On and around the land that today houses Augsburg University’s Minneapolis campus, they celebrated births and mourned deaths. They spoke languages of love and laughter, stress and sorrow. They built families, businesses, and dreams.

They were here and many are gone, at once everywhere and nowhere because in the blistering pace and abundant distractions of the human ecosystem we all inhabit, it’s natural that we forget who came before us.

But what if—even for a moment—we turned our attention to who we were and who we are right now? To who worships next to us, or walks by us in the grocery, or shares an apartment wall?

“On This Spot” and “Each, Together,” bring into focus the history of the campus and the surrounding neighborhood, and the people who are the Augsburg of yesterday, today, and tomorrow.

What would we discover if we intentionally took notice of who we are and where we’ve come from?

This idea is at the core of new art and historical exhibits that cover collectively four city blocks on 12 of Augsburg’s building facades and 37 window panes around campus. As part of Augsburg’s sesquicentennial celebration, artists and designers at the university wanted to give the community a chance to reflect on their history and their people. So the works, dubbed respectively “On This Spot” and “Each, Together,” bring into focus the history of the campus and the surrounding neighborhood, and the people who are the Augsburg of yesterday, today, and tomorrow.

‘Humans at the center’

“Each, Together,” the larger of the two projects, is a Group Action of the international “Inside Out: The People’s Art Project” initiative that launched in 2011 after a French street artist, known only as JR, won that year’s TED Prize. First awarded in 2005, the TED (Technology, Entertainment, and Design) Prize has become synonymous with visionary thinking meant to spark change throughout the world. Winners of the award—including educators, artists, chefs, journalists, and even former President Bill Clinton—have used the $1 million prize to fuel specific community projects, like healthy food initiatives and educational innovations. The winning projects all have one thing in common: They are designed to make people engage in their communities.

In the case of artist JR’s project, his vision was to create works that “shine a light on the unsung and give everyone the dignity they deserve.” And he hoped that beyond his capacity as one artist, people around the world would join in the celebration of others. To date, more than 260,000 people in 129 countries have participated in different versions of the project featuring faces displayed on billboards, buildings, sidewalks, and in digital collections. Augsburg is one of the latest communities to answer the call.

“We saw that invitation, that there was a related, common ethos to what we have here at Augsburg, and that the project was similar to public works we’ve done here,” said Christopher Houltberg, Augsburg associate professor of art and design. “It’s really about putting humans at the center.”

So a team that included a curator, nine photographers, and three designers—Houltberg, Maggie Royce ’15, and Indra Ramassamy ’18—worked for several months between Fall 2018 and Summer 2019. The photographers attended between 15 and 20 campus events, all working to capture as many faces as possible to best tell the Augsburg story.

“The way we went about it was really organic,” Houltberg said. “We started going to events around campus in Fall 2018 and then in the springtime, trying to get to as many different ones as possible. There’s a really big holiday event called Advent Vespers, and a lot of alumni come to that.” All told, the group took more than 900 photos and gathered about 300 additional images of historic Auggies.

“It’s very democratic; everyone is given the same amount of space,” Houltberg said. “From our president, Paul Pribbenow, to people who work on our janitorial staff, to our students, to our former mayor, R.T. Rybak.

“As we were defining the parameters [of the ‘Each, Together’ project] it was a fun surprise for us to see who self-identified as part of Augsburg.”

Bigger dose of Augsburg

R.T. Rybak, current president of the Minneapolis Foundation, was the mayor of Minneapolis from 2002 to 2014. He said it would be impossible to think of the growth and development of the city without considering the role Augsburg has played in that history.

“I’ve conservatively said 1,000 times in public speeches that the neighborhood where Augsburg is, is our Ellis Island. One wave after the other washes in and the next wave builds on top, and it’s something that no one wave could have created in isolation,” Rybak said.

That’s most certainly the story of the Cedar-Riverside neighborhood that surrounds Augsburg and the story of Minneapolis as a whole.

“… I often think we just need a bigger dose of Augsburg. We need to realize that offering that ladder of opportunity to someone else makes all of us able to climb higher. We are better together.

—R.T. Rybak, former Minneapolis mayor

“Augsburg is a shining example of the very best parts of Minneapolis’ history. The university represents opening doors to people with strange names like Johnson or Anderson or Rybak, and keeping those doors open for people with names that come from Africa, Asia, and places across the globe.

“When I get down about what’s fracturing our deeply divided country and world today, I often think we just need a bigger dose of Augsburg. We need to realize that offering that ladder of opportunity to someone else makes all of us able to climb higher. We are better together.”

Houltberg said the “together” ideal is at the heart of the exhibit. “As individuals we are showing up, and collectively we can do something greater than what we can do on our own,” he said. “I loved seeing the portraits blocked together, seeing people stop and take selfies. There are people who say, ‘I recognize who that is!’”

Forward facing, historic reflections

Kristin Anderson, a co-creator of these projects as well as a professor of art history and Augsburg archivist, said she’s only heard good things about the exhibit.

“I have seen emails and tweets—sometimes emotional—with people responding to the wall as a whole, as well as to their individual images,” Anderson said.

The community is responding to the historical revisit that “On This Spot” installations provide, too, she said.

That exhibit features enormous panels that share Augsburg moments that photographers captured decades ago. The campus life of yesteryear includes images of young bobby soxer women from the 1940s in saddle shoes and flowing skirts in contrast with men wearing formal suits while tramping across a snow-covered campus.

“It has been a fun way to bring some old photographs to life and to show how the campus is layered on the site. Those ‘lost’ buildings displayed on the walls of the current buildings help to connect us to our past, reminding us of the imagination and commitment of our predecessors,” Anderson said.

The two exhibits are being admired by community members who see the campus regularly and by those who keep up with Augsburg from a distance.

Killa (Martinez Aleman) Marti ’08 came to Augsburg from her home in Honduras. Marti said she brought her own values with her when she enrolled, “but Augsburg put them to work. The Auggie community showed me that I wasn’t crazy to want a career with meaning.”

“Those ‘lost’ buildings displayed on the walls of the current buildings help to connect us to our past, reminding us of the imagination and commitment of our predecessors.”

—Kristin Anderson, university archivist

For Marti, “Each, Together” perfectly sums up her experience at Augsburg.

“My career is an intersection of what I love to do with the opportunity to serve,” said Marti, an attorney in Atlanta. “To think critically, to be socially and community-minded—all of the things I exercise in my life were supported and further developed at Augsburg.”

Houltberg said it’s difficult not to consider the greater impact that art, especially a work like “Each, Together,” has.

“Having a group of artists, designers, and photographers come together to make something this beautiful and to see it up and fully functioning is pretty great,” he said.

“It has created a tangible thread between all of us, which transcends 150 years and all our history,” said Ramassamy, who worked with the team to design “Each, Together.”

“We live in a visual world yet we can be unaware of each other,” she said. “This project is making us aware of one another, making us pay attention, making us curious about the person in the portrait above or to the left or right of us.”

“I love watching people who are walking down the streets looking at the portraits,” Houltberg said. “There’s an element of surprise to it that’s really fantastic. Sometimes the tendency is to put people in big groups. But if you look at these portraits, look at the eyes, and look at the humans who are represented here, you see just how wide a spectrum of humans we are. Anytime we can show the humans and not the institution, we win.”

Social Media Spotlight

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Training for the 2004 Summer Olympic Games, could think of little else than the triple jump cadence.

Hop, step, and jump. Hop, step, and jump.

Then at practice, hop, step, and crack—followed by intense pain, doctors, and confirmation that his Olympic dreams shattered along with his ankle.

Dixon spent the next few years figuring out who he was off the field—the place where athletic ability and subsequent praise had become closely linked to his sense of identity. It was a journey as difficult—if not more so—than his climb to peak performance. During that dark, confusing time, he promised himself: If I’m ever in a position to help others transition to life after sports, I will.

Since July, Dixon has served as Augsburg University’s director of athletic diversity and inclusion and assistant coach for the men’s and women’s track and field teams. He is eager to return to the field as a coach, and he has a game plan to use the new role to promote a culture of inclusion. This job is personal, Dixon said.

“I was one of only a few African American kids in elementary school. People would ask to touch my hair, and I felt different until fifth grade, when I performed in front of my peers and teachers at a district track meet,” he said. “For the first time, I felt accepted and embraced, and from then on, my identity was as an athlete. I loved it, don’t get me wrong, but it was difficult to adjust once I left the arena.”

Dixon never had an African American teacher or coach other than a friend’s dad who, after selling insurance all day, volunteered for Dixon’s high school track and field team. “I had amazing coaches and teachers, but I never saw myself in those roles,” he said. These and other life experiences inform his outlook on this new role and emphasize the importance of his presence at Augsburg, where he also teaches Introduction to Kinesiology.

“I am meeting student-athletes and talking with them about the challenges they face. I am working to be a presence on campus—to break down stereotypes for some and to be a role model for others,” he said. “Alongside student-athletes and our athletics administration, I want to create or enhance academic resources, life-skills development, and networking opportunities.”

Personal connections and consistent, centralized support are critical to the success of underrepresented student-athletes, Dixon said. “Augsburg is already ahead of the game. The student body is diverse, and there are many resources across campus that support inclusion. I plan to work with and build on what’s already there.”

A plan—starting with breakfast

As the sun rose on the second Thursday in October, Dixon greeted several tables of student-athletes seated in The Commons in Christensen Center. The young men of color connected with each other over breakfast before hearing advice from Jareck Horton, district sales manager
at PDC IDenticard, and Augsburg Football Assistant Coach . Dixon plans to invite successful men of color from a range of professions to these monthly networking socials, and he will hold similar events with other groups. ’20 MAE, graduate assistant coach for track and field, said she and other students are thrilled with Dixon’s enthusiasm and vision for the role.

“In a world where, many times, the odds are stacked against us, leaders of color provide hope and strength,” said Schuelke, a student in the Master of Arts in Education program. “I came to Augsburg for the MAE program, but I was pleasantly surprised to find how diverse the campus is, and it is my absolute favorite part of my learning experience.

“If we can move the needle toward a more diverse group of leaders that better represent our country’s demographics, then students of color will begin to understand that the sky’s the limit in terms of their own hopes, dreams, and aspirations.”

“Alongside student-athletes and our athletics administration, I want to create or enhance academic resources, life-skills development, and networking opportunities.”

—Chris Dixon, director of athletic diversity and inclusion

Position the result of NCAA diversity grant

Dixon’s position is largely made possible through a two-year NCAA Ethnic Minorities and Women’s Internship Grant, which provides financial assistance to member institutions who create full-time, entry-level administrative positions for people who identify as an ethnic minority and/or a woman, according to federal guidelines. The grant also supports professional development and formalized mentoring.

Augsburg was one of only 20 institutions and conference offices selected to receive the grant this cycle, and it is the third award for Augsburg in the past decade. The university first secured the Ethnic Minorities and Women’s Internship Grant during the 2012 to 2014 cycle to fund Jennifer Jacobs’ role as assistant director of NCAA compliance and assistant volleyball coach. In 2014, Augsburg received the NCAA’s Strategic Alliance Matching Grant, which funds full-time, mid- to senior-level athletics administration positions during a five-year commitment. Jacobs’ role then evolved into assistant athletic director of external relations and diversity and inclusion, in addition to her role as assistant volleyball coach. She is now head volleyball coach at Augustana University.

Augsburg’s Associate Athletic Director Kelly Anderson Diercks said the department is driven to advance diversity and inclusion. “Embracing and connecting students of all backgrounds and experiences is the right thing to do, but it is also smart,” she said. “More diverse teams are often stronger teams. They produce student-athletes who are better prepared to excel in play and in life.”

Anderson Diercks is a product of the NCAA’s diversity grants, first as an intern for the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference and then as an assistant director. The experience, Anderson Diercks said, transformed how she operates as a leader in a male-dominated profession. More than a decade has passed, but she remains in contact with the mentor assigned to her during the internship.

“These are critical opportunities for women and minorities to enter into leadership positions with tremendous personal and professional resources designed to equip them with the tools and outlook to navigate difficult roles,” said Anderson Diercks, who formerly served as chair of the NCAA Ethnic Minority and Women’s Internship selection committee. “We are particularly excited about Coach Dixon’s position because, to our knowledge, it is the only role of its kind.”

Augsburg is ‘ahead of the game’

Ali Spungen, associate director of Division III for the NCAA, said that about 130 positions have been awarded through diversity grants during the past five years—that’s more than $36 million in funds for positions and professional development. Augsburg, Spungen said, stands out as a leader in the division, which is well positioned to meet the needs of diverse populations.

“Division III allows student-athletes to play the sports they love within departments also focused on their academics and social engagement,” said Spungen, also a past grant recipient. “These positions empower leaders like Coach Dixon to thrive, which inspires and encourages students. Augsburg clearly cares for its student-athletes and is willing to dedicate time and resources to ensure they are successful and well-rounded.”

Dixon is ready and grateful to come full-circle—to be the coach and teacher he never had and to prepare others for the transitions he never saw coming.

The post Building on an early lead appeared first on Augsburg Now.

“I escaped into books. Or maybe,” she said, “I disappeared in them.” Books gave her the life she longed for, but those beloved tales were someone else’s story. She was 20 before she read a book with black characters.

Now 55, the retired teacher is driven to change that narrative. Last August, at the historic James J. Hill Center in St. Paul, Minnesota, Taris stood in front of family and friends to voice her dream, Strive Publishing, into existence. The startup—based out of her Twin Cities home—supports emerging authors of picture books and young adult novels that are culturally relevant, contemporary, and relatable to kids of all shades, abilities, and experiences.

“Everyone has a story, and those stories build bridges to connect us all,” said Taris, a graduate of Augsburg University’s Adult Undergraduate program, a flexible degree program that pairs on-campus classes with online coursework in a dozen undergraduate majors. “Too often, authors conform to narrow industry standards driven by profit, but I refuse.” At Strive, Taris and her team work to create pathways for writers and artists from all backgrounds to write about their own experiences and a wider array of identities.

Publishing stories that represent and connect

Strive Publishing has released three titles by local African American authors, and several more books are in the works with upcoming launch dates. Taris’ efforts have been featured nationally and celebrated locally, with invitations to inaugural African American Voices in Children’s Literature Contest in partnership with Free Spirit Publishing.

“Strive is more than a company; it’s a mindset,” she said. “I was a runaway teen mom who finished high school while striving to raise a son and work for a better life.” That determination led her to enroll in Augsburg’s elementary education program. Juggling work and family, it took Taris eight years to graduate, but she walked across the commencement stage and into the classroom where she taught a range of grades and subjects (mostly English) for 15 years. “I became the first person in my family to earn a college degree,” she said. “It had been my dream since childhood.”

Augsburg left a mark on Taris, as classes exposed her to inequities in education and literature. Taris reframed those inequities as opportunities. Now, years later, Barbara West, director of student teacher placement at Augsburg, recalled Taris’ embrace of story-filled, relevant learning. While student-teaching, Taris invited a Japanese friend to talk with students who were reading a novel about a Japanese girl during World War II. On her lunch hour, Taris met with eighth-graders to advise on a student-produced newsletter. She sought to incorporate diverse voices and stories into the curriculum.

“Augsburg taught me to consider the whole child and to understand the classroom as a life-giving space where you can listen and let people tell their stories,” she said. “As a teacher, I struggled to find diverse texts.”

Taris also struggled when administrators brought speakers and books that reinforced cultural stereotypes and limited experiences rather than providing real cultural and ethnic diversity. “I wish they would have, instead, given kids diverse books or brought in local authors who looked like the students.”

Celebrating voices that defy stereotypes

Taris launched Strive in 2016 while teaching full time, but three years later, she took early retirement to dedicate herself fully to the publishing company. Taris remains an educator, though, as a mentor to young authors and as an advocate for change. She challenges communities, schools, and publishing houses to invite new titles that can find their way onto more readers’ nightstands.

Ricardo Peters is among Strive’s “founding authors,” as Taris calls them, and he says he is indebted to “Miss Mary” for her guidance and encouragement. Peters’ book— the first in a fantasy series— sold out within months. The 35-year-old stands out, Taris said, because he is a black man who loves and lives the arts like few others.

“Plenty of black men are deeply connected to their artistic side, but society doesn’t celebrate that expression,” Taris added. “Our sons are not all basketball and hip hop. Ricardo defies that stereotype, and his work will lead others to do the same.”

Peters had been dreaming up stories since he filled stapled together notebook paper with “Transformers” stickers. Publishing a book remained his dream, but it wouldn’t have happened without Taris.

“I had been working on this series for nine years and likely would have sat on it forever,” said Peters, who works as a reading instructor at Kumon Math and Reading Center of Maple Grove. “But Mary presented me with this opportunity, she believed in me, and I am eternally grateful.”

Making stories more accessible runs in the family

This sentiment is shared among the authors who work with Taris. Her children are equally inspired by her, so much so that they joined the Strive team. Her oldest son, Jermaine Taris, is a book illustrator. Her 16-year-old daughter, Grace Taris-Allen, serves as “quality control,” happily reading manuscripts; and her eldest daughter, LaToya Taris-James, assists with marketing and social media.

“My mom makes things happen,” said Taris-James, a student leadership program coordinator for Augsburg’s Sabo Center for Democracy and Citizenship. “She is resourceful and passionate, with a unique way of connecting with and inspiring others.

“When I was 12, she introduced me to ‘Things Fall Apart’ by Chinua Achebe. It was the first piece of African literature I had read on my own, and it shaped my view of black people across the African diaspora and helped connect me with my heritage.”

Through Strive, her mother is making those connections on a broader scale, said Taris-James, who hasn’t fallen far from the tree. Along with a friend, Taris-James created a social impact initiative known as Rooftop (or RFTP) that uses storytelling to engage communities in dialogue around difficult, often polarizing, issues. Mother and daughter are both driven to make stories of all kinds more accessible and communal.

“I felt called to create Strive, and to be honest, it’s been difficult to wear so many hats and break through,” Taris said. “Where I have come to see the greatest need is for a safe space for all people to tell their stories, whether they get published or not. I’m working with PopUp Think Tank to gather ideas for how Strive can make the greatest impact, and it’s feeling more like a social enterprise than trying to operate as a traditional publishing house. Whatever Strive looks like in a year— or five years—I know it will be moving the dial.”

Strive Publishing’s Book List

• “Under a Cloven Sky” and “A Wild Nature Embraced” by Ricardo Peters
  • Books one and two in the young adult fantasy series, “The Scorched Heavens,” in which the fate of two nations rests on the city’s young princess and her protector.
• “Isaiah’s Sunglasses” by Linda Miller
  • A short, rhythmic story for children about family, hope, acceptance, and learning about different types of people.
• “Red’s Adventures: The Egg Pie” by Donna Gingery
  • The hilarious first book in a picture book series for children, this story follows the precocious Red, who grows up in Alabama under the watchful eye of her grandmother.
• “Story to Story: A Strive Short Story Series,” Volume 1
  • This collaborative book project aims to celebrate and empower emerging authors and illustrators.
• “Who Can I Be?” by Arielle Grant
  • Created by Strive’s founding illustrator, this is a story of a girl who sees her potential through the example of women in her community.

Representation in literature on the rise but has ‘a long way to go’

The Cooperative Children’s Book Center researched and compiled statistics about the number of children’s books and young adult literature published by and about people of color, American Indians, and those of First Nations. “Every year, we see amazing books by and about people of color and first/native nations. There just aren’t enough of them,” CCBC Director Kathleen Horning reflected in the ongoing study’s abstract. “The more books there are, especially books created by authors and illustrators of color, the more opportunities librarians, teachers, parents, and other adults have of finding outstanding books for young readers and listeners that reflect dimensions of their lives and give a broader understanding of who we are as a nation.”

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It wouldn’t be right to mark 150 years of Augsburg with a small affair—so we threw a huge, once-in-a-lifetime party. On Friday, September 27, Auggies of all kinds dressed up and headed to Renaissance Minneapolis Hotel—The Depot in downtown Minneapolis for the Sesquicentennial Gala, a night of dinner, dancing, revisiting the university’s history, and rallying support to propel Augsburg into the next 150 years.

Gala at a glance

• 1,000 Auggies attended the gala.
• Thanks to our generous guests, we raised a total of $1.4 million in support of Augsburg’s mission.
• Paul Mueller ’84 and Nancy (Mackey) Mueller ’85 issued a challenge and pledged to match every gift at the $1,000 level dollar for dollar up to $100,000.

“Augsburg is astonishing. Which is really to say that the people of Augsburg are astonishing—Brilliant. Committed. Resilient. You might try to hide it or downplay it, but it is undeniably, unequivocally, tangibly bursting forth from everything you do. It has been nearly 15 years since I first stepped on campus. And, today, the world is noticing Augsburg, what it is, and does, and stands for. Not just in the Twin Cities, but nationally and internationally.”

—from President Paul Pribbenow’s gala remarks

“Auggie, you are called into the world. Into your wonder. Your why. To wrestle with reason. To spot the problem. And propose new parts. To walk toward your fears. To find the heart. We are Called. We are Auggies.”

—from “We Are Auggies,” a spoken-word piece written and performed by Donte Collins ’18

Homecoming

Auggies continued the celebration Saturday, September 28, with a full day of Homecoming festivities, including Taste of Augsburg, a chapel service, the football game, and the Augsburg Music Department Collage Concert. The classes of 1969, 1979, and 2009 celebrated milestone reunions.

The post A September to remember appeared first on Augsburg Now.

Augsburg’s student government approved increasing the green fee by $5 to $20 per semester to pay for the Auggie Pass in order to reduce students’ out-of-pocket costs while improving their chances of accepting jobs and internships that involve a commute. Day Student Government is officially responsible for overseeing the green fee that supports sustainability efforts.

The Auggie Pass is valid throughout the school year and is paid for from both the student green fee and university operating funds. All traditional undergraduate students who pay the semester green fee are eligible for the pass at no additional cost.

“As someone who uses the bus every day, it’s great not to have that financial burden,” said Skye Ryge ’20, who advocated for the pass. “It’s really economically advantageous to students who pay for school, like me, to not have to choose between textbooks and bus fare.”

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This summer, Assistant Professor Joaquin Muñoz from our education department greeted our incoming students with a powerful message. He said that every one of them deserved an adult who loved them unconditionally. He then looked out at our remarkable students and told them that he loved them. He said, “I see you,” and “I will do all I can to ensure that you are successful at Augsburg and beyond.”

Joaquin was speaking to students of color and indigenous students in particular, but this is our promise to all our students: “We see you” is at the center of Augsburg’s commitment to meet students where they are and walk alongside them as they pursue their educational goals. What does it mean to say that “we see you”? It means that your life experience, your vocational journey, your path to Augsburg is important to us and will be taken seriously as we work together to ensure your success.

It seems especially fitting as we launch our 150th anniversary—our sesquicentennial—that we renew our promise to meet our students where they are, to see them in all of their astonishing and diverse life experiences, and to accompany them as they pursue an Augsburg education.

Our promise to see our students is evident in all of our celebrations of our 150th anniversary. For example, the remarkable “Each, Together” art project—part of an international initiative known as “Inside Out”—is featured in this issue of Augsburg Now (see “Face value”). More than 1,200 photographs are displayed on buildings across campus: images of current students, faculty, staff, and alumni alongside those of historic figures like Bernhard Christensen ’22, Augsburg’s fifth president, who looks at me each day as I pull into my campus parking spot! Every time I look at those photographs, I think about how they reflect our commitment to seeing each other, to recognizing that our various journeys to Augsburg and beyond are part of a remarkable narrative that has unfolded over the past 150 years.

Since our founding in 1869 and through the decades that followed, our institution has grown and changed, yet our commitment to our foundational promise has remained the same. We see you, we love you, and together we will fulfill our abiding promise that Augsburg is “small to our students and big for the world.”

Faithfully yours,

Paul C. Pribbenow, President

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Throwback TV shows, retro fashion, and reboots of toys, trinkets, and stories from decades ago have people wondering if American culture is at its peak in terms of nostalgia—and how long it can last. Bridget Robinson-Riegler is a professor of psychology at Augsburg University. Taking a moment between writing a cognitive psychology textbook, research, and teaching and learning with her students, she explores what psychology can tell us about nostalgia’s appeal.

Q: What is nostalgia? How does it relate to memory?

A: Nostalgia is a sentimental longing for one’s past. The emotion is deeply social and bittersweet but predominantly positive. Nostalgic memories are recollections of atypical life events (e.g.,vacations) that involve close relationships (e.g., family, friends) or events from childhood. We view these experiences with rose-colored glasses so negative aspects are often not remembered. We miss those experiences and yearn to relive them.

Q: Where did the idea of nostalgia originate?

A: The word “nostalgia” is a compound of two Greek words that essentially mean a sad mood originating from a desire to return to one’s native land. The word was coined in the 17th century by a medical student who was helping Swiss mercenaries working in France. He observed symptoms of sadness, loss of appetite, insomnia, cardiac palpitation—things we would diagnose as post-traumatic stress disorder today. Much of the early interest in nostalgia focused on how to stop these thoughts because it was considered a disease and the resulting symptoms prevented individuals from performing at their military best.

Q: How does nostalgia affect people psychologically?

A: Nostalgic remembering is most likely to occur in times of loneliness, negative moods, or feelings of meaninglessness. It is basically a coping mechanism to deal with distress. Rather than being the problem (the disease, as it was conceptualized when the term was first coined), it is the way we cope (more like the remedy or cure). Even if we may feel bad and disconnected in our current life, we can “relive” a time when we felt good and were not lonely. Reconstructing memories and projecting ourselves into the future are interdependent cognitive processes that share a system in the brain. So, when we think about a time when we were socially connected and at our “personal best,” these feelings stretch out into our future, and we become hopeful and consequently feel better.

Q: How is nostalgia active in society today?

A: Given the state of the world—climate change, ups and downs in the economy, racist acts, problematic government leadership—it is not surprising that nostalgic thinking is common. This type of societal distress can lead to personal nostalgia and to collective nostalgia in which people long for a time when they viewed the world as a better place, even if it wasn’t. So there is a resurgence of old TV shows, vinyl records, throwback uniforms for athletic teams, retro clothes, and other products. We seek comfort with familiar products from childhood or from a time when the world was viewed as “better” or “easier.”

Q: How do you experience nostalgia?

A: I become nostalgic about the state fair. It is one big Minnesotan family reunion. I just love it! Everyone is happy and enjoying themselves. I begin to feel nostalgic about the summer and the fun I’ve had at the fair. This also likely stems from the fact that the fair signals the beginning of the school year.

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The building’s location, at 701 25th Avenue South in Minneapolis, puts it among the medical facilities of the University of Minnesota Medical Center and the Masonic Children’s Hospital and just a short walk from the Augsburg University campus. The program’s move in August came after four years at Luther Seminary in St. Paul, Minnesota.

The new space, which features an increased footprint for classroom and clinical lab instruction, supports potential future departmental growth and allows the program faculty, students, and staff to engage with Minneapolis campus activities. “The curriculum was redesigned to be more case-based and hands-on, and this new space will allow for a more creative and innovative learning environment,” said Alicia Quella, the physician assistant studies program director and department chair.

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Elected to their first term on the Augsburg Board of Regents:

• Sylvia Bartley, senior global director, Medtronic Foundation

• Ellen Ewald, co-owner and executive advisor at Tysvar LLC and mobileAxept in Minneapolis

• John O’Brien, president and chief executive officer of Educause; former president of North Hennepin Community College in Minneapolis

• John Schwartz ’67, retired hospital administrator at Advocate Trinity Hospital in Chicago and former general manager of SmithKline Beecham Clinical Laboratories, Schaumburg, Illinois 

Elected to a third term:

• Karen Durant ’81, retired vice president and controller of Tennant Company, Golden Valley, Minnesota
• Matt Entenza, attorney in private practice in St. Paul, Minnesota, and former Minnesota state representative
• Jeff Nodland ’77, retired president and chief executive officer of KIK Custom Products

See the full list of Board of Regents members.

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