Augustana College

Devan Peterson, an Augustana College senior from Aledo, Ill., grew up playing with John Deere tractors at his family farm. He knew from the first day of his first year at Augustana that he wanted to have a career tied to agriculture. This passion has helped to fuel his career orientation throughout college and a full-time job opportunity with John Deere in the Accounting Finance Development Program next summer.

Earlier this year six Augustana teacher candidates and Dr. Deborah Bracke, assistant professor of education, spent five days at the Florida School for the Deaf and Blind at St. Augustine, Fl., as part of the students' Augie Choice involvement experience.

This summer nine Augustana students are participating in full-scale scientific research projects under the guidance of their faculty advisors, gaining experience to utilize in graduate school and careers after college. Each summer research project is funded through an Augustana Summer Student Research Fellowship.

Augustana College announced 883 students were named to the Dean's List for the 2013 spring term. Students who have earned this academic honor have maintained a grade-point average of 3.5 or higher on a four-point scale for courses taken during the term. From your area, students who have earned this honor include:

At an alumni appreciation event in May, Augustana College recognized six individuals for their accomplishments. Those honored were Dr. W. Zack Bartels '98, Philip McKinley '73, Gen. John Borling '62, John Califf '62, Dr. Frederick Hemke and Dr. James Kopel.

Augustana College, Rock Island, Ill., held commencement ceremonies on Sunday, May 19. lllinois Supreme Court Chief Justice Thomas L. Kilbride delivered the commencement speech, and 522 students graduated. Among the graduates:

Six Augustana College students currently are in Kobe, Japan, studying at Kobe City University. The students arrived in Japan in April and will return at the end of July. During this program, students can participate in an intensive Japanese language immersion program. These students replaced the spring term at Augustana with a spring semester in Kobe, taking nine credits in Japanese. Students currently in Kobe, Japan include:

After spring classes concluded, 34 Augustana College students traveled to Rome for 11 days. This trip is part of a Christian Traditions and Faiths in Dialogue class the students took during their spring term. The program focuses on Rome and the Roman Catholic Church, examining various perspectives on issues such as the doctrine of justification, war and peace, social and economic justice, and technological intervention in human procreation. Students also are given the option of completing service learning in the Quad-City community as well as in Rome, at the Nafuma Refugee Center. Students who traveled to Rome include:

During spring break, 23 Augustana College students traveled to Norway to study the country's education and health care systems. During winter term, the students took a class titled Healthcare and Education in Norway's Welfare State. While in Norway, the students visited schools, hospitals, clinics and other sites related to a different model of social well-being. Students who traveled to Norway include:

During winter recess, 19 Augustana College students traveled to Jamaica to complete service learning. The students had the opportunity to learn and teach alongside young Jamaicans at the Alpha Schools of central Kingston. Students who traveled to Jamaica include:

Thirty-six Augustana College students studied abroad in Ireland for 11 weeks. The students arrived in March and returned home at the end of May. The eleven weeks were divided between Galway (in the West) and Dublin (in the East). Places visited included Saint Patrick's Purgatory, the Dingle Peninsula, O'Brien's Tower on the Cliffs of Moher, The National Museum and Dublin Castle. Students who studied in Ireland include:

Twenty-two Augustana College students studied abroad in Accra, Ghana, for six weeks during January and February. During their time in Ghana, students engaged in service-learning internships throughout the city and lived with Ghanaian families in Accra. Students who traveled to Ghana include:

Thirty Augustana College students spent five weeks in Cambodia this past January and February. While in Cambodia, the students visited the temples of Angkor Wat and the cities of Phnom Penh and Siem Reap. The students also taught English at a school. Students who traveled to Cambodia include:

Opera @ Augustana will present Gilbert and Sullivan's The Pirates of Penzance on May 10-11 at 8 p.m. in Wallenberg Hall, within the Denkmann Memorial Building (3520 7th Ave.). Tickets are $12 for the general public; $10 for senior citizens, students, Augustana faculty and staff; and $8 for children age 12 and under. Performing in this show include:

Thirty-seven students at Augustana College, in Rock Island, Ill., recently were elected into the college's Phi Beta Kapp chapter. This national academic honor society recognizes scholarly achievement, character, integrity, and independence of mind. Members are elected by faculty. Election is less a reward for past success than a recognition of exceptional promise for future growth and achievement. Among the students honored:

Forty-three juniors were initiated into Augustana's Aglaia Chapter of the Mortar Board National Senior Honor Society on April 14. Mortar Board members are selected annually by their peers in recognition of their devotion to scholarship, leadership and service. Students are eligible for membership in their junior year. Each member must have at least a 3.0 (on a 4.0 scale) GPA or be in the top 35 percent of his orher class, whichever is higher. Approximately 9% of the Class of 2014 was selected to join this prestigious society. Selected to join this group include:

The Augustana College Department of Theatre Arts will present Eric Bogosian's subUrbia, the final production of its 2012-2013 season, Balancing Acts. The show premiered this past weekend and will be performed again in Potter Theatre, Bergendoff Hall of Fine Arts (3701 7th Ave.), on May 3-4 at 7:30 p.m. and May 5 at 1:30 p.m.

Augustana College announced 872 students were named to the Dean's List for the 2012-2013 winter term. Students who have earned this academic honor have maintained a grade-point average of 3.5 or higher on a four-point scale for courses taken during the term. From your area, students who have earned this honor include:

Fifty Augustana College students completed full-time internships in Sydney, Australia, for the first two months of 2013. The international study program known as "Augustana in Australia" places students in career-relevant positions in Sydney and immerses them in Australian culture. Over 250 students have participated in the program in the last seven years. From your area:

On many college campuses you don't typically see dogs attending class with their handlers, but at Augustana College, in Rock Island, Ill., it has become a fairly common sight and a source of pride. Viking Pups is a service, facility and therapy dog training club at Augustana. The one-year-old club fosters, socializes and trains dogs on campus in partnership with the Quad Cities Canine Assistance Network Inc. (QC CAN). The Viking Pups program is designed to take dogs from puppyhood to placement as a service dog. With a professor's approval, a dog can go to classes with a student, and dogs are commonly seen in the library, dining halls and at sporting events. Viking Pups has been successful in recruiting many student volunteers on campus, including:

The Augustana College Symphonic Band recently returned from its 2013 tour of the Midwest. The tour included stops in Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota and Nebraska. The band will perform its final concert of the tour at 8 p.m. on Saturday, March 9, in Augustana's Centennial Hall, Rock Island, Illinois. Admission is free, and a freewill offering will be accepted. Among the students who peformed:

The Augustana Choir will tour the east coast. Feb. 15-22, traveling from Naples, Fla., to Baltimore, Md., before enjoying some free time in Washington, D.C. The choir also will perform a home concert at 8 p.m. on March 8 at St. Paul Lutheran Church in Davenport, Iowa. Performing in the tour from your area include:

In continuation of its 2012-13 season, Balancing Acts, the Department of Theatre Arts at Augustana College premiered The Bock-Eye, January 25-27 and February 1-3. Students who performed in the play include:

898 students have been named to the Dean's List at Augustana College for the 2012 fall term. Students who have earned this academic honor have maintained a grade-point average of 3.5 or higher on a four-point scale for courses taken during the term. From your area, students who have earned this honor include:

The Handel Oratorio Society celebrates its 132nd-anniversary performance of Handel's Messiah on Saturday, Dec. 8 and Sunday, Dec. 9. Students from your area that performed in the event include:

Augustana presents its fifth annual Christmas at Augustana holiday concert on Friday, Nov. 30, and Saturday, Dec. 1. More than 300 students in the college's choirs, brass ensemble and orchestra joined together to share music in two sold-out shows. These students from your area performed in the event:

In a new initiative, six Augustana College students are living together in Micah House, where they will engage in service and hospitality to their neighborhoods while deepening their own vocational understanding. The following students are from your area:

Augustana College's Department of Theatre Arts will present The Arsonists, the first production of its 2012-13 season, "Balancing Act," October 12-21 at 7:30 p.m. on Friday/Saturday and 1:30 p.m. on Sunday in Potter Theatre on the upper level of Bergendoff Hall of Fine Arts (3701 7th Ave). Tickets are $11 for the general public and $9 for senior citizens, students and Augustana faculty/staff. Students from your area performing include:

Thirteen Augustana College students are currently completing internships in Houston, Texas, as part of the Texas Medical Center summer research internship program and will return at the beginning of August. Augustana students from your area who are currently interning in Houston include:

831 students have been named to the Dean's List at Augustana College for the 2012 spring term. Students who have earned this academic honor have maintained a grade-point average of 3.5 or higher on a four-point scale for courses taken during the term. From your area, students who have earned this honor include: