Augustana College

Augustana College senior Zack Horve, an environmental studies major from Mackinaw, Ill., was nominated to submit a 'More Than I Imagined' profile, which recognizes seniors who have achieved remarkable academic or personal growth during their time at the Rock Island college.

Augustana College senior Carina Martinez, a elementary education; Spanish major from Kansas City, Mo., was nominated to submit a 'More Than I Imagined' profile, which recognizes seniors who have achieved remarkable academic or personal growth during their time at the Rock Island college.

Augustana College senior Alyssa Macias, a public health major from Davenport, Iowa, was nominated to submit a 'More Than I Imagined' profile, which recognizes seniors who have achieved remarkable academic or personal growth during their time at the Rock Island college.

Augustana College senior Andrew Cochrane, an English education major from Arlington Heights, Ill., was nominated to submit a 'More Than I Imagined' profile, which recognizes seniors who have achieved remarkable academic or personal growth during their time at the Rock Island college.

Augustana College senior Samuel Rabideau, a creative writing; history communication; theatre - performance major from Freeport, Ill., was nominated to submit a 'More Than I Imagined' profile, which recognizes seniors who have achieved remarkable academic or personal growth during their time at the Rock Island college.

Augustana College senior Jack McCurdy, a psychology and business administration - management double major from Neenah, Wis., was nominated to submit a 'More Than I Imagined' profile, which recognizes seniors who have achieved remarkable academic or personal growth during their time at the Rock Island college.

Six Augustana College students attended the Illinois Section of the Mathematical Association of America regional meeting on March 15-16. Students Jessica Cotturone and Ngoc Le presented their research conducted with Dr. Andrew Sward as part of the Beling Scholars Program.

Augustana College senior Celeaciya Olvera, a communication studies; multimedia journalism and mass communication; theatre - performance major from East Moline, Ill., was nominated to submit a 'More Than I Imagined' profile, which recognizes seniors who have achieved remarkable academic or personal growth during their time at the Rock Island college.

Two students from Augustana College, senior Alexis Lee and junior Erik Bergren, have been awarded the Nils Hasselmo Award for Academic Pursuit. Established by Dr. Nils Hasselmo, Class of 1957, the award is given annually to Augustana students pursuing a career in research or higher education teaching. The award was established in recognition of the ways in which Hasselmo's Augustana education both informed and transformed his life and vocational calling. The $5,500 award is divided equally between this year's two recipients.

Augustana College senior Alexander Tosetti, an accounting, business administration - finance double major from Nokomis, Ill., was nominated to submit a 'More Than I Imagined' profile, which recognizes seniors who have achieved remarkable academic or personal growth during their time at the Rock Island college.

Augustana College senior Grey White, a theatre - musical theatre; business administration - management double major from Mokena, Ill., was nominated to submit a 'More Than I Imagined' profile, which recognizes seniors who have achieved remarkable academic or personal growth during their time at the Rock Island college.

Augustana College senior Brianna Ebenroth, a psychology; sociology and anthropology double major from Frankfort, Ill., was nominated to submit a 'More Than I Imagined' profile, which recognizes seniors who have achieved remarkable academic or personal growth during their time at the Rock Island college.

Augustana College senior Blake Oliver, an accounting; business administration - finance; business administration - business intelligence; data analytics - business analytics major from Carol Stream, was nominated to submit a 'More Than I Imagined' profile, which recognizes seniors who have achieved remarkable academic or personal growth during their time at the Rock Island college.

Augustana College senior John Flannery, a music - piano performance; music composition double major from Washington, Iowa., was nominated to submit a 'More Than I Imagined' profile, which recognizes seniors who have achieved remarkable academic or personal growth during their time at the Rock Island college.

James Caprio '24, Jalane Tsague '25, Sally Boutaleb '24 and Genevieve Ryan '26 represented Augustana at the 31st annual National Character and Leadership Symposium (NCLS) at the U.S. Air Force Academy (USAFA). NCLS is an annual two-day symposium in which participants hear distinguished scholars, military leaders, corporate executives and world-class athletes share their inspirational stories of character and leadership. Augustana sends four students to attend the event each year.

More than 25 Augutsana College students participated Augustana's OperX performance of 'Amahl and the Night Visitors' on Feb. 17 in the Brunner Theatre. OperX vocalists work with instrumentalists, composers, chamber orchestra and other singers to create dynamic performances that combine their diverse energies and talents. "Amahl and the Night Visitors" is a touching one-act opera commissioned for television in 1951. Composer Gian Carlo Menotti felt inspired to write a work that recaptured his childhood and wrote the piece to be kid-friendly. The opera tells the story of Amahl, a boy with a disability who meets the Three Kings on their way to meet the Christ child.

The Augustana Observer was named the top student news organization in the state by Illinois College Press Association for 2023. Competing in the most competitive class, based on college enrollment size, the Observer took home first place for general excellence. This is the second time in three years the Observer has earned the award. In all, the paper earned 14 awards at the state convention.

More than 50 Augustana College students will perform in the Augustana Choir California tour from March 21 to March 24. The choir will perform at five Southern California churches, followed by a home concert on April 6 in Davenport.

Augustana College announced more than 1,100 students were named to the Dean's List for the 2023-2024 fall semester. 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.

Two Augustana College environmental studies majors presented at the Southeastern Fishes Council conference hosted at the Tennessee Aquarium Conservation Institute on Nov.16 - Nov.18.

Fifty Augustana College students performed in the Augustana Symphonic Band's annual tour. This year's tour featured five performances in Illinois, Iowa and Kansas from March 22 to April 6. Conducted by Dr. James Lambrecht, the wind ensemble shared music in churches, performing arts centers and high schools across the Midwest.

More than 25 Augutsana College students worked on Quad Cities regional premier of "Dracula," Oct. 12-15, directed by Dr. Jennifer Popple, associate professor of theatre arts and co-chair of the theatre department. "Dracula" was presented at the Brunner Theatre Center Main Stage.

The Augustana Physics and Engineering Society was named an Outstanding Chapter, the highest level of distinction given by the Society of Physics Students. The honor recognizes Augustana's chapter as a top-tier student-led physical sciences organization.

Augustana College junior Niah Tyler presented at the annual American Geophysical Union, AGU, meeting in San Francisco. The event, held Dec. 11-Dec. 15, is attended by more than 25,000 attendees from 100 countries.

More than 45 Augustana College students participated in the annual celebration of the Festival of Sankta Lucia on Dec. 4 at the college's Ascension Chapel.

Sixteen first-year Augustana College students visited spectacular sites and spent nights camping in the mountains of Wyoming and South Dakota on the annual Geology 105 field trip titled, "The Physical Geology of the Rockies." Students traveled from Aug. 4 to Aug. 20 before starting their academic year.

Augustana College student leaders in the water line inventory project presented data from their research at the Nov. 27 Rock Island City Council meeting. Augustana announced a partnership with the city of Rock Island to identify the city's service lines in July 2022. The college's Center for the Advancement of Community Health and Wellness and Upper Mississippi Center assisted in gathering data for the multi-year initiative.

Four Augustana College students majoring in women, gender, & sexuality studies presented in the Frieze Lecture series titled, "Feminism: From Basics to Barbie," on Oct. 19 at the downtown location of the Rock Island Public Library.

The Augustana College Department of Music presented Christmas at Augustana on Dec. 2 and Dec. 3, 2023. More than 200 student musicians took the stage to share their talents in what has become a highlight of the Augustana and Quad-Cities holiday season. Presented by Quad City Bank & Trust, Christmas at Augustana has thrilled audiences since 2008. The performance features the Augustana Brass Ensemble, Augustana Symphony Orchestra, Ascension Ringers, Augustana Choir, Jenny Lind Vocal Ensemble and Augustana Concert Chorale.

Rachel Nandelenga, a senior pre-medicine and neuroscience major from Cary, Ill., was selected as a student laureate for The Lincoln Academy of Illinois. She was nominated by Augustana College President Andrea Talentino. Each fall, a senior from each of the state's four-year colleges and universities and one student from the community colleges in Illinois are awarded the Abraham Lincoln Civic Engagement Award, becoming student laureates. This is the Lincoln Academy's 49th year celebrating student excellence in Illinois.