and about relationships and leadership,” he said.

On the last day, participants do a 20-30 mile canoe trip navigating with a map and compass. “They have to find me or else they don’t have lunch because I take the food with me,” Lo said.

All activities wrap up with discussion about what went well and what didn’t, about how the group worked together and what they could have done differently. Lo said he has been taking many males, mostly first-year students and students he meets in his work. “So we also talk about what it means to be a man and about developing as responsible individuals.”

At the end of the journey, the participants reflect on their last academic year and set one goal for the coming year. “We say it out loud,” Lo said, “because once we say it publicly, that’s where the accountability comes in.”

Zong Her was one of the students who attended this year. He wrote, “This trip challenged me physically as well as tested my mental will and ability to work together effectively in a group. With the honest feedback of my supporting peers I learned more about myself as an individual, a teammate, and a leader.”

Houa Lor, the Day student body president for 2011-12, reflected on his experience. “No food, no water, no dry clothes, lots of ticks, fatigue, dehydrated, no shelter, dangerous bears, and miles away from civilization on a secluded area. Survival Camp was not just all about surviving on limited food…. I was transformed by the relationships I made over the weekend, discovered a part of myself, and learned how one’s role can influence the lives of other people.”

See more photos from the 2011 Leadership Survival Camp on the group’s Facebook .

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The colloquium serves as a showcase of student creativity, highlighting explorations of every angle of leadership. Students are encouraged to research topics they are passionate about and which they themselves have faced in the workplace.

“I admit that the reason I was first interested in my topic of how a leader’s behavior can affect subordinates was that I experienced one of ‘those’ bosses first hand,” said Chris LeDuc as she introduced her topic. Her research showed that leaders’ conversations containing “personal consideration” with subordinates had the strongest correlation to workers’ organizational commitment.

Scott Brink, who spoke on how local government agencies can adapt more readily to economic climates and technological change, also fashioned his topic from challenges within his work environment. Faced with budget cuts, unfunded mandates, and an exhaustion of areas in which to economize, he was looking for new strategies to apply to his work.

A member of the Augsburg faculty advises each student’s project from the creation of the hypothesis to the final paper. Norma Noonan, who has headed the Leadership program for the last 18 years, reflected on the professional level with which students approach their projects. “Leadership skills, specifically regarding vision, persuasion, and action, are addressed in every course. Even though I know our students are receiving this training, it is still quite amazing to see the culmination of this effort at work in students’ research projects. Knowing that our students have honed skills that are invaluable to non-profit and for-profit organizations is a rewarding feeling.”

Colloquium presenters and their topics:

(Back row)

Lisa Wocken – How Dialogue, Discussion, and Debate Manifest in a Corporate Setting

Scott Brink – Complexity Theory and Local Government Application

Terrance Burns – The Bible and the Ballot: The Christian Right in American Politics

Debra DeRosa – Communication Satisfaction and Part-time Employees in a Park and Recreation Organization

(Front row)

Chris LeDuc – Relationship between Leader Behavior & Subordinate Organizational Commitment in Higher Education Administrators

Mhonpaj Lee – Optimizing Interpreter Services in Hospitals and Clinics

Susan Phillips – Youth Development in the Activism Context: a Case Study of the Wilder Youth Leadership Initiative

Patricia Brill – Innovation Through Social Networking in Communities of Practice

Article by Nancy Shaeffer

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