So, instead of adding more pages we’re utilizing one of the most valuable resources available to communicators and marketers—the World Wide Web.

This issue of the Augsburg Now is the second in which we’ve added web extras. These online features allow us to add material to tell richer, more creative stories than we can using print alone.

In this issue, we have added a story on , a growing trend in education. The story connects our readers to tools they can use to minimize their impact on the environment while traveling.

We also have a involved in the Sustainable Cities in North America course. On camera, they share their enthusiasm about the work they are doing to create a more sustainable Augsburg.

In the future, we will continue to use the internet to improve our communication with alumni and friends of Augsburg College. As we continue to expand Now online, we invite our readers to share ideas and feedback with us at now@augsburg.edu.

How green is our printing?

The paper used in the printing of this magazine is certified to the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) Chain of Custody standard and contains 10 percent post-consumer waste.

What does this mean?

FSC is an independent, non-governmental, nonprofit organization established to promote the responsible management of the world’s forests. Through its certification program, foresters, paper manufacturers and distributors, and printers all agree to abide by strict standards. These standards are designed to ensure social, economic, and ecological needs are met for current and future generations. This Chain of Custody ensures responsible handling of the paper product from forest to printed piece.

The percentage of post-consumer content indicates that at least 10 percent of the paper in the magazine has been reclaimed from what would have otherwise ended up in a land fill.

FSC Chain of Custody can trace a printed piece back through the production process to identify where the wood pulp came from. Read more in about where this magazine had its roots and how our corporate partners are committed to being green.

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This issue of the Augsburg Now offers many inspiring stories of ways in which our community is learning about and practicing what it means to live sustainable lives in the city. I’ve been thinking a good bit lately about why the Augsburg community has made such great progress in living out its commitment to urban sustainability, and I’ve found myself exploring the meaning of the original motto for Augsburg Theological Seminary and College, the bold claim found in John 1: 14: “And the Word became flesh.” I’m struck by how this scriptural promise is both a statement of generosity and of sustainability. Augsburg College practices generosity most authentically when it lives as the Word made flesh—sustainable, present, rooted, of service, and faithful.

My teacher, Martin Marty, taught me that colleges are indigenous communities—that is, they are native to a particular place, a particular environment, a particular set of values, and practices that define the institution—and that means something for the way they live their lives.

What does it mean to think about Augsburg College as an indigenous community? What does it mean that the Word has become flesh and lived among us here?

I lift up for our attention three simple aspects of Augsburg’s identity—ways in which the Word becomes flesh here and the values we seek to sustain:

• The central focus of our identity is that wherever Augsburg College is found—here in this neighborhood, in the city, in Rochester, or around the world—our most authentic work is learning and teaching. And the wonder of learning is that it involves acts of generosity and sustainability in its every detail—from teachers who teach what they love; to students who seek to learn out of curiosity and passion; to texts that bear the wisdom of the ages for our reflection; to conversations that help us pay attention to the Word, to each other, and to the world; to practices and commitments that help sustain our environment.

• A second aspect of our identity is the way in which this city, a particular place—much different now than in 1869—is still a place that demands our attention and respect and concern. Democracy still is practiced in this place with our neighbors. Education still happens in this place with learners and teachers all around us. Engagement and service still are at the center of our lives with each other in this place. Sustaining this urban place, this urban environment, is an act of generosity—for our diverse neighbors, for our diverse selves, for the whole of creation, now and into the future.

• The final aspect of our identity is our firm grounding in the Christian faith—a confident faith that frees us to learn, to live, to practice hospitality with all of our neighbors, to be a force for good in the world, to affirm our calling as people of faith and a college of the church, to be God’s people in this place, and to know that grace and truth abound where the Word becomes flesh. I celebrate the generosity that is Augsburg’s faithful work in the world—the Word made flesh here, each and every day.

I celebrate the sustainability of our indigenous character, our indigenous work, and our indigenous place. And I recall the concluding words of John 1:14 that remind us that the Word made flesh is “full of grace and truth.” Oh, how the world needs a Word of grace and truth. And here it is!

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Discover Italy with fellow Auggies

“WAS IT IN SHORT, EVER TO BE ELSEWHERE WHEN ONE COULD BE IN ITALY” —EDITH WHARTON

You are invited to join the fellowship of other Augsburg alumni and friends on a journey of discovery to Italy in early November. Travel among the medieval hill towns of Tuscany, discovering history along with the beauty of the surrounding vineyards and olive groves. In Florence, the birthplace of the Renaissance, learn and understand how art pulled Europe out of the Dark Ages. In Umbria, where art is prayer, visit the town of Assisi that stands out for its inspiration and reflection. Find an education in history and a tapestry of art, architecture, and culture woven over thousands of years in the Eternal City of Rome, one of the founding cities of Western civilization and a significant place in the story of Christianity. All along the way enjoy the delights of the Italian people and cuisine.

The details of this custom-created travel experience are being finalized. Contact the Office of Alumni and Constituent Relations at 612-330-1085 or alumni@augsburg.edu to learn more about this unique travel opportunity.

Many Augsburg graduates stay connected with the College through the years. They come to events or games on campus, they volunteer, and they donate to The Augsburg Fund. But there are others who just don’t stay connected.

That’s something the College—thanks to a nearly $230,000 grant from the Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Foundation— hopes to change over the next three years.

Project IGNITE (which stands for Involving Graduates Now In Thoughtful Engagement) will work very directly and personally with alumni. Over the next year, Augsburg students will conduct face-to-face visits with more than 500 alumni to ask them about their views on Augsburg and their interest in volunteer opportunities with the College. The hope is that more than 1,600 alumni will receive visits in the next three years, mostly those alumni living in and around the Twin Cities metropolitan area.

“For a college, our alumni are a strategic advantage and if you don’t use that, you’re missing an opportunity,” President Paul C. Pribbenow said. “This gives us an opportunity to link current students and recent grads with alumni of all ages. Your current students and recent graduates are often your best spokespeople for what’s really happening.”

Student representatives have been hired and trained by the Office of Alumni and Constituent Relations, and visits to alumni are already underway.

Alex Gonzalez ’90, a senior financial adviser for Thrivent Financial for Lutherans and an Augsburg regent, said the grant is part of the mission for the not-for-profit organization.

“Our goal is to help grow Lutheran communities and Lutheran institutions,” Gonzalez said. “It’s not just the money, these dollars will help grow engagement. It will help get alumni engaged into giving to the school.”

The grant is part of the foundation’s Lutheran Grant Program, designed to help Lutheran institutions and organizations take advantage of unique growth and service opportunities. It also supports the interests and needs of the Lutheran community. In 2007, the program distributed approximately $5 million through 100 separate grants.

Project IGNITE is designed to become a model program for alumni programs in other ELCA colleges. For additional information, contact Kim Stone in the Office of Alumni and Constituent Relations at 612-330-1173 or stonek@augsburg.edu.

Called to Lead – Professionals Moving from Success to Significance

Augsburg College admits a diverse group of established alumni and friends each year for the Called to Lead program. Six weekly seminars give you an opportunity to examine your life and work. The seminar is co-sponsored by the Center for Faith and Learning, and the Center for Leadership Studies at Augsburg.

Called to Lead is designed to expand the skills and knowledge of individuals who have demonstrated leadership within their profession and the community. Through collaborative and interactive experiences, participants engage with each other and their facilitators as they explore their own call to lead.

Augsburg College accepts applications and nominations for the Called to Lead program from a diverse group of alumni and friends, including business leaders, professionals and academics, directors and staff of community service organizations and civic associations, managers from government agencies and community activists. For more information contact Norma Noonan in the Center for Leadership Studies, at 612-330-1198 or noonan@augsburg.edu.

Thrivent rewards your volunteer time

Your volunteer hours for Augsburg can count even more through the Giving- Plus program at Thrivent Financial for Lutherans. Thrivent will give Augsburg $25 for your volunteered hours for Augsburg (25 or more per year) working on projects or activities, or participating on committees, boards, and task groups. Report your volunteer hours on the Thrivent matching form and make your time even more valuable. To find out about volunteer opportunities, e-mail volunteer@augsburg.edu.

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Richmond Appleton is passionate about giving back to his communities—the Twin Cities and his birthplace of Liberia. Early in his Augsburg career, he was a biology major and planned to attend medical school. However, when the environmental studies program began, Appleton knew this was the path he should take. He became the first student to formally declare the major.

Appleton has overcome a great deal in his life. As a young boy, he contracted polio and was paralyzed on his left side. He often had no access to medical care, but his parents took him to native healers. “There were no social services or hospitals,” he says. “There was nothing to count on in emergencies.” Over time, he recovered the use of his arm and leg.

When civil war broke out in Liberia in the early ’90s, his family fled to the Ivory Coast. Appleton’s mother was separated from them, and he also lost his father, brother, and sisters for four weeks because he couldn’t run fast enough to keep up with them. Eventually the family was forced to Ghana where they stayed in a refugee camp until they immigrated to the U.S. in 2004.

A desire to make a difference influenced Appleton’s decision to join the environmental studies program where classes in ecology and biodiversity fuel his interests in social work and public service. Although he wants to help his country, he likely won’t return to live permanently. He says Liberia is rebuilding after years of violence and destruction, but that much remains to be done. “People are sick from the effects of a polluted environment.”

While at Augsburg, Appleton has been active in the neighborhood. He chairs the Augsburg Student Activities Council diversity committee and serves as a residence life community adviser. In January, he traveled to Cuernavaca, Mexico, with students from the Scholastic Connections program to learn about sustainable agriculture practices in Mexico.

Appleton plans to graduate in December and is researching graduate programs in environmental studies. “I am interested in public policy in urban areas, conflict management in war torn countries, community development, agriculture, sustainability, and bio-agriculture.” Appleton plans to study sustainable food production and how it can minimize the human impact on the environment.

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In their monthly seminar, Professor Mark Tranvik (left, in blue shirt) seeks to create a comfortable atmosphere for the Lilly Scholars to discuss and explore vocation. (L to R) Denise Shuck, Leah Jarvi, Tranvik, Cody Oaks, Allison Streed, Alexander Garver, Abigail Ferjak, Natalie Sasseville, and Ashley Weston.

The Lilly Scholars seminar is a place where students can feel comfortable talking about the big questions in life. Questions like, Is Christianity the only true religion? What does it mean to forgive someone? What is God calling me to do?

For Mark Tranvik, associate professor of religion and director of the Lilly grant program, the seminar is the heart of the year-long program designed for juniors and seniors who are considering seminary or graduate study in theology or sacred arts. Once a month they meet to discuss assigned texts, engage with guest speakers, and reflect on biblical passages or issues in the Christian tradition.

Each year, 10 or 11 Lilly Scholars, who receive a $2,100 scholarship, are selected from more than twice that number. Among the current scholars, the average GPA is 3.75. In addition to the seminar, Lilly Scholars visit Luther Seminary and can take courses there.

“There is an ongoing hunger in the intellectual community for genuine theological conversation among students that the Lilly Scholar program honors,” says Tranvik, who is also an ordained minister in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Creating a comfortable place for these critical conversations is his goal. And, he adds, “doubters are welcomed.”

Jenni Pickford, a philosophy and religion major, finds the seminar most valuable for “the open-mindedness I’ve gained from hearing about views that differ from my own.” What she appreciates is that “there are other students out there who are interested in more than just a grade and do this for the love of learning.”

“The greatest impact for me is the group friendship and discussions that carry throughout other classes,” says religion major Denise Shuck, a Weekend College senior who is planning to enter Luther Seminary. “I have a great appreciation for the diversity of opinions about the topics we’ve discussed.”

Abby Ferjak, a senior, finds it easy to integrate what she does in the Lilly Scholars program to her youth and family ministry classes. “It’s important for youth to understand that vocation is not simply what one might do as a career; but rather, that everyone has many vocations, and [that] they don’t have to wait to fulfill their vocation.”

And that’s exactly what the Lilly Endowment hopes to hear. Their goal for funding programs in church-related, liberal arts colleges that explore vocation is to nurture a new generation of vocationally- guided leaders—both pastoral and lay—for church congregations. Lilly Scholars are one part of Augsburg’s $2 million grant program, Exploring Our Gifts, that began in 2002 and is directed by Tranvik.

Over its six years, Lilly Scholars have included a mix of younger and older students and have cut across disciplines, for example, among science and social work majors seeking ways to combine faith life with their fields.

Last year four Lilly Scholars continued to Luther Seminary (all with full scholarships), two chose law school, one entered the Lutheran Volunteer Corps, one is in congregational youth ministry, and one began graduate study in social work. About half of all Lilly Scholars have entered seminary.

During their year as Lilly Scholars, the students serve as role models within the larger community. They develop a portfolio, reflecting on vocation and what they carry with them from the year.

Cody Oaks, a current Lilly Scholar, finds inspiration in Tranvik’s ability to merge the pastoral with the academic. “He provides the model of a pastor-scholar I would like to embody in my own work and call to teach,” Oaks says. He will enter Princeton Theological Seminary this summer and begin to seek ordination in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.).

Kyle Zvejnicks, a 2006-07 Lilly Scholar, reflected on community. “The seminar has reminded me of the importance of community in vocation, namely that we need each other. … Just as much, we don’t come with the same vocation for everyone, but each with their own, and not for themselves but for others.”

To learn more about Exploring Our Gifts, go to http://www.augsburg.edu/acfl/history/

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President’s Scholarships recognize students with exceptional academic ability and leadership potential and can provide financial support up to full tuition for four years. Donors who choose to endow a President’s Scholarship make special connections with these students, and those that follow them, one after another, as they see an Augsburg education made possible.

E. Milton Kleven ’46 taught school in Minneapolis for 33 years and knows what this means to students from low-income families. He and his family have endowed three President’s Scholarships and enjoy being part of the lives of the students who receive them, helping them begin their work and careers free from college debt.

Milt Kleven’s Augsburg story began in a home two blocks from the College, where his Norwegian immigrant mother and father raised nine children. Since Augsburg was the college in the neighborhood, six of the Kleven children attended, with three completing their degrees.

In 1940, Milt followed his sister Agathe, who had just graduated from Augsburg. Like most students then, Milt’s studies were interrupted by World War II, and in 1946 he returned and finished. Their brother Luther graduated in 1950. Milt graduated with a major in mathematics and a minor in physical education. His strongest and longest friendships he formed in the Augsburg A-Club, even though his student job downtown at the Minneapolis Club kept him too busy to participate in most sports, except for lettering in golf.

Kleven’s Augsburg story has a romantic twist on a broken leg. In late 1943 he left Augsburg to enter Navy pilot training. When he suffered a broken leg, he decided to spend the eight-week recovery period back at Augsburg, completing his math major with Professor George Soberg.

One evening in Augsburg’s library, in the basement of Old Main, he met Dorothy Lijsing, the daughter of a Swedish immigrant father and mother, and she became his wife and partner for 53 years. Dorothy transferred to Gustavus Adolphus College and graduated there. They were married in 1947.

Soon after graduating, Kleven began teaching mathematics in the Minneapolis Public Schools. In addition to teaching, he also served as the teacher representative with Great West Financial on a voluntary investment fund created following a strike in 1970. From that experience, he learned a great deal about investments and wise financial planning that has served him well.

In the 1950s, the Klevens were approached by Sig Hjelmeland ’41, Augsburg’s development director, and asked for the first time to consider giving back to Augsburg.

“My parents always set aside their tithe,” Kleven says, “and taught us that giving is a part of our responsibility.”

In 1958, he and Dorothy established a scholarship in honor of his parents, Magnus and Kristofa Kleven. In its 50 years, more than 200 Augsburg students have benefited from the financial support of this scholarship.

During the 1960s, the Klevens continued their philanthropic support to Augsburg, and for many years worked closely with development officer Jeroy Carlson ’48.

In 2001, when Dorothy passed away, Kleven established a scholarship in her name. With college costs skyrocketing, he knew from his large family what a difference a full tuition scholarship could make for students from low-income families, like those he had taught in Minneapolis.

“That’s the main thing,” Kleven says. “I want to help kids who have a need, and I want it to be a full scholarship.”

So, the Dorothy Lijsing Kleven Scholarship became the first endowed President’s Scholarship, and provides a full scholarship to a student interested in choral music, as Dorothy had been throughout her life. This endowment was created by Milt and their four children and families—Bruce and Maren Kleven, David and Barbara Kleven, Barbara and Zane Birky, and Diane and Philip Larson.

In 2007, the family created two additional endowed President’s Scholarships. They added Dorothy’s parents, David and Florence Lijsing, to the original scholarship for Milt’s parents and raised it to the level of a full President’s Scholarship.

The third was created in Milt’s name—the E. Milton Kleven Scholarship for public service, so he can enjoy supporting students with a real financial need who plan to enter public service.

Kleven helped to facilitate two other scholarships. The Margaret Andrews Scholarship was established by Kleven and his fellow Trade and Industry coordinators in the Minneapolis public school system to honor their supervisor, Margaret Andrews. The Donald C. Carlson Scholarship, through the Normandale Lutheran Church Foundation, is named for founding pastor Donald Carlson ’42 to support a Normandale member attending Augsburg.

The Kleven legacy also includes major support to capital projects. In 1995-96, the family worked with President Charles Anderson and gave $1 million toward the construction of Lindell Library.

Milt founded Kleven Flooring Service, which installed hardwood flooring in houses in the Minneapolis-Saint Paul area. Over the years, he provided hardwood floors throughout the Augsburg campus, including the Augsburg Room in Christensen Center and Augsburg House.

His most recent gift celebrates his over 60-year tie to Augsburg A-Club and close friendships with Glen Person ’47 and Dick “Pork Chop” Thompson ’61. Together, as part of the construction of the new press box on Edor Nelson Field, the three provided the funding to name the Jeroy C. Carlson Hospitality Room in Kennedy Center in honor of their longtime friend and colleague.

For more information about endowing a President’s Scholarship honoring Augsburg’s most promising students, contact Institutional Advancement at 612-330-1613.

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If it weren’t for finding cheap hockey skates at a tent sale, Tiffany Magnuson’s athletic career might have been quite different than it is today.

“My dad didn’t want me playing hockey. They bought me figure skates, because my dad didn’t want me messed up with the hockey guys,” said Magnuson, whose father is a hockey coach in their hometown of Green Bay, Wis. “They bought the figure skates for me, and I couldn’t skate in them because of the toe pick. But my dad always said that I had a natural hockey stride, and I kept telling him that I wanted black skates.”

So Magnuson’s mom found her a pair of black skates— hockey skates.

“My mom always said, ‘Wal-Mart started your career,’ because they had a tent sale at Wal-Mart on hockey skates,” Magnuson said.

A senior, Magnuson has excelled at two sports during her Auggie career—hockey and softball—and will leave Augsburg as one of the top all-around female athletes in school history. Magnuson finished her hockey career as the school’s second leading goal-scorer and No. 3 point-producer. She was a four-time All-Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference selection.

In softball, Magnuson played three positions—second base, first base, and pitcher—during last season’s run to the MIAC playoffs for the first time in program history. A threetime All-MIAC selection, she enters this season with a .379 career batting average as the Auggies leadoff hitter.

Magnuson, a finance major and accounting minor, was recruited to play hockey at Augsburg and she said she chose Augsburg because it was a small school in a large city. Being active in back-to-back sports has helped her learn to manage her time.

“Sports have taught me about leadership, being committed and competitive, about interacting with others, and having to all come together for a goal,” said Magnuson, who wants to work on the business side of a sports team. “It’s a family [atmosphere], and for me being away from my family, it helps me with my life. That’s what I like about Augsburg, the close-knit atmosphere.”

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“I found the ‘Lights, camera, and action’ feature in the fall 2008 Augsburg Now very interesting. This photograph was taken in the Augsburg Art Studio in the early 1970s during a session of a hands-on class teaching 16mm filmmaking with synchronized sound. As a student from 1965-1970, I had a work-study job showing films and doing photography working for Robert Zeller, who at that time was director of instructional services. He is the first person whom I recall to have taught a course in film studies at Augsburg. Warren Hanson, John Mitchell, and Larry Glenn (left to right in the photo) were all students in the course taught by local filmmaker Paul Rusten. Warren was a registered student. As John was a faculty member and I was director of the audio-visual center, we were invited to participate in the class without receiving credit.”

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Krohn, a native of Cloquet, Minn., was one of 769 initial U.S. applicants from 207 colleges and universities for this year’s Rhodes Scholars. After making it through an interview process and being selected, Krohn became one of 32 Americans who will study at Oxford University beginning in fall 2009. There, Krohn will focus on environmental change and management in order to combine public policy expertise with the scientific knowledge he has gained at Augsburg.

In the summer of 2006, Krohn began research into new ways to produce biodiesel fuel. He acknowledges that he didn’t really expect to break any new ground, but he wanted to give it a shot.

The combination of Krohn’s research, the teaching of chemistry professor Arlin Gyberg, and Augsburg alum Clayton McNeff led to the discovery of the Mcgyan Process to produce biodiesel in a cleaner and more environmentally friendly way.

“For me, Brian’s work on the biodiesel project is a great liberal arts story,” President Paul C. Pribbenow said. “There’s a connection between a student with a question, a faculty member, and an alum. They work on a problem and come out with a response that, in this case, is pretty groundbreaking.

“Brian stands for the well-rounded education that we provide for all of our students. We’re proud of him and proud that his Augsburg education prepared him,” Pribbenow continued.

In addition to his work with biodiesel, Krohn is a Goldwater Scholar who was a founder of the Honors Review, a new journal for student scholarship at Augsburg. He organized the inaugural Agre Challenge, an event in which teams were challenged to build a catapult to fling a 20-pound sandbag various distances.

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