The seminar, called “The Heart of Europe,” would bring together two Augsburg courses, one each from psychology and education, comparing psychological and education traditions of several central European nations with American practices and history. Erickson and Freiheit met with elementary and secondary school staffs, mental health professionals, professors in a wide variety of fields, and students in both psychology and education. The relationships they established will permit them to develop a full travel seminar proposal with plans for study in Slovenia, Austria, Croatia, and Italy.

Since 1994, Augsburg College has had an international partnership with the University of Ljubljana to develop faculty and student exchanges. While in Slovenia, Erickson said they learned that Augsburg’s partnership with the University of Ljubljana is one of the very few remaining bi-lateral partnerships still functioning between the University and other institutions of higher learning. Recent European higher education reforms have ended nearly all bi-lateral partnerships in Europe, so Augsburg is in a unique position to partner with a very active and enthusiastic faculty without any competition from other institutions.

Erickson and Freiheit also delivered lectures to Slovenian students and met with professors at the University of Ljubljana and the University of Klagenfurt in Klagenfurt, Austria. Financial support for their travel was provided by the Office of the Dean through its internationalization travel fund.

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Then he went to see Lisa Jack, an assistant professor of psychology at Augsburg. He said he was interested in psychology, and she asked him why. “I told her I liked watching people and how they operate,” Praska explained. The next thing he knew, they were mapping out a strategy for him to complete the psychology major in two years.

And that’s how David Praska, psychology major, found himself at the State Capitol building talking to legislators and guests about his research on therapies for children with obsessive-compulsive disorder.

Praska was one of several scholars presenting at the Minnesota Private College Scholars at the Capitol day in February. Caitlin Massop, another Augsburg psychology student, also presented a poster but was unable to attend the Capitol event. Both students were advised in their research by assistant professor of psychology, Stacy Freiheit.

As he delved into the psychology field, Praska became interested in the subject of attraction between people—couples, friends, and family members. He talked with other professors and began exploring a career in marriage and family therapy, where he hopes to reach out specifically to Mexican American families.

“I found out that many Mexican American couples will go to a marriage counselor for one session and never return, and I had questions about that,” Praska says. He hopes to focus his graduate studies on therapy with minority groups and to “bridge the gap” between therapists and people of different cultures.

Praska spent most of last summer in the lab conducting research through the McNair program. “I was a little nervous when I started because I had never done a project like that myself,” he says. But he says he learned valuable lessons about communication and research through the program. “It was well worth it because I grew up as a researcher and as a student.”

Praska and other scholars will present research as part of Zyzzogeton, Augsburg’s annual festival of creativity and scholarship. The Zyzzogeton research poster session will be Thursday, April 15 from 3:30-5:30 Oren Gateway Center Atrium.

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