News Center
2016 Alumni Award winners
The following individuals were recognized at Augustana’s Celebration of Alumni Dinner in April.
Holi Festival benefits Water to Thrive
The annual Hindu Holi Festival also raises funds for Water to Thrive, a nonprofit dedicated to “spreading awareness of the global water crisis while raising funds needed to construct water wells” in rural Africa.
Another Bancks commission for QCSO
The Quad City Symphony's next season will feature a new work by Dr. Jacob Bancks, assistant professor of music theory and composition at Augustana. He wrote "Rock Island Line," premiered by the symphony in March 2014, as well as a violin and piano piece for this season's Signature Series of chamber concerts. The new commission will be a concerto for bassoon and orchestra.
Video: Olsens' commencement address
Actor Eric Christian Olsen and father Paul Olsen, longtime English professor at Augustana, team up to deliver the commencement address to the 533 members of the Class of 2016.
Hanson '48 remembered for his leadership
Robert A. Hanson, who died May 19, 2016, was at the helm of Deere & Co. as it made the tough choices necessary to weather the farm crisis of the 1980s. He also had a lifelong commitment to his community. In 2010, Hanson and his wife, Patricia Hanson, gave $8 million, the largest single gift in the history of Augustana College, to name the Science Building and the building's lecture hall wing.
Connecting interests leads Rakers down memorable path
Kendra Rakers ’16 is interested in memory and how it works, particularly as it relates to Alzheimer’s disease. So she chose an interdisciplinary major in neuroscience with minors in biochemistry and history. It’s a perfect fit, she says, because each field approaches memory from a different point of view, which is a good way to provide more flexibility in her career. As she sees it, “I’ll probably wind up with a job that hasn’t been invented yet.”
2016 candidates for graduation
More than 550 students will participate in Augustana's 156th Commencement Convocation on Sunday, May 22. Names listed here represent candidates for graduation; inclusion does not indicate completion of the degree requirements.
Augustana's Best Buddies wins recognition
Augustana's chapter of Best Buddies has received the Chapter of the Year honor for central Illinois. Best Buddies is an international nonprofit organization dedicated to establishing a global volunteer movement that creates opportunities for one-to-one friendships, integrated employment and leadership development for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
Faculty recommends switch to semesters
Augustana faculty voted 124 to 47 this week, with six abstentions, to recommend to the board of trustees that the college switch to a semester calendar.
Ryan '16 wins postgraduate scholarship
Senior Ben Ryan has been awarded an NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship. The $7,500 grant is awarded to student-athletes who excel academically and athletically. Ryan, captain of the basketball team, is the 36th Augustana student to win the scholarship. He is a biochemistry and pre-med major with minors in math and chemistry. In March, he was named the Vikings 161st Academic All-American.
Pepper launches nonprofit for women's growth
From her days in Campus Ministries to her Civic Engagement project to living in the Quad Cities, Melissa Pepper '09 has always felt called to lead. Using her communication studies and English degree as the Director of Marketing and Client Relations at the law firm Lane & Waterman in Davenport, Iowa, the Augustana grad is preparing to launch her own non-profit: Lead(H)er.
Augustana and Scott County to partner on lead paint projects
Augustana College has selected Scott County, Iowa, as its partner in the second annual Sustainable Working Landscapes Initiative (SWLI). During the 2016-17 partnership, students and faculty will work with Scott County officials and community stakeholders to complete community-identified projects related to the presence of lead paint in homes.
Students paint mural at St. Anthony's
Augustana students produced a colorful, panoramic mural representing the Quad-Cities in the auditorium at St. Anthony's Nursing and Rehabilitation Center near campus. This is the second spring the nontraditional class, "Arts Joined by a River," has been offered. An open house for the mural is planned from noon to 2 p.m. May 17 at St. Anthony's, 767 30th St., Rock Island.
Senior Inquiry culminates in show 'The Scene'
Augustana student Michael J. Currie will direct "The Scene" as part of his Theatre Arts Senior Inquiry project May 13-15. Free performances are at 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday and at 1:30 p.m. Sunday in the Blackbox Theatre, Bergendoff Hall of Fine Arts.
'Cowboy Classics' explores epic traditions
"Cowboy Classics: The Roots of the American Western in the Epic Tradition," by Augustana's Dr. Kirsten Day, associate professor of Classics, will be published in June.
