Month: September 2023

DECORAH, IOWA—Luther College and Vesterheim, the National Norwegian-American Museum and Folk Art School, will welcome Norway’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Anniken Huitfeldt, to Decorah this September.

Huitfeldt will give a lecture on Luther’s campus at 11:30 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 23, at Noble Recital Hall in the Jenson-Noble Hall of Music. The talk is free and open to the public; it will conclude around 12:30 p.m.

Norway’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Anniken Huitfeldt

As Minister of Foreign Affairs, Huitfeldt oversees Norway’s diplomatic relationships with other nations, including the U.S. The talk will focus on Norway’s foreign policy objectives. Huitfeldt has served in the position since October 2021 and has held multiple positions in the Norwegian government including Minister of Labor and Social Inclusion and Minister of Equality.

“As the first college founded by Norwegian-American immigrants, the connection to Norway remains an important cornerstone for the college today not just for our heritage, but also for contemporary ties,” said Maren Johnson, associate professor of Nordic Studies at Luther.  “We are honored to welcome Minister Huitfeldt to Luther and are excited for her to share about Norway’s foreign policy priorities with a public audience. Her presence reinforces the strength of the connection between Luther, Vesterheim, Decorah and Norway.”

After concluding her time at Luther College, Huitfeldt will head to Vesterheim to kick off a week of celebration for the opening of the new Commons building at Vesterheim in downtown Decorah. Her visit includes a tour of the museum campus and private dinner and ribbon cutting in the Commons, which will be the first official event in the new building.

Beginning Sept. 23, Vesterheim will offer free admission all week in addition to two free online events. It culminates in a public dedication and celebration of the completion of the Commons at 1:30 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 30, on Water Street in front of the Commons building. The public is welcome to come and celebrate with entertainment, demonstrations and refreshments. Find more details about the events at vesterheim.org

About Luther College

At Luther College in beautiful Decorah, Iowa, students explore big questions and take action to benefit people, communities and society. Our academic programs, experiential approach to learning and welcoming community inspire students to learn actively, live purposefully and lead courageously for a lifetime of impact. Learn more at luther.edu.

DECORAH, IOWA — The Luther College Writers Festival returns to campus this month, featuring the award-winning and New York Times bestselling author Ross Gay as the keynote speaker. In addition to Gay, the festival will feature a broad coalition of 18 writers publishing in fiction, nonfiction and poetry. The festival begins Friday, Sept. 22, and ends Saturday, Sept. 23.

Gay – a poet and essayist who has won the National Book Critics Circle award, among others – will give this year’s Farwell Distinguished Lecture at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 22, in the Center for Faith and Life. The lecture, Inciting Joy: An Evening with Ross Gay, is free and open to the public, and will discuss his most recent essay collection, “The Book of (More) Delights,” which hits bookstore shelves Sept. 19. His other works include the essay collections “Inciting Joy” and “The Book of Delights” and poetry collections “Be Holding” and “Bringing the Shovel Down.”

The public can register for the festival at no cost, but a free-will donation is optional and encouraged. The two-day festival will feature a variety of readings and publishing advice, in addition to book signings with the authors.

Register for the festival Luther College Writers Festival Website

“I want people to feel welcomed and engaged. I want people to feel excited about words and their transformative potential,” said Amy Weldon, professor of English at Luther and co-director of the writers festival, along with 2001 Luther graduate Keith Lesmeister. “We’re proud that we have a wonderful and diverse mix of writers in terms of genre and culture.”

Many Luther students have read Gay’s work, since it’s taught in a number of Luther courses, including Paideia. They will have the opportunity to attend the different panels to learn about writing and the landscape of the publishing industry from professional writers. Students will work as volunteers to introduce writers at panels and talks and show them around campus.

The theme for this year’s festival is “Writing the Tree of Life: Language in Place.” To kick off the festival, journalist and historian Mark Oppenheimer will give the opening talk Friday afternoon. Taylor Brorby, a poet, memorist and graduate of St. Olaf College, and Carol Roh Spaulding, a fiction writer and professor at Drake University, are among those who will be featured at the festival.

“We are hoping to plant our little tree, our little festival, on our campus and have it grow and welcome people,” Weldon said.

Authors presenting at the Luther College Writers Festival. Top (in order from left to right): Ari Tison, Darius Stewart, Carol Roh Spaulding, Denton Loving, Elise Gregory, Erica Anderson-Senter Middle: Ross Gay, Scott Samuelson, Joe Milan Jr., Julia Ridley Smith, Kathryn Savage, Athena Kildegaard Bottom: Mark Oppenheimer, Michael Kleber-Diggs, Moheb Soliman, J.D. Schraffenberger, Taylor Brorby, Amy Weldon

About Luther College

At Luther College in beautiful Decorah, Iowa, students explore big questions and take action to benefit people, communities and society. Our academic programs, experiential approach to learning and welcoming community inspire students to learn actively, live purposefully and lead courageously for a lifetime of impact. Learn more at luther.edu.

Thomas Altier, a cross country and track and field runner, was named an All-America Athlete for the 2022-23 season.

DECORAH, IOWA—Luther College is proud to announce that cross country and track and field runner Tom Altier was named to the 2022-23 College Sports Communicators (CSC) Academic All-America Second Team, the first Norse athlete to earn this achievement since 2017 and the fifth cross country and track and field runner in the program’s history. Academic All-America, which began in 1952, honors top college athletes for their athletic and academic achievements.

Altier, class of 2023, majored in computer science and mathematics and maintained a grade point average of 3.93 during his time at Luther, graduating with summa cum laude honors. In order to be nominated for the Academic All-America team, student-athletes must maintain a 3.5 GPA or better on a 4.0 scale.

Tom Altier

“He was an incredibly motivated, driven and disciplined athlete,” said Luther Cross Country Coach Steve Pasche, who worked with Altier throughout his Norse athletic career. “He was a cornerstone of the program.”

While maintaining his high GPA, Altier represented Luther College at the 2021 and 2022 NCAA cross country championships. To be nominated to All-America, athletes must also be starters for their sport and compete in 50% of varsity contests during the season. In his final cross country season, he finished 11th at the American Rivers Conference Championship, becoming a three-time all-conference finisher. During the Midwest Regionals, he helped the team to a sixth-place finish. Altier finished 28th individually, earning the title of all-region finisher – runners must place in the top 35 to receive the title. He became the second runner in Luther cross country history to become a four-time all-region finisher.

In addition to his cross country achievements, Altier was a distance runner for the Luther track and field team. He set a Luther record in the 3,200-meter run and is fifth all-time in the 5,000-meter run for the college. He earned two all-conference honors for track, one for indoor in the 3,000-meter run and one for outdoor in the 5,000-meter run.

“His athletic career was cut short since he suffered an ankle injury before his last track season, but continued to support the team while he was out,” Pasche said. “He really showed emotional resiliency and was a joy to work with.”

In addition to his running career, Altier was a saxophone player at Luther College, performing in the Luther College Jazz Orchestra.  

About Luther College 

At Luther College in beautiful Decorah, Iowa, students explore big questions and take action to benefit people, communities and society. Our academic programs, experiential approach to learning and welcoming community inspire students to learn actively, live purposefully and lead courageously for a lifetime of impact. Learn more at luther.edu.