2025-26 Faculty Awards

Tenure and Promotion to Associate Professor

Seven faculty members were recognized for their achievement in receiving tenure and promotion to associate professor, effective Fall 2026.

• Mallory Alekna, music education
• Nimanthi Atukorala, computer science and data science
• Jacob Enger, business administration
• Abby Hughes-Scalise, clinical psychology
• Kao Nou Moua, social work
• Iva Patel, religion and philosophy
• Shayna Sheinfeld, religion and philosophy

Promotion to Full Professor

Four individuals were recognized for their promotions to full professor effective Fall 2026, in recognition of their exemplary practice and mastery in teaching, scholarship, and leadership.

• Matthew Beckman, biology
• Katie Clark, nursing
• Ben Denkinger, psychology
• Christopher Houltberg, visual art and design

Augsburg Day Student Government Excellence in Teaching Award

Nancy Fischer, sociology and urban studies

Faculty Innovation Award

Department of Nursing

Excellence in Teaching Award (Adjunct Faculty)

Erin Maurelli, visual art and design��

Early Career Teaching Award����

Alex Fink, social work

Excellence in Teaching Award (Full-Time Faculty)

Jennifer Bankers-Fulbright, biology

Distinguished Service to the Community Award

Amy Nelson, nursing

Excellence in Service to the University Award

Michelle Ullery, nursing

2025-26 Staff Awards

Department of the Year

Residence Life

Outstanding Newcomer

Zinnia Coy: Program Manager for Food Initiatives

Outstanding Staff

• Diane Syler, assistant director of student accounts
• Julie Frozlan Ferralez, director of academic advising
• Minasie Theophilos, custodian
• Marcus Carrigan: program associate, Strommen Center for Meaningful Work and Center for Global Education and Experience
• Ellie Olson, director of wellness and counseling

Congratulations to all the 2025–26 award recipients!

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Alongside other Peace Scholars from our Lutheran sister sites (Concordia College, Luther College, Pacific Lutheran College and St. Olaf College), these two students will participate in the annual summer Peace Scholars program in Norway, designed to deepen students’ understanding of the central issues and theories regarding conflict, war, and peace.��

Aidan Wippich is an incoming senior, pursuing a double major in international relations and public policy with a minor in peace and global studies. His passion for global politics came at a young age during his time in competitive speech in high school. This passion has continued throughout his time in college, studying abroad for a semester program in South Korea his sophomore year and meeting with foreign members of parliament back home. Outside of class, Wippich is the current president for Augsburg’s Day Student Government, focusing on issues that include campus safety, communications, and commencement.��

Around campus, Wippich has worked for multiple branches of government, including an internship at the Minnesota House of Representatives and an internship with US Senator Amy Klobuchar’s home office. In both of these experiences, Wippich has learned first-hand how to communicate with people of differing backgrounds and beliefs in the realm of politics, and how to find common ground through those divisions.��

After college, Wippich plans to go to graduate school to get his masters in either international relations or public policy. He also plans to continue working in the public service sector to ensure that people’s concerns are heard and resolved. In his commitment to serving the people, Wippich looks forward to the opportunities that the Peace Scholar offers, which he hopes will leave him with more knowledge that will help him address the problems and concerns of the people back home.

Tommaso Maritan is a rising sophomore, majoring in business management. He is from Italy and is currently studying in the United States—an experience that has strengthened his interest in cultural exchange and international perspectives. Living and studying abroad has allowed him to engage with people from diverse backgrounds and gain a better understanding of the importance of dialogue and cooperation across cultures.

At Augsburg, Maritan serves as the president of the International Student Organization, where he works to create a welcoming and inclusive environment for students from around the world. Through organizing events and encouraging connections between students of different backgrounds, he hopes to strengthen community and cultural understanding on campus.

Maritan looks forward to the Peace Scholars program in Norway as an opportunity to further explore international perspectives on peace, cooperation, and dialogue. In his free time, he enjoys playing soccer, running, traveling, and discovering new cultures.

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1972
Augsburg men’s soccer alumnus Jim Agre ’72 was inducted into the College Sports Communicators Academic All-America Hall of Fame in June during the CSC Unite ’26 Convention in Las Vegas. He is now one of just 182 inductees into the prestigious group; only 23 NCAA Division III institutions are represented. Academic All-America is considered the most premier honor for collegiate student-athletes nationwide, celebrating academic and athletic excellence.

2000s

2000
Ross Murray ’00, ’09 MBA has published an article, in the February 2026 ELCA Youth Ministry Connect Journal.

2010s

2011
Ronald Juntilla ’11 published his book “Time Met Me Half Way: Discipline, Consistency, and Time: How I Rebuilt My Life at 56,” which reflects on his journey as a Minnesota adult learner, veteran, and Augsburg graduate. It is available on Kindle, Amazon, and Books-A-Million.

2020s

2022
Valerie DeCora Guimaraes ’22 DNP/TCN was invited to the . She is a patient experience ambassador at Mayo Clinic, an adjunct professor at the University of Minnesota Rochester nursing program, and is the founder of the Greater Rochester Area Dakota Supporters, which promotes healing and understanding through education and reconciliation.

The post Alumni Class Notes, Summer 2026 appeared first on Augsburg Now.

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Students who wish to notify their hometown newspapers of their achievement can do so at their discretion using a .

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Watch via PBS News:

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The Violins of Hope touring collection highlights restored string instruments that survived the Holocaust to tell the stories of those who played, hid, carried, and saved them. Today, the instruments serve as powerful symbols of remembrance and resilience. CBS Saturday Morning about the Violins of Hope on May 9, including interviews with renowned violinist Itzhak Perlman and Mark Bergman, professor of music and artist in residence at Augsburg.��

June 23: Voices of Hope and Resilience

• 2–5 p.m. Symposium and Chamber Music Concert
• 5–6:30 p.m. Cocktail Hour and Dinner
• 6:45 p.m. Pre-Concert Lecture
• 7:30 p.m. Minnesota Sinfonia Concert

Location: Foss Center and Anderson Music Hall, Augsburg University

All events are free and open to the public, but space is limited. All are welcome. ��

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“There are times when I ask a class what they think a librarian does,” says Tanya Gunkel, one of Augsburg University’s outreach and instruction librarians. “At that point, direct eye contact drops, and someone will mumble quietly, ‘ … books?’”

She laughs. “Books are definitely part of it, but we see our job as helping students build lifelong skills that they can use at any job: how to find good information. Our goal is for students to know that they can come here any time, to say ‘I can see myself here.’ We want them to feel like this library is theirs.”

Sitting in the common area on the first floor of Lindell Library, there is a palpable sense that what Gunkel says is true. For one thing, she’s speaking at a normal volume—and she’s not the only one. While there’s plenty of quiet study space in the building, gone are the days of hushed whispers and silent stacks. There are people using this library.

The transformation underway at Lindell isn’t a radical departure so much as a deepening of long-held principles. In 1931, Indian librarian S. R. Ranganathan proposed five laws of library science. His precepts continue to shape the profession nearly a century later, and they are at work in this unexpectedly lively place: a library where community is at the center.

“My absolute favorite thing about the library is the people,” says Augsburg Library Director Sara Fillbrandt. “The heart of the library is the community, and that heart goes home every night. Without them, it’s just a building full of things.”

First law: Books are for use

A major goal of the new instruction and outreach librarian team—Gunkel, Megan Schierenbeck, and Kira Cronin-Hennessy, a trio hired at the same time in 2025—is to make it as easy as possible for students and faculty to get the most out of the library’s resources.

They’re getting creative to do it. Both online and in the library itself, the takes students on a self-guided tour of key resources and points of interest in Lindell, from study spaces with the best natural light to where students can check out a laptop. A new visual menu lays out ways the library can support faculty, from short tutorials on library basics to specialized research guides on topics ranging from medieval history to preserving open data. Fable the Fox, an unofficial mascot designed by Jasmine Yacabalque ’25, beckons library patrons in with his whimsical flair for Scandinavian wear.

Last fall, the instruction and outreach team partnered with AugSem, Augsburg’s required first-year introductory seminar, to bring every AugSem section on a library field trip through the Talon Trail. Among other resources, these visits highlighted the suite of academic supports on the second floor, including TRIO Student Support Services, the Writing Center, and academic advising. The goal was simple: to get new students in the building and help them understand it as a one-stop information hub. In Fillbrandt’s words, “If you don’t know, go to the library.”

“At one point we hit the maximum building capacity with 350 AugSem students in the building,” says Gunkel. “It’s really meaningful knowing that projects like that make an impact, because I see them come back—to ask for help, or play a game, or check out a Chromebook.”

This spring semester, Technical Services Coordinator Kristine Kammueller spearheaded a project to build out a new collection of . The project represents a major shift from past practice, one that’s grounded in broader efforts to address financial need among Augsburg students and families. With 178 titles in the collection, all with multi-use licenses that enable a whole class to use them, the library staff estimate that the collection is providing 25% of textbooks used by Augsburg students for free. “Whatever [digital texts] we can purchase, we do,” says Fillbrandt.

Second law: Every reader, their book

In 1997, Karen Hogan answered a newspaper classified ad for a position in Augsburg’s new Lindell Library building, which had just opened. Her first job in the library involved managing more than 800 titles in the library’s print periodicals collection. Later, she moved into course reserves (“giant file cabinets full of articles”) and electronic databases. Today, as resource sharing coordinator, she manages interlibrary loans, working to connect students and faculty to the resources they need.

“I love to see them working through a research problem, and to see what projects faculty are working on” via their requests for books and articles, Hogan says. She often attends Augsburg’s annual Zyzzogeton student research symposium to see the finished projects she supported behind the scenes.

Hogan’s career at Augsburg over the past three decades reflects the seismic shifts in technology that have changed so much of culture and education—libraries included. She says the challenge for students, researchers, and librarians has gone from “how do I find it?” to “how do I manage this firehose of information?”

The advent of artificial intelligence has accelerated this shift. A notable impact on Hogan’s work has been helping frustrated students identify and guard against “hallucinatory citations”—real-seeming citations of research works that were invented by AI and don’t, in fact, exist.

In partnership with faculty, Augsburg’s librarians are on the front lines of teaching AI literacy. Their aim in developing Augsburg’s first is to nurture students’ critical thinking about generative AI, with a focus on ethical considerations and how to evaluate online information, both in and out of the classroom. Next year, students will be able to enroll in a two-credit course based on modules the library developed around AI literacy—including a section on generative media, a category that includes images, videos, and deepfakes. Additional modules are in the works around mis- and disinformation.

Third law: Every book, its reader

Two years ago, the library team began a massive effort to remove volumes that were more than 20 years old and hadn’t been checked out in more than a decade (a process known in library lingo as “weeding”). This effort reduced the collection from 160,000 volumes to 90,000. But removal from the catalog is not the same as removal from the shelves, notes Fillbrandt. Their physical removal, what student worker Cyril Foday-Kailie ’26 calls “a huge project,” is ongoing. Over the summer, more than 40,000 volumes in poor shape were recycled. An additional 30,000 are in the process of being distributed to Better World Books and other libraries.

Why reduce the physical collection? Space is a key motivation. Fewer physical volumes means more room on the shelves. The library staff have been intentional about reducing the density of books on shelves to eliminate “title blindness” and make it easier to see what’s on the shelves while browsing. Additionally, the weeding project has allowed the team to remove shelves, open up new gathering spaces, and move items like CDs, DVDs, and reference books out from behind the desk into more accessible areas. (Fillbrandt drops her voice and confesses that her long-term, radical dream is to file the reference collection in with everything else, where it will be available to check out like any other material: one continuous collection filed in Library of Congress order from A to Z.)

Each of Augsburg’s five schools has a dedicated librarian who specializes in subject matter research, from accounting to urban studies, though they are all equipped to help students and faculty who come in with any question. Every day is different, says Gunkel; in addition to sleuthing private company salary data as part of her work with the School of Business, she’s fielded recent questions on topics ranging from adverse childhood experiences to perimenopause.

Computer science major Foday-Kailie sought help from his library colleagues with research into the so-called “Sarajevo Incident”—the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand in 1914—for a history class that required he consult primary sources. Not long after, he was perusing 100-year-old newspapers on microfiche. “All you have to have is the topic,” he says. “They can help you with citations, how to get sources—they can help you thoroughly.”

When Lindell doesn’t have something, another library invariably does. Hogan can find almost anything via interlibrary loan; at present, she’s working on getting a musical score from Canada. She remembers a Halloween pumpkin making the rounds via the Minitex library courier system, each library adding a sticker with its three-letter identification code. Once, she challenged the library student workers to a contest to see who could obtain the most unique item from another library. She won with a Lightning McQueen bake pan sent north from a public library in Iowa.

Fourth law: Save the time of the reader

In 2024, Augsburg became one of the first academic libraries in the U.S. to go completely self-service for circulation. With James and Jean, a self-checkout station and smart locker named in honor of library benefactors James G. Lindell ’46 and Jean G. (Tigwell) Lindell, students check out and return books, retrieve holds, and pick up interlibrary loan materials with less staff support.

It’s been a seamless transition for a generation of students who are accustomed to self checkout at the grocery store and picking up packages at Amazon lockers. For the library, the benefits were immediate. Now that students don’t have to wait for someone to help them at the desk, circulation has actually increased, and staff time has been freed up for other priorities. Hogan says utilization of course reserves has also significantly increased by reducing friction for students.

The library also recently joined the MnPALS consortium, a network of 54 libraries in Minnesota whose scale makes it easier and more cost-effective for individual libraries to manage digital assets in an increasingly complex information environment. This involved a catalog migration—another major summer undertaking—but Fillbrandt says it was worth it, even as the staff continues to clean data following the migration. These changes are part of a broader shift, initiated by former Library Director Stewart Van Cleve, to leverage technology in order to free up staff time for more meaningful work with students and the Augsburg community in the aftermath of the pandemic.

Earth Day programming. Therapy dogs in the library. A student-curated Día de los Muertos ofrenda last fall. Vibrant mosaic artwork in the windows. “Instead of fixing broken links, our staff members are now spending time on things that matter more and are more visible to the community,” says Fillbrandt.

Fifth law: The library is a growing organism

Gunkel often sees the library’s rolling whiteboards covered in chemistry notations when she arrives at work in the morning. Throughout the first floor, intentional changes have made the space more student-friendly in recent years. New tables and chairs on wheels make it easier for groups to gather in flexible arrangements around the whiteboards, whether to map out ideas or work out tricky equations. Where bare metal shelves used to display old yearbooks, students browse new collections on bright blue shelves—comics and graphic novels here, books by Auggie authors there. The tech help desk now shares space with the library front desk.

Next to racks of board games, students are working on the community jigsaw puzzle. In previous eras, one puzzle used to last the whole semester. But Fillbrandt says the refreshed community spaces in the library have made the puzzle a consistent draw for students, staff, and faculty alike. “We have three students who come in a couple times a week and sit for two hours. They’ve done three or four puzzles in the last two weeks!”

Students have had a hand in shaping the space. When Jerid McDonald ’28 initially reached out to the library staff, he was just trying to find a place for the Augsburg Board Game Club to meet. One thing led to another: the library offered space, the game club donated games, and Lindell’s game collection was born.

“I would say Azul and Root are the most popular games,” says McDonald, “along with Uno and chess. It helped that the library specifically surveyed people about what games they wanted to see in the collection.”

A sturdy, high-quality chess board was a common request. Munchkin and Slay the Spire get a lot of use. Students can play in the library, of course, or check out games to take back to their residence halls. It’s one of many ways the library is focusing on social belonging as well as academic success—by offering “brain breaks” when students need them. McDonald, a triple major in math, physics, and computer science, has had to step back from leading the board game club due to time constraints, but he’s proud and grateful that the permanent game collection in the library is now available to the whole Augsburg community.

This June, Fillbrandt will present as part of a panel at the American Library Association conference about the ways Augsburg has embraced change to make the library a more human-centered place. Hogan says doing so has required the courage and willingness to say “we’re not going to do that anymore” in order to make space for what students need today.

“I think this is the best iteration of the library so far,” she says.

At Lindell Library these days, that’s something you can say out loud.

Top image: The Lindell Library service desk is a one-stop information hub for students, faculty, and staff.

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The name change aligns Augsburg’s programs with the professional title adopted nationally by the PA profession—a shift that aims to more accurately reflect PAs’ scope of practice, credentials, and role in delivering high-quality health care. The change will ensure consistency with professional standards and accreditation, while positioning Augsburg to support broader efforts across the state to modernize PA terminology in legislation and public understanding.

“The transition from “assistant” to “associate” reflects the modern role of PAs as collaborative, highly trained medical professionals who practice medicine as part of health care teams,” said Associate Professor Vanessa Bester, director of Augsburg’s School of Health. “This change reflects Augsburg’s ongoing commitment to leadership and innovation in health professions education.”��

The change also brings together Augsburg’s Master of Science in Physician Associate Studies and Doctor of Medical Science degrees into a combined department. The Doctor of Medical Science program, launched in Fall 2025, advances practicing PAs’ leadership expertise in education, research, and health care administration.

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Augsburg University celebrated the class of 2026 at a vibrant commencement ceremony at U.S. Bank Stadium on Thursday, May 7.

This year’s dynamic and diverse group of 544 undergraduate and 228 graduate students represents 24 countries, 16 states, and eight tribal nations at the undergraduate level, and 15 countries, 13 states, and three tribal nations among graduate students. Top undergraduate majors include biology, psychology, finance, and computer science, alongside strong representation in nursing, business, and the social sciences. Graduate students span a wide array of advanced programs, with the largest cohorts in social work, business administration, and physician assistant studies.

President Paul Pribbenow welcomed the graduates to the Minneapolis event, acknowledging the difficulties faced by the community during the past year. And although commencement tends to mark the academic accomplishments of the outgoing class, he said that courage, resilience, and care are also cause for celebration.

“In a time of stress and grief, you showed up for each other and had each other’s backs,” Pribbenow said. “In a time of uncertainty and disruption, you pushed forward, even when it may have seemed impossible to finish your education. I am always proud of Augsburg, but I am especially proud of you.”

Pribbenow then presented awards to members of the class of 2026.

Lee’RayVone G’everdloaahn ’26 was named this year’s recipient of the Marina Christensen Justice Award, which honors a student exemplifying Augsburg’s motto, “Education for Service.” An Act Six Scholar and Newman Civic Fellow, G’everdloaahn graduated with a double major in psychology and critical race and ethnicity studies, and a minor in entrepreneurial studies. He also served the Augsburg community as founder and president of the poetry and meaningful writing club, a community advisor, and a Bonner community leader.

The Richard J. Thoni Award was presented to Savannah Mitchell ’26 MAE, embodying a commitment to community, hospitality, and innovation through her work advancing the Augsburg Family Scholars program. Her unwavering dedication to foster youth inspired her nomination by Professor Tim Pippert, executive director of Augsburg Family Scholars.

“Our students find Savannah relatable and value her insights,” Pippert said in his nomination. “Savannah has been a touchstone whose presence has strengthened the Augsburg Family Scholars community. We know her impact will endure as she continues advocating for foster youth in the future.”

Seng Xiong ’17, ’26 MSW then delivered the commencement address. A deeply introspective reflection, they shared personal challenges of going back to college for an advanced degree—the first in their family to do so—and the importance of maintaining hope and resilience amidst doubts.

“All of us leaving this stage today have the opportunity to use the gifts, resources, and knowledge we have been given to continue finding our way in this peculiar era, while also contributing to a future that lets those to come know they have a meaningful place in the world, too,” Xiong said.

Among the list of their supporters were family, colleagues, educators, and staff.

“I am so humbled to have been given bountiful demonstrations of what it means to be committed to the care and liberation of learners—every and anywhere.”

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“The Study Abroad and Away Office is committed to making study abroad as affordable and accessible as possible, and the Gilman Scholarship plays a critical role in that mission,” said Sarah Morgan, study abroad and away advisor for Augsburg’s Center for Global Education and Experience. “We offer information sessions, writing workshops, and advising support to help Auggies submit strong, competitive applications.”

Established in 2001, the U.S. Department of State’s Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship Program has made study abroad more accessible and inclusive by providing scholarships to outstanding U.S. undergraduate students who, due to financial constraints, might not otherwise participate. Since the program’s inception, more than 50,000 Gilman Scholars have studied or interned in more than 170 countries.��

“While we’re proud to be named a Top-Producing Institution, the real credit belongs to our students, who dedicate significant time and effort to earning this prestigious scholarship,” Morgan said. “We’re honored by this recognition and look forward to supporting even more Auggies as they pursue study abroad through the Gilman Scholarship Program.”

To learn more about Gilman Scholarships, visit . The Gilman competition is administered at Augsburg through the Center for Global Education and Experience.

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