Augsburg College is honored to announce that it has received an unrestricted $10 million philanthropic gift from a 1965 alumnus.

The donor’s generous contribution will support a new academic building that will house a number of the College’s academic programs including biology, business, chemistry, computer science, math, physics, psychology, and religion.

“This tremendous gift will make possible our continued commitment to academic excellence, to the hands-on learning that is one of the hallmarks of the College, and to the continued best-use of our 23-acre campus,” said Augsburg College President Paul C. Pribbenow. “Augsburg is a 143-year-old anchor institution in the heart of Minneapolis’ Cedar-Riverside neighborhood. This gift puts Augsburg on the path of being a college for the 21st century, and one that continues to deliver academic excellence in the liberal arts and professional studies.”

“Augsburg College has found many ways to innovate and evolve since I was a student—while at the same time maintaining the core values that were so appealing to me,” said Augsburg College Regent Steve Wehrenberg ’78, chief executive officer of Campbell Mithun. “This gift will ensure the College remains a caring, inspiring, and delightful place for students of all kinds to learn and grow.”

New building fund exceeds $23 million

The $10 million gift brings to more than $23 million the total funds for the new building. The Augsburg College Board of Regents will continue to monitor progress on the campaign and the College’s cash position and debt capacity to determine when to set a date for groundbreaking on the first stage of the building. The total cost of the building is estimated at more than $60 million.

“In May 2012, the Regents set calendar year 2014 as a target for beginning construction, a goal they believe is feasible, especially given the excitement this lead gift will engender with other prospective donors,” Pribbenow said.

The donor, who asked to remain anonymous, is a long-time supporter of the College and graduated with bachelor’s degrees in mathematics and business administration.

Augsburg College is set in a vibrant neighborhood at the heart of the Twin Cities, and offers more than 50 undergraduate majors and nine graduate degrees to nearly 4,000 students of diverse backgrounds. Augsburg College educates students to be informed citizens, thoughtful stewards, critical thinkers, and responsible leaders. The Augsburg experience is supported by an engaged community that is committed to intentional diversity in its life and work. An Augsburg education is defined by excellence in the liberal arts and professional studies, guided by the faith and values of the Lutheran church, and shaped by its urban and global settings.

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Below three students reflect on what they experienced and learned at the conference.

Mohamed Sheikh-Mohamed [middle left]

Firstly, I would say if anybody had an opportunity to go to a place where there will be recruiters in their professions, they should go. From this trip, I connected with many companies, and one thing that shocked me was that the CIA was recruiting at the career fair. I always thought that they hire by invitation only, but it changed what I believed about it.

I learned that with age comes wisdom, so I asked every professional individual that I had a conversation with, “What advice do you have for young guys like us?” The majority of their answers were to look for internships and co-ops because if companies like you while you with them, they will try to hire you as soon as you graduate. They also said that most companies look for diversity and something new that they do not have in the company, so if you have something new to contribute to a company, give it a try and apply for that company. They are also looking [at students who have been in] leadership roles.

This trip really helped me, knowing that there is a high demand of engineers in the upcoming years and almost every major company and corporation needs an engineer of some sort on their team.

Gottlieb Uahengo [far right]

The 38th Annual National Society of Black Engineers was an exciting conference to attend, because it provided the opportunity to observe and participate in critical scientific discussions. There was a multitude of organizations ranging from graduate school programs, multinational companies and various government agencies. The setting was most welcoming and encouraged young African-Americans to participate in the sciences so to better understand the importance of engineering as a multilateral discipline. The atmosphere was further re-enforced by the large number of multinational companies, showcasing their products, technology, and the innovative solutions they have developed to solve pending problems.

I was particularly intrigued by my ability to draw several parallels between my Augsburg education and some of the physics behind the technology of companies such as Boeing, Lockheed Martin as well as Minnesota native 3M. This realization brought a sense of deep pleasure, as I was able to see real world applications of the many concepts I have studied in my classes.

I also attended some workshops during the conference. A workshop hosted by Space (titled “Restoring American Human Spaceflight”) in which the audience participated in an interactive discussion on the importance of space exploration and its implication to the survival of the human race. I gained a great wealth of knowledge from this workshop as one could sense the depth of knowledge present throughout the room, simply from the ideas and questions that arose during the workshop. We discussed the implications of space exploration and its wear on the astronauts’ health and how these issues could be resolved by the fast growing biomedical engineering field. Such a possibility would allow ease in not only monitoring astronaut health but also pave a way for remote health operations and effectively allowing any trained individual to perform medical procedures in space. The thought of human life outside earth has intrigued scientists the world over, yet as we begin to wrap our collective knowledge around the laws of the universe, we realize more and more that there are still many unexplained anomalies; one should be humbled by the youthful nature of our technology and what more we have yet to discover as well as its impact to life as we know it.

Aside from being mentally stimulating, the conference also provided the opportunity for students to bounce ideas off each other. I had several talks with experts and fellow students, who shared brilliant ideas and journal articles. This kind of environment is surely priceless and one that will drive innovative solution for the future. This invaluable experience would not have been possible without the hardworking and dedication of LSAMP’s “Godmother” (Prof. Rebekah Dupont) who has continually challenged us to excel and apply ourselves.

Amir Rose [middle right]

For myself, going to college has never been anything less than mandatory. I’ve always aspired to further my education in the field of science, physics, and engineering. Attending the NSBE conference this spring helped me grasp a better understanding of what life is like after college for an engineer. The vast amount of fields available in this profession span across a large spectrum of interests from automotive, aeronautics, medical, and many more.

Attending the career fair was a great experience because it gave me the opportunity to speak with people who have been in engineering for many years and to obtain some good advice on how to approach future jobs and internships.  I had the chance to speak with a man who worked for Honda for over 15 years and had gained a great deal of experience in various subsets within the company. Engineering does not only encompass one position, as he explained, [when] entering the company people have a choice whether to do design or manufacturing on vehicles. I thought this was very interesting, and it gave me a new perspective on all of the possibilities available to me after I graduate.

Overall attending the NSBE conference was a great experience, and I hope to attend again next year. It gave me a greater understanding of what I can do with my major and made me eager for all the future possibilities that await.

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The Academy is comprised of nine regional teacher centers, each including at least one K-12 school district or education service cooperative and one higher education institution. Augsburg is partnering with Resource Training and Solutions in St. Cloud. Augsburg math professor Tracy Bibelnieks is one of three instructors leading the training for the St. Cloud center.

The initial goal of the program is to prepare teachers to implement new math and science standards, which will be used beginning with the class of 2015. These standards involve introducing algebra into elementary school lessons. The centers provide training and technical assistance to help teachers implement Minnesota’s content standards, master the use of multiple instructional approaches, and improve skills to diagnose student learning needs using assessment of student performance.

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Chau Nguyen grew up in Dalat City, Vietnam with her mother, stepfather, grandmother, sister, and brother. Her travels through the streets of Dalat gave Chau a constant reminder of the poverty in the city, especially among its many homeless children. As a girl, she remembers being scolded by her mother for stuffing her backpack full of rice and giving it away to less-fortunate children.

At the age of 14, Chau won a national contest in English, math, and literature. This gave her the opportunity to be the youngest person ever to participate in a foreign exchange program from Vietnam to the United States. Once the program ended, she knew she wanted to stay in the United States to complete her education.

Chau needed a host family that would be willing to send her to private school so that she could obtain a new visa. Over the period of the next three months, her mother worked the phones in Vietnam to call everyone they knew. Chau bounced around the United States, from Virginia to Indianapolis to Chicago, living out of a suitcase. She struggled to find hope in those days. “I would wake up in the morning and get dressed, and then at night I would wash the clothes, fold them up, and put them right back in the suitcase. It was a hard time.”

Finally, the Loadmand-Copeland family in Denver took her in. With their help, Chau was able to complete her first year of college.

Although Chau had scholarship offers from other schools, it was her experience with the admissions staff at Augsburg that made her decide to come to the Twin Cities. Marissa Machado, coordinator of international admissions, made Chau feel welcome on campus. “Marissa promised me that I could finish my major in four years and that I would be able to work and pay my way through school,” Chau remembered. “Every promise that Augsburg has given me since I entered has been fulfilled.”

During her junior year at Augsburg, a sudden trip to the hospital left her unable to work. Rather than give up, Chau went to see Jim Trelstad-Porter, Augsburg’s international student advisor. She explained her situation, and Jim helped her find other scholarships to close the gap for that year. That flexibility allowed Chau to complete her undergraduate program.

Recently, at Augsburg’s scholarship brunch, Chau spoke about how scholarships helped her through the last six years. She also explained why she hasn’t been able to visit home — Vietnam will not grant Chau an exit visa if she goes there. Plus, her mother is still in debt from the plane ticket that sent Chau to the United States. One generous donor was so moved by her story that he offered to purchase a ticket for Chau’s mother to fly to Minneapolis for commencement.

Now, after six years of challenges and uncertainty, Chau will be able to see her mother and celebrate their achievements together. Next summer, Chau will visit Vietnam and be reunited with the rest of her family. She then plans to pursue her MBA, with the ultimate goal of opening schools to educate homeless and abused children in Vietnam.

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