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Augustana University is a private
Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Cathol ...
university in
Sioux Falls, South Dakota Sioux Falls () is the most populous city in the U.S. state of South Dakota and the 130th-most populous city in the United States. It is the county seat of Minnehaha County and also extends into Lincoln County to the south, which continues up ...
. The university identifies 1860 as the year of its founding, the same as its Rock Island, Illinois Swedish-heritage sister school, Augustana College. It derives its name from the ''Confessio Augustana'', or Augsburg Confession, a foundational document of
Lutheranism Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched th ...
. Prior to September 2015, the university was known as Augustana College. It is the largest private university in the state and offers
Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four year ...
degrees in more than 50 major fields of study. Students also participate in a variety of extracurricular activities, including musical ensembles and
NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...
athletic programs.


History

The institution traces its origin to 1835, when Scandinavian immigrants established the Hillsboro Academy in Hillsboro, Illinois. In 1846, the Academy became the Literary and Theological Institute of the Lutheran Church of the Far West before moving to Springfield, Illinois, under the name
Illinois State University Illinois State University (ISU) is a public university in Normal, Illinois. Founded in 1857 as Illinois State Normal University, it is the oldest public university in Illinois. The university emphasizes teaching and is recognized as one of th ...
. In 1860, after church leaders formed the Scandinavian Evangelical Lutheran Augustana Synod, Professor Lars Paul Esbjörn and a group of followers moved to
Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...
to create their own institution. There they established the Augustana College and Seminary, marking the date that the university identifies as the year of its founding. As the United States expanded westward during and after the
American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states ...
, pioneers moved the school to Paxton, Illinois, in 1863. There, a split occurred: the
Norwegian Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to: *Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe * Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway * Demographics of Norway *The Norwegian language, including ...
leadership, desiring to create their own school, relocated to Marshall, Wisconsin, in 1869, while the Swedes later moved to Rock Island, Illinois, establishing Augustana College (Illinois). The school at Marshall moved to
Beloit, Iowa Beloit is an unincorporated community in Lyon County, Iowa, United States. Geography Beloit is located on the banks of the Big Sioux River in northwestern Iowa just across the river from Canton, South Dakota Canton is a city in and the county ...
, in 1881, and then to
Canton, South Dakota Canton is a city in and the county seat of Lincoln County, South Dakota, United States. Canton is located 20 minutes south of Sioux Falls in southeastern South Dakota. Canton is nestled in the rolling hills of the Sioux Valley, providing an a ...
, in 1888. The Lutheran Normal School opened in 1889 in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, housed in what is now known as Old Main, with the purpose of educating teachers. City and business leaders lobbied for Augustana to relocate to Sioux Falls, and church leaders in 1918 merged the Lutheran Normal School and Augustana College in Canton under the name Augustana College and Normal School. In 1926, "and Normal School" was dropped from the name and the site in Canton eventually became
Augustana Academy Augustana Academy was an educational institution in Canton, South Dakota. The Norwegian Augustana Synod was established in 1870. In that year, the Synod began an academy called the ''Marshall Academy'' in Marshall, Wisconsin. In 1881, the acade ...
. Despite the similarities in name, the Academy was no longer affiliated with the College and ultimately closed in 1971. The 2010–2011 academic year marked Augustana University's sesquicentennial. Augustana draws its name from the origin of the Lutheran Church in the Augsburg Confession, written in 1530 during the Protestant
Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...
. "Augustana" stems from the document's Latin name, ''Confessio Augustana''. On August 21, 2015, the school announced that it would change its name from Augustana College and instead be known as Augustana University as of September 1, 2015.


Academics

Augustana University offers 53 majors, 34 minors, and 15 pre-professional programs. The top five most popular majors are nursing, biology, business administration, elementary education and psychology. The university's
curriculum In education, a curriculum (; : curricula or curriculums) is broadly defined as the totality of student experiences that occur in the educational process. The term often refers specifically to a planned sequence of instruction, or to a view ...
is based on a calendar divided into two 15-week semesters, separated by an interim period of four weeks during January, as well as an optional summer term of eight weeks. Classes may be taken during the month of January. The school offers a 12:1 student-to-faculty ratio, and notable professors include L. Adrien Hannus and V.R Nelson. Graduation requires completion of 124 total credit hours, 59 of which are general education courses, with a minimum cumulative grade point average of 2.0. "The Augustana Plan," the name of the 59 credit core curriculum, is "designed to develop articulate communicators, competent writers, creative thinkers, skilled problem solvers, and ethically minded, responsible citizens of the world." Extensive internship, study-abroad, undergraduate research and Civitas, the university's honors program, supplement the curriculum. Between 2007 and 2008, 285 students participated in an international educational experience, and 44% of students study abroad before graduation. In 2017, '' U.S. News & World Report'' reported Augustana's financial endowment at $67.2 million. Donations have allowed the school to expand its academic facilities, such as the recent $7 million renovation of the Mikkelsen Library and the $45 million reconstruction of the Gilbert Science Complex, completed in 2015.


Admissions and rankings

, Augustana's student body consists of 1,825 undergraduates, 99% of whom are full-time students and 1% part-time, 59% were female. The acceptance rate stands at 61%. ''U.S. News & World Report'' classifies Augustana as a "more selective" school, with 62% of the students enrolled having graduated from
high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...
in the top quartile of their class, the average
GPA Grading in education is the process of applying standardized measurements for varying levels of achievements in a course. Grades can be assigned as letters (usually A through F), as a range (for example, 1 to 6), as a percentage, or as a numbe ...
being 3.7. ACT test score submissions had a 23–28 middle 50% range, with an average ACT composite score of 26. Eight percent of incoming students in 2014 submitted
SAT The SAT ( ) is a standardized test widely used for college admissions in the United States. Since its debut in 1926, its name and scoring have changed several times; originally called the Scholastic Aptitude Test, it was later called the Schol ...
scores, with the middle 50% range for the mathematical and critical reading components being 500–650 and 510–580, respectively. The school's retention rate of freshmen returning as sophomores was 80% between 2013 and 2014. Those enrolled are primarily from South Dakota (42%) and Minnesota (34%), followed by Iowa (12%) and Nebraska (4%). In the fall of the 2010–2011 academic year, Augustana reported its largest ever incoming class of international students. Fifty-four new students representing 20 countries and 5 continents joined 25 continuing international students for a total of 79 international students from 23 countries, making up about 4.5% of the student body. Although only 46% of students claim a preference for the school's
Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Cathol ...
religious affiliation, the school is nevertheless composed primarily of students following another Christian denomination,
Catholicism The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
being the second largest at 21%; 22% of students, meanwhile, are categorized under "other." In the 2015 ''U.S. News & World Report'' ranking of Midwestern colleges, Augustana placed third. The publication additionally named it a "Best Buy" school, the award based on academic quality in relation to attendance costs. ''The Princeton Review'' named Augustana as one of 159 "Best in the Midwest" schools in 2015.
Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also r ...
' list of "America's Top Colleges" placed Augustana at #97 among schools in the Midwest and #423 overall. ''Peterson's 440 Colleges for Top Students'' featured Augustana, and ''Harvard Schmarvard: Getting Beyond the Ivy League to the College That is Best for You'' listed the school as one of its "top 100 outstanding (but under-appreciated) colleges." ''The Templeton Guide'' selected Augustana as one of 100 select colleges and universities nationwide as part of its "Templeton Honor Roll." Zippia named Augustana University the top college in South Dakota - and No. 2 college in the nation - for getting a job in 2021.


Arts

Augustana created the Center for Western Studies in 1970, founded by professor Herbert Krause, which serves as a library, repository for special collections of art and artifacts, and academic publisher. The center holds an annual Dakota Conference on the Northern Plains for history, literature, art, and archaeology. It is "the largest annual humanities conference specifically about the Northern Plains." In addition to shows and galleries of Western, Scandinavian, and Native American art, the Center also hosts the Boe Forum on Public Affairs, which has featured speakers such as
Pervez Musharraf General Pervez Musharraf ( ur, , Parvez Muśharraf; born 11 August 1943) is a former Pakistani politician and four-star general of the Pakistan Army who became the tenth president of Pakistan after the successful military takeover of t ...
, Sandra Day O'Connor, and Mikhail Gorbachev. The Augustana Choir and Concert Band tour widely nationally and internationally, including the
People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
,
Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
, and
Tanzania Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands ...
. The band, while on tour in
Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Medit ...
during the Revolution of 2011, found themselves briefly stranded in
Cairo Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the Capital city, capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, List of ...
due to anti-government protests. The Augustana College Theatre Company presents several main-stage shows each year, one of which is a musical, as well as several student produced shows by the Augustana College Theatrical Society. The department furthermore serves as home to the Claire Donaldson New Play Festival (previously called the 8-in-48 Claire Donaldson Short Play Festival), which occurs every other year. In 2006, the new Center for Visual Arts replaced the old art department buildings, previously used as barracks during World War II. It holds artist and professor studios, studio classrooms for design, drawing, printmaking, painting, sculpture, ceramics, and an art education lab. In addition, the building houses the Eide-Dalrymple Gallery, which hosts several art exhibitions throughout the year.


''Civitas''

Augustana's honors program, ''Civitas'', was launched in 2007 and is currently directed by Sociology
professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an academic rank at universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who professes". Professors ...
Wiiliam J. Swart. The program is named Civitas, a
Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
word meaning "citizenship," and is built upon the work of
Dietrich Bonhoeffer Dietrich Bonhoeffer (; 4 February 1906 – 9 April 1945) was a German Lutheran pastor, theologian and anti-Nazi dissident who was a key founding member of the Confessing Church. His writings on Christianity's role in the secular world have ...
, a
German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...
Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Cathol ...
pastor A pastor (abbreviated as "Pr" or "Ptr" , or "Ps" ) is the leader of a Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutheranism, Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy and ...
and
theologian Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...
who acted as a founding member of the
Confessing Church The Confessing Church (german: link=no, Bekennende Kirche, ) was a movement within German Protestantism during Nazi Germany that arose in opposition to government-sponsored efforts to unify all Protestant churches into a single pro-Nazi German ...
and a participant in the German resistance movement against
Nazism Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) i ...
. Bonhoeffer's essay "The Structure of Responsible Life" serves as the central focus of the program. Emphasizing ''Stellvertretung'' (roughly translated as "vicarious representative action"), Bonhoeffer participated in the Abwehr plot to assassinate Hitler, and subsequently wrote the piece as a justification for his actions. Students examine his work in classes specifically designated for Civitas and in special honors sections of existing courses. 40 students are selected from each graduating class, of whom must maintain at minimum a 3.0 GPA, with entrance priority going to incoming students who possess an ACT score of at least 27 and a 3.5 cumulative high school GPA.


Natural sciences

An average of 90% of graduating seniors seeking admission into medical school have been accepted over the last three years, double the national acceptance rate, and the school claims a consistent 100% placement record of nursing graduates. Construction began on the new Froiland Science Complex in August 2014, involving additions to and renovations of the existing Gilbert Science Center, and was completed in December 2015. The remodeled west wing of the building maintains the Gilbert name.


Athletics

The Augustana Vikings currently participate in
NCAA Division II NCAA Division II (D-II) is an intermediate-level division of competition in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). It offers an alternative to both the larger and better-funded Division I and to the scholarship-free environmen ...
athletics in the
Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference The Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division II level, which operates in the western Midwestern United States. Nine of its ...
. The Vikings joined the NSIC from the
North Central Conference The North Central Conference (NCC), also known as North Central Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, was a college athletic conference which operated in the north central United States. It participated in the NCAA's Division II. History The NCC ...
, which folded in 2008. The men's basketball team won the NCAA Division II national championship in 2016. The women's basketball team advanced to the NCAA Division II Final Four in 2013. The men's baseball team won the NCAA Division II national championship in 2018. During both the 2004–2005 and 2009–2010 school years, Augustana wrestlers finished second in the NCAA Division II championship. The Sioux Falls Arena serves at the home court for the men's and women's basketball team. The Elmen Center, opened in 1989, serves as the home court for the volleyball team and wrestling team. On December 13, 2018, President Stephanie Herseth Sandlin announced that Augustana would begin pursuing a transition to Division I as part of the University's "Vision 2030" plan.


Media

The college used to operate a radio station, 89.1 FM KAUR, which broadcast 24 hours per day. Up until 2009, KAUR broadcast a variety of genres of music and specialized in independent or
college rock College rock was the alternative rock music played on student-run university and college campus radio stations located in the United States and Canada in the 1980s. The stations' playlists were often created by students who avoided the mainstream ...
. KAUR was founded in 1972 and Augustana University also once managed a self-constructed AM station, which, itself, was founded in 1945. In the spring of 2009, administrators at Augustana University decided to discontinue KAUR's student operations in favor of broadcasting
Minnesota Public Radio Minnesota Public Radio (MPR), is a public radio network for the state of Minnesota. With its three services, News & Information, YourClassical MPR and The Current, MPR operates a 46-station regional radio network in the upper Midwest. MPR ha ...
News.


Notable alumni

*
Linda Avey Linda Avey (née Bahnson) is an American biologist and entrepreneur. She is known for co-founding 23andMe, a consumer genetic data company. Early life Avey was born in 1960, in South Dakota, United States. She attended Augustana University, ...
, co-founder,
23andme 23andMe Holding Co. is a publicly held personal genomics and biotechnology company based in South San Francisco, California. It is best known for providing a direct-to-consumer genetic testing service in which customers provide a saliva sample ...
* Robert M. Berdahl, college and university administrator, former Chancellor of
UC Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant uni ...
* Jarret Brachman, terrorism expert, former director of research at
West Point The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known Metonymy, metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a f ...
's Combating Terrorism Center *
Phil Bruns Philip Bruns (May 2, 1931 – February 8, 2012) was an American television and movie actor and writer. He portrayed George Shumway, the father of Mary Hartman on the 1970s comedic series '' Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman,'' and Morty Seinfeld, the f ...
, actor (''
Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman ''Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman'' is an American satirical soap opera that aired in daily weeknight syndication from January 1976 to July 1977. The series follows the titular Mary Hartman, an Ohio housewife attempting to cope with various bizarre ...
'') * Nancy Erickson,
Secretary of the United States Senate The secretary of the Senate is an officer of the United States Senate. The secretary supervises an extensive array of offices and services to expedite the day-to-day operations of that body. The office is somewhat analogous to that of the clerk ...
*
Myron Floren Myron Floren (November 5, 1919 – July 23, 2005) was an American musician best known as the accordionist on ''The Lawrence Welk Show'' between 1950 and 1980. Floren came to prominence primarily from his regular appearances on the weekly televi ...
, accordionist *
Lars Forssell Lars Hans Carl Abraham Forssell (14 January 192826 July 2007) was a Swedish writer and member of the Swedish Academy. Forssell was a versatile writer who worked within many genres, including poetry, drama and songwriting. He was married from 1951 ...
, Swedish writer and member of the Swedish Academy *
C. J. Ham Cortez Thaddeus Ham Jr. (born July 22, 1993) is an American football fullback for the Minnesota Vikings of the National Football League (NFL). He went undrafted in the 2016 NFL Draft. He played college football at Augustana. High school care ...
, professional football player *
John Hamre John Julian Hamre (born July 3, 1950) is a specialist in international studies, a former Washington government official and President and CEO of the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a position he has held with that think tank since ...
, CEO of
Center for Strategic and International Studies The Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) is an American think tank based in Washington, D.C. CSIS was founded as the Center for Strategic and International Studies of Georgetown University in 1962. The center conducts polic ...
*
Mary Hart Mary Hart (born Mary Johanna Harum; November 8, 1950) is an American television personality and actress. She was the long-running host (1982–2011) of the syndicated gossip and entertainment round-up television program '' Entertainment Tonight' ...
(Harum), television host ('' Entertainment Tonight'') * Dale Hoiberg, editor-in-chief of
Encyclopædia Britannica The (Latin for "British Encyclopædia") is a general knowledge English-language encyclopaedia. It is published by Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.; the company has existed since the 18th century, although it has changed ownership various t ...
* Ross Horning, historian *
Les Josephson Lester Andrew Josephson (July 29, 1942 – January 1, 2020) was an American professional football running back in the National Football League for the Los Angeles Rams. He played college football at Augustana College. Early years Josephson's fo ...
, professional football player * Kevin Kaesviharn, professional football player *
Ted Kessinger Ted Kessinger (born January 15, 1941) is a former American football coach. He served as the head football coach at Bethany College in Lindsborg, Kansas from 1976 to 2003, compiling a record of 219–57–1 for a winning percentage of . He is amo ...
, college football coach inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame * Corbin Lacina, professional football player *
David Lillehaug David Lee Lillehaug (born May 22, 1954) is a former associate justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court. He served as the United States Attorney for the District of Minnesota from 1994 to 1998. Early life and education Lillehaug was born in Waverly ...
, Associate Justice of
Minnesota Supreme Court The Minnesota Supreme Court is the highest court in the U.S. state of Minnesota. The court hears cases in the Supreme Court chamber in the Minnesota State Capitol or in the nearby Minnesota Judicial Center. History The court was first assemb ...
and United States Attorney for the District of Minnesota * Brent Loken, conservation scientist and social entrepreneur * Karl Mecklenburg, professional football player * Laurel Prieb, vice president of Western Operations for
Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...
* Heath Rylance, professional football player * Lee Schoenbeck, South Dakota Senate President Pro Tempore *
Bryan Schwartz Bryan Schwartz (born December 5, 1971 in St. Lawrence, South Dakota) is a former American football linebacker in the National Football League. He was drafted by the Jacksonville Jaguars in the second round of the 1995 NFL Draft. He played colleg ...
, professional football player *
David Soul David Soul (born David Richard Solberg; August 28, 1943) is an American-British actor and singer. He is known for his role as Detective Kenneth "Hutch" Hutchinson in the television series ''Starsky & Hutch'' from 1975 to 1979; Joshua Bolt on ' ...
, actor ('' Starsky and Hutch'') * Brett Szabo, professional basketball player *
Fred Ward Freddie Joe Ward (December 30, 1942 – May 8, 2022) was an American actor and producer. Starting with a role in an Italian television movie in 1973, he appeared in such diverse films as '' Escape from Alcatraz'', ''Southern Comfort'', '' The R ...
, actor (appeared in the films '' Tremors'' and others) *
Troy Westwood Troy Westwood (born March 21, 1967) is a former professional Canadian football place kicker and punter who played 18 years for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the Canadian Football League. He was drafted 48th overall in the 6th round of the 1991 CF ...
, professional football player


References


External links

*
Augustana University official athletics website
* {{authority control Private universities and colleges in South Dakota Educational institutions established in 1860 Education in Sioux Falls, South Dakota Buildings and structures in Sioux Falls, South Dakota 1860 establishments in Illinois 1918 establishments in South Dakota