Greetings from Augustana Campus!
A message from Augustana dean and executive officer, John Parkins
“This past year, we have contributed to community initiatives ranging from large-scale professor-led projects and new programmatic offerings to many Community Service-Learning placements, resulting in more than 2,500 hours of engagement by almost 180 students each year!
At the same time, you helped us create remarkable change. The incredible contributions from donors, partner organizations, alumni and community members gives our work meaning. We feel this participation and generosity, and it makes all the difference to the work of our campus.”
The Lane
News from around campus.
To Save the Least
North America’s least flycatcher is facing a survival challenge as its fall migration shifts earlier, compounding an already drastic population decline. Luckily, research could help stem the decline of the tiny, vital bird species.
A Rage that Resonates
Pop culture critic and Augustana professor Roxanne Harde says Alanis Morissette’s angry brand of feminism is as relevant as ever. The groundbreaking singer-songwriter’s music continues to speak to diverse young people across generations.
Practice Makes Safer
At Augustana, we know that chemistry labs are crucial settings for learning. This year, senior chemistry students participated in a new, three-hour, hands-on safety training session to help them prepare for any potential incidents in the lab.
An Unsung Generation
After COVID curtailed group singing, an Augustana-led research project sought how to help kids rediscover their voices. Now, the researchers are hoping their work will spark a ‘singing renaissance.’
It was a Season to Remember
The Augustana Vikings triumphed over King’s Eagles in an epic ACAC volleyball semi-final. This Cinderella story saw the lowest seed advance to the championship against Lakeland to secure a spot at nationals. It was a game to remember.
Rehab Med is Back
The Rehabilitation Medicine satellite program reopened at Augustana in the 2024/25 academic year. This updated program has also expanded — offering 44 spots a year in master’s programs in physical therapy, occupational therapy and speech-language pathology.
Good Signs
Willow White, an assistant professor of English and Indigenous Studies, worked with student Brianna Winiandy-Munch and speakers of Indigenous languages to create interpretive signage that identifies the native plants that grow on campus. It was part of a larger project that earned her a Campus Sustainability Grant. White is Métis, and says the signage educates people about the plants and a bit about local Indigenous cultures and their languages. We asked her about the project. – Sydney Tancowny and Mifi Purvis
How did the project integrate Indigenous knowledge into its approach to sustainability?
The project was premised on Indigenous perspectives of sustainability that, unlike Western sustainability practices, intrinsically link Indigenous language and cultural life to environmental sustainability. The first part of the project involved visiting and learning from Cree, Métis and Siksika knowledge-keepers and language-speakers about Indigenous plant teachings. With the support of Augustana undergraduate research assistant Winiandy-Munch we partnered with pipikwan pêhtâkwan, an Indigenous-led public relations team, to create seven signs that depict Indigenous plants.
What are the project aims?
The goals of the project are multifold. I seek to help remind people on Augustana Campus that we gather on Indigenous lands. I hope to encourage our campus community to expand their understanding of Indigenous lands, languages and cultures.
Who held the primary agency in the project?
This project was entirely led and created by Indigenous Peoples and included collaboration between Indigenous faculty, staff, undergraduate researchers, community members and designers. The signs include plant names in Cree (nêhiyawêwin), Siksika (Siksikáí’powahsin) and Southern Michif (Métis language).
What is the overall goal of the continuation of the project?
Now that the signs have been installed, this summer I’m working with Indigenous undergraduate researcher Taylor Soroka to create learning materials to expand engagement with the project. These materials will include an Indigenous Plant Walk Guide and more!
A Year in Numbers
17
Percentage of Augustana students that are international students. Students come from 29 countries.
38
Percentage of Augustana courses in 2024-25 that had no cost for textbooks, an effort part of the .
1,931,907
91ÒùĸÊÓƵ funding received from granting agencies (fiscal year 2025).
Notable 91ÒùĸÊÓƵ: 91ÒùĸÊÓƵ Innovates has awarded grants to five U of A projects totalling: $3,981,954. Of that, $783,988 was granted to researcher Mi-Young Kim to develop AI that supports timely and informed suggestion-making for 91ÒùĸÊÓƵ Health Link 811.
$25K
The amount saved by Augustana’s solar panels, which generate power that mitigates 150 tons of CO2 per year.
200+
Campus events open to community members in 2024.
1442
Number of donors who gave to Augustana in 2024, supporting students, research, teaching and learning, and more.
55% of donations to Augustana came from Camrose and area in 2024.
Featured Stories
Rural Volunteer Revival
Volunteerism is on the decline, with rural communities feeling it especially hard. Fortunately, there are ways to build it back up.
Community Support Inspires Student Leader
Augustana student Abdul Abbasi first came to Camrose with his family in January 2020 from the bustling subtropical city of Rawalpindi, Pakistan. Today, he is inspired to give back to the community that welcomed him.
The Common
Get to know us better.
Meet new faculty and researchers
Andrea Wilhelm
Chaplain
Faith leader Andrea Wilhelm builds community and guides folks of a variety of faiths as Augustana’s chaplain. She’s also a linguist: “I have worked with Dënesųłiné people on documenting and revitalizing their language,” she says. Her other great interest is no surprise. “I like to read the Bible, learn about the worlds of the people who told those stories, and what it can mean for us today.”
Huanqing Chen
Assistant Professor, Physics
Astrophysicist Huanqing Chen was sold on astronomy when she learned it combined math, physics, computing science and the use of telescopes. She has undertaken research showing that supermassive black holes don’t always reside in the densest environments in the universe, challenging assumptions. “I want to understand how the first galaxies and supermassive black holes formed and how they drive the reionization of the intergalactic medium,” she says.
Ha Tran
Assistant Professor, Mathematics
Mathematician Ha Tran’s research focuses on computational number theory, applying it to coding theory and cryptography, where she analyzes digital communication security. At Augustana, she aims to foster collaborative research for faculty, students and postdocs, valuing project-based learning. “It’s essential for innovation and intellectual growth,” she says. And she’s thankful for colleagues who have advised her to balance family and work life.
Fengjing An
Visiting PhD Student
Children’s literature is a gold mine to visiting PhD student Fengjing An, in its power to cultivate eco-consciousness. She analyzes children’s books, bridging cultural gaps and raising environmental awareness. Her translations aim to “foster exchange and mutual learning and to make enriching books accessible to children.” Reflecting on literature, she says, provides a deeper understanding.
Raiany Dias de Andrade Silva
Postdoctoral Fellow
Raiany Dias de Andrade Silva’s love for plant diversity led her from Brazil to Augustana as a Mitacs Elevate Fellow. “I help with making sure that the forests are healthy,” she says. She studies air quality near the oilsands to ensure the health of 91ÒùĸÊÓƵ’s pine forests. Her work is revealing the surprising power of tree genetics.
Student Scholarships
First Cora Martinson Scholarships Awarded
At 19, Daimen Asp is pursuing his dream of becoming a doctor. His journey began in high school, where he passed on social activities in favour of studying, a work ethic he continued during first-year biology studies at Augustana Campus. But discipline and hard work can’t change the financial realities of being a university student.
Thankfully, Asp was one of two recipients of the Cora Martinson entrance scholarships at Augustana. Funded through the U of A’s Shape the Future campaign, the scholarship is part of a historic $2-million gift, the largest in Augustana’s history.
10
New donor awards created this year.
244
Awards funded by donors to Augustana.
$355,000+
total value of those donor-funded awards.
“I choose to donate because I’ve been lucky, benefitting from the opportunities presented to me. By donating to Augustana I’m hoping to alleviate some of the financial burden that students face in pursuing opportunities. When it comes to giving, I want people to know that it doesn’t take much to make a difference. Whether it’s time, talent or a financial commitment, giving enriches the societal fabric of each person’s community.”
- Scot Lorenson, ’00 BCom
Augustana Art
Check out some of the recent artwork created by Augustana faculty and alumni.
Collapsed House
Location: “Blue of Distance” (Fall 2024), Sarah Walker Gallery in Castletownbere, Ireland
Professor Julian Forrest visited Svalbard, Norway, as part of the Arctic Circle residency, an annual opportunity for artists, scientists and researchers to immerse themselves in the high-Arctic. Participants studied and documented the fragility and raw beauty of a world in flux. “Svalbard’s landscape demanded a different way of working,” Forrest says. “The cold, the shifting light, the constant movement aboard the ship, all meant adapting my process — photographing quickly, sketching or taking notes in brief windows of calm and absorbing the environment.”
The Artist’s Ravine
Location: Forum, Augustana Campus
This past year, a space in the Augustana Forum has been dedicated to display student artwork. The piece currently displayed was created by then students Abby Collard, ‘24 BA, and Gabe Lopez, ‘24 BA. “This piece brings together the ravine and the art studio, reflecting the time we spent in the studio throughout our studies at Augustana. By merging the subject of the picture with the setting in which it was created (the Augustana art studio), we hope to convey the transformative potential,” says the artists.
2024 Alumni Award Recipients
Rita Marler, CLC ’79, ’87 BEd
Distinguished Alumni Award
Rita Marler, CLC ’79, ’87 BEd, recalls completing her high school diploma at Augustana, and later working in the library there while pursuing her education degree. “Everyone was part of a tight-knit community,” she says. Small classes facilitated a foundation of support and respect that would resonate throughout her career.
The environment at Augustana helped Marler pursue a career in education that spanned more than 30 years, culminating in her position as superintendent of Battle River School Division. During her tenure, she led transformative change, fostering collaboration with previously isolated schools. Under her leadership, administrators worked together closely, sharing best practices and building community. While superintendent, Marler earned a PhD.
Marler emphasizes the importance of passion for the work and doing what’s best for students. Her dedication to education and unwavering support of students and fellow educators earned her this year’s Distinguished Alumni Award.
Matthew Hebert, ’05 BA
Lois Aspenes Award
Matthew Hebert, ’05 BA, serves as an assistant deputy minister of health for the Government of 91ÒùĸÊÓƵ. His dedication and advocacy on Augustana’s alumni council earned him this year’s Lois Aspenes Award. “Because of everything that it offered me in my early years, I’ve always felt it important to give back,” he says.
Hebert has championed Augustana’s identity, beginning when he served as president of the students’ association when Augustana was considering merging with the 91ÒùĸÊÓƵ. His experience in student leadership laid the foundation for his career in public service.
Hebert exemplifies the spirit of the Lois Aspenes Award through his unwavering support for Augustana Campus, which has helped shape its path.
Christina Rebus
Alumni Citation Award
A retired speech pathologist, Christina Rebus’s connection to Augustana began back in the 1980s when she and her husband first moved to Camrose. She got involved, attending public lectures, volunteering and serving on a community scholarship committee. One of her children attended Augustana, further deepening her ties to campus.
As a member of the University Senate from 2017-23, Rebus became a connecting point between Augustana and the broader Camrose community. She was invaluable to the senate in fostering collaboration.
Rebus remains a dedicated presence on campus. Whether she’s serving soup at the Augustana Chaplaincy’s weekly suppers or offering mental health support through Augustana’s Alumni Student Support and Engagement Team, Rebus is there for students, providing comfort and conversation during stressful times. She embodies the spirit of connection and care that defines the Augustana experience.
Class Notes
Learn about the exciting ways Augustana alumni are leading with purpose locally, nationally and globally.