Category: Luther College and Decorah Schools

Luther College has been named the number one “Hidden Gem” of Iowa and the Plains Region for 2023 by College Raptor, a leading college planning platform that helps families make smart decisions about college.  

Each year, College Raptor recognizes top-notch colleges and universities that students may not know about but deserve consideration. Since 2019, Luther College has been named the number one “Hidden Gem” of Iowa. Luther College has also been named the number one “Hidden Gem” of the Plains Region since 2020 when the category was established.  

The complete College Raptor Best Hidden Gem College Rankings include:

The Hidden Gem Colleges are the highest-rated schools in College Raptor’s 2023 Best Colleges rankings that have fewer than 7,000 undergraduate students, have a 10% or higher acceptance rate, offer five or more unique majors, and receive fewer than 5,000 applications per year.

About Luther College

Luther College is home to about 1,800 undergraduates who 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. 

DJ Spooky. Photo by Janelle Pietrzak

Paul Miller aka DJ Spooky will appear at Luther College at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 11, in the Main Hall of the Center for Faith and Life. Miller is known for immersing audiences in his multimedia presentations which highlight environmental and social issues. 

Sponsored by the CEPE, the event titled “Arctic Rhythms” will feature “top-notch DJ mixing accompanied by local string musicians and astounding cinema. It’ll be an intermedia experience to move bodies and minds,” according to Hageman. 

Miller hears music in almost everything—from visual forms and economic theory to the great outdoors. In 2007 and 2008, Miller undertook two expeditions to Antarctica to shoot a film, collect data and create an acoustic portrait of the rapidly changing continent. That led to his celebrated 2011 publication The Book of Ice and his 2013 album Of Water and Ice. Sponsored by the Sierra Club, Miller traveled to the Arctic Circle in 2014 and came away with the inspiration for another volume of music, Arctic Rhythms. Miller uses his custom-designed DJ mixer app and juxtaposes hip-hop, electronic, and minimalist classical sounds to create a unique concert experience.

Miller’s work centers around issues concerning environmentalism, racism and algorithm culture. He has collaborated with an array of recording artists, including Metallica, Chuck D, Steve Reich and Yoko Ono. His 2018 album, DJ Spooky Presents: Phantom Dancehall, debuted at #3 on Billboard Reggae.

The event is open to the public with no charge for admission. 

Following the event, on Oct. 12, Miller will meet with students to review and discuss their recently completed activism projects focused on a variety of issues. “Students will have the opportunity to get feedback on their own creative concepts. Both parts of this visit should inspire us to work in new and imaginative ways for a better future,” said Hageman. 

About Luther College

Luther College is home to about 1,800 undergraduates who 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. 

The Field of Dreams movie tag lines held true on the night of Sept. 16, 2022, when Luther College and Briar Cliff University became the first collegiate teams to play on the iconic field. The event was “built” over the past 18 months and people came. More than 2,200 attendees took in the sights and sounds of American baseball at its finest and some likely questioned, “Is this heaven?” 

“It’s a surreal moment. I mean, just being out here is unbelievable. To step out on this field for the first time ever made it even cooler,” said Nick Dufoe, Luther baseball player. 

“It’s a dream come true. I’ve been here four or five times, but every time I come here, it gets more special. We watched the movie together as a team on Tuesday and it’s exactly like the movie. Perfect, I guess, is the only way to describe it,” said Ryan Manternach, Luther baseball player. 

This was more than a baseball game. This was a day full of meaningful connections and reconnecting. Hundreds of Luther friends, alumni, students and parents got the energy going at a pre-game gathering at Fuse, a restaurant and bar near the field. 

“There are some people here I haven’t seen in a long time and even some family friends that I didn’t even know went to Luther. So yeah, it’s super awesome to see everybody’s familiar faces,” said Ellie Linmark ’22.

The event was a perfect excuse for Luther College baseball alumni to get together again. Alumni players from each decade, from the fifties on up, came together to scrimmage before the big game.  

“Luther meant so much to me as a kid and it kind of changed my life. I thought ‘I’m going to go back and see this game.’ Then, I heard they were doing an alumni game and Kevin (Doseth ’85) reached out. ‘Kent! You want to play?’ I just had knee replacement surgery 11 months ago, and I said, ‘I’m in. I’m not going to miss that,’” said Kent Stock ’85.

 “Luther baseball is a family. We used to get together on off nights and hang out–just to hang out. We did everything together, especially during the season. This was an excuse to try to get some older guys from our class to be involved and it ended up working out. There are five or six guys in our age group here, so it’s amazing,” said Doseth. 

A highlight for many was finally watching the Luther Baseball team walk out of the cornfield and onto the Field of Dreams. And the crowd went wild when Ghavin James, a senior player, hit a home run deep into the corn. 

While the end score didn’t favor Luther, the game was still a major win. After the dust settled, families joined their players on the field for a late night game of catch. 

“It’s family. And, you know, today really just encompasses that,” said Dufoe.

About Luther College

Luther College is home to about 1,800 undergraduates who 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. 

Luther College student Junita Sangare ‘25 received a $10,000 Davis Projects for Peace grant for her proposal titled “Girls Let’s Talk.” Her primary goal is to empower young women in Liberia through sexual reproductive health education–something that is desperately lacking in the country. 

“Empowering young women with education gives them the ability to make sound decisions about their health and bodies. Overall, this leads to a greater sense of awareness, strong self-esteem, purpose orientation and high achievements,” said Sangare. “With impact projects like ours, we believe we can achieve this reality for every young woman in Liberia, across Africa, and in the larger world.”

In Liberia, sex and sexual reproductive health are taboo topics. According to Sangare, 67% of adolescent girls with no education are either pregnant or have at least one child to care for, which is a life-altering struggle in a developing country like Liberia.

“Being a member of this community, I have seen firsthand the detrimental realities that these challenges pose to young women, including my very own sisters and relatives. From being a high school dropout to street vendors and then diving deeper and deeper into poverty that is oftentimes extremely difficult to recover from,” said Sangare.

Her project was essentially a seven-day intensive workshop for 75 women between the ages of 15 to 20 in two Liberia locations. Working with a team of eight youth leaders, Sangare succeeded in developing a life planning curriculum based on the educational resources provided by the World Health Organization on adolescent health and development. The project covered topics like sex education, teenage pregnancy prevention, gender roles and equality. Sangare empowered young women with education about their sexual reproductive health and life planning skills while creating a safe space that enhanced their growth and development. 

“It brings me nothing but great joy to do this work. This is the space where I feel fulfilled and purposeful,” said Sangare. “This project has left me with a strong sense of hope—hope that there are still plenty of chances to create a better world. I am proud to say that our successes have extended to starting a non-profit called Educate Women Liberia under which we hope to continue this work.”

Davis Projects for Peace was established by Kathryn W. Davis on her 100th birthday to fund selected students with $10,000 to create and build peace anywhere in the world. Funding for this specific project was used mainly for equipment and supplies in addition to marketing and event promotional support. 

Since the creation of the grant in 2007, Luther students have established 22 projects in 21 countries. In total, 36 Luther students have been awarded this prestigious grant to spread sustainable peace around the world.

About Luther College

Luther College is home to about 1,800 undergraduates who 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. 

Luther College’s Gateway Prairie and wind turbine

The 2022 Sustainable Campus Index is out and this year, the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) named Luther College the fourth best baccalaureate institution in the nation for its efforts in sustainability. 

This honor recognizes the breadth and depth of the college’s sustainability efforts. 

“From sustainability scholarships to sheep grazing in our solar fields, Luther incorporates sustainability into all aspects of college life,” said Jensen. 

Luther scored especially well in the Curriculum category and is ranked number nine of all colleges and universities in the nation. This category recognizes colleges with courses, programs or learning outcomes in sustainability. At Luther, 37% of all courses include a sustainability component and 100% of departments have sustainability course offerings. 

The college was also featured in the publication for offering the Sustainability Scholarship. Each year, five incoming students who have demonstrated leadership in sustainability and are committed to working for a more just, equitable, and environmentally sustainable world are awarded the $5,000 scholarship.  

“The Center for Sustainable Communities compiles the data but this ranking reflects work from all across campus and once again shows that Luther is a leader in helping to prepare students for lives of service while ‘walking the talk’ when it comes to how we run our campus,” said Jensen. 

These rankings are based on AASHE’s Sustainability Tracking, Assessment and Rating System or STARS. It is a comprehensive and transparent framework for colleges to measure their sustainability performance. Luther, once again, received the STARS Gold Award, improving its score from 72 in 2019 to 75 in 2022. Chris Frantsvog, Luther College sustainability coordinator, gathered and analyzed data for the report, which is submitted every three years. This year, he and his team were recognized as a top institution for Data Accuracy. It’s a big job, but for Frantsvog, it’s worth the effort to spread the word about the great efforts happening at Luther. 

“Many people have seen Luther’s huge solar fields, but they may have never seen the sheep we have grazing here. Many people know of Luther’s academic success but wouldn’t know that Luther’s research students recently discovered seven bee species never identified before in Iowa. Our sustainability success takes a lot of wild and wonderful shapes,” said Frantsvog. 

Other noteworthy college sustainability achievements include: 

• Luther College has reduced its carbon footprint by 63.5% for the fiscal year 2020-21, on the way to a goal of carbon neutrality by 2030.
• Since 2014, 80,000 pounds of leftover food from the Cafeteria has been packaged and donated to local food pantries through Luther’s Caf to Community program. 
• 13.8 tons of materials were diverted from the landfill during Move Out 2022. 
• 53% of Luther’s electricity comes from renewable power sources (wind and solar) generated on campus.

Jon Jensen and students visit sheep grazing at the solar field.

Sheep grazing at the solar field.

A student works in the Luther gardens.

From the farm to the Caf. Students enjoy farm fresh vegetables.

Each year Luther hosts a plant giveaway.

13.8 tons of materials were diverted from the landfill during Move Out 2022.

“Daryll”–Luther’s wind turbine named by students.