VÄLKOMMEN

THE STRONGEST GENERATION

People frequently lament that the latest generation of youth is somehow softer than previous generations. In spite of the fact that my father told stories about walking more than a mile on a country road to the bus stop (uphill both directions, of course), I don’t buy it. When I think of our current cohort of Gustie students and young alumni, I am incredibly impressed with their fortitude, courage, and resilience. During the past two and a half years, I have witnessed their adaptation to shifting technologies and expectations, the devoted care they offer their friends and loved ones, and the quickness with which they identify and act on injustices. They have stood up where other generations in living memory have not. Yet these past two years have not been without their toll on today’s young Gusties. The American Council on Education regularly surveys college presidents. In 2020, nearly 70 percent of presidents identified student mental health as among their most pressing issues, compared to 53 percent the survey before. More than 66 percent reported an increase in the utilization of mental health services. A 2020 Inside Higher Ed and Hanover survey investigating presidents’ and chancellors’ responses to the COVID-19 crisis reported 92 percent of college presidents are somewhat or very concerned about the mental health of students. I am among them. I will be watching and participating in this year’s Nobel Conference—Mental Health (In)Equity and Young People—with great interest. You can read about some of what the College is doing now to help students improve their mental health and cultivate a sense of wellbeing on pages 9 and 17. Parents, professors, mentors—indeed, the whole Gustie community—have a hand in shaping the lives and growth of our youngest Gusties, from incoming first-years to recent alumni. These young Gusties are influencing and shaping me, too. Often during the past two and a half years I have asked myself, how would a young undergraduate Rebecca Bergman have reacted to these stressors? Certainly I would have experienced both anxiety and sorrow, as has this generation of young Gusties. I hope I would have also responded with the strength to rise up and carry on, as they continue to do. I trust that I would have had the courage to reach out for help when it got hard. No matter your age, I hope you have that courage too.

Yours in community,

Rebecca M. Bergman President, Gustavus Adolphus College

GUSTAVUS ADOLPHUS COLLEGE BOARD OF TRUSTEES

Marcia L. Page ’82, MBA (chair), Founding Partner, Värde Partners

Scott P. Anderson ’89, MBA, Head, Carlson Private Capital Industry Executive Council Catherine Asta ’75, JD, Attorney at Law Grayce Belvedere-Young, MBA, Founder and CEO, Lily Pad Consulting Rebecca M. Bergman (ex officio), President, Gustavus Adolphus College Suzanne F. Boda ’82, Retired Senior Vice President, Los Angeles, American Airlines Robert D. Brown, Jr. ’83, MA, MD, Staff Neurologist, Professor of Neurology, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine, and John T. and Lillian Matthews Professor of Neuroscience, Mayo Clinic Kara K. Buckner ’97 (ex officio), President/Chief Strategy Officer, Fallon Worldwide, and Past President, Gustavus Alumni Association Michael D. Bussey ’69, Senior Consultant, DBD Group and Past President, Gustavus Alumni Association Janette F. Concepcion, PhD, Clinical Psychologist, Concepcion Psychological Services Tane T. Danger ’07, Director, Westminster Town Hall Forum Edward J. Drenttel ’81, JD, Attorney/Partner, Winthrop & Weinstine Bruce A. Edwards ’77, Retired CEO, DHL Global Supply Chain John O. Hallberg ’79, MBA, Retired CEO, Children’s Cancer Research Fund

John M. Harris ’92, PhD, Associate Director, Protiviti Mary Dee J. Hicks ’75, PhD, Retired Senior Vice President, Personnel Decisions International The Rev. Alicia A. Hilding ’08, (ex officio) Co-pastor, Holy Trinity Lutheran Church; President, Gustavus Adolphus College Association of Congregations John S. Himle ’77, CEO, Himle LLC Keith N. Jackson ’89, JD, Assistant General Counsel, Aon The Rev. Peter C. Johnson ’92, Pastor of Small Groups and Service at St. Andrew Lutheran Church

Paul R. Koch ’87, Retired Managing Director–Private Wealth Advisor, Senior Portfolio Manager, Koch Wealth Solutions, RBC Wealth Management Nicole M. LaVoi ’91, Director, Tucker Center for Research on Girls and Women in Sport, University of Minnesota

Dennis A. Lind ’72, Chairman, Midwest Bank Group, Inc. Jan Lindman, MBA, Treasurer to the King, The Royal Court of Sweden The Rev. Dr. David J. Lose, Senior Pastor, Mount Olivet Lutheran Church

Mikka S. McCracken ’09, Program Manager, WW CSPXT, Amazon Jan Ledin Michaletz ’74, Past President, Gustavus Alumni Association

Thomas J. Mielke ’80, JD, Retired Senior Vice President and General Counsel, Kimberly-Clark Corporation Bradley S. Nuss ’97, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, Nuss Truck & Equipment The Rev. Dr. Dee Pederson (ex officio), Bishop, Southwestern Minnesota Synod, ELCA The Rev. Dr. Dan. S. Poffenberger ’82, Senior Pastor, Shepherd of the Lake Lutheran Church Karl D. Self ’81, MBA, DDS, Associate Professor, University of Minnesota School of Dentistry Kent V. Stone ’80, MBA, Retired Vice Chairman, U.S. Bancorp The Rev. Heather Teune Wigdahl ’95, Senior Pastor, Our Savior’s Lutheran Church

ON THE HILL

Phase I of the Lund Center expansion and renovation increased cardio, workout, and weightlifting space fi ve-fold—and brought in much needed natural light, too. Phase II will add a new academic wing, an athletic training teaching lab, and an all-season fi eld house.

HELLO NEW LUND, PHASE I

Health. Fitness. Wellness. Wow.

In May, the 72,000 sq. ft. expansion of Lund Center opened. This Phase I includes an increase in cardio and weight equipment, new coaching and recruiting spaces, sweeping views, and more.

“The goal is to provide all Gusties better wellness opportunities in an expanded, fi rst-class space,” President Bergman said at the opening ceremony, which also included words of gratitude from Vice President for Advancement Thomas W. Young ’88, Director of Intercollegiate Athletics Tom Brown, and two students. The project is the result of generous donors whose gifts assured it would catapult forward.

What a leap forward. The expansion includes a weight training facility fi ve times the size of the previous one, an openconcept cardio fi tness center, three aerobics rooms including one with TRX equipment, new locker rooms for intercollegiate student-athletes, o ce spaces for coaches and sta , and a sizable student lounge that has already seen signifi cant use since the building opened. Said athletic training major Madeleine Derbis ’23, “I am excited for the community that will develop in this student lounge. The additions and improvements will enhance students’ lives in the classroom, in athletics, and as we move on in our professional careers.”

The Lund Center project comes on the heels of the recently completed Nobel Hall of Science. Both projects represent major outcomes of Show the World, the College’s $225 million comprehensive campaign that is nearing completion.

Next up for Lund: Phase II, which includes (among other improvements) a 60,000 sq. ft. all-season fi eld house. Donor support continues to be sought to complete Phase II.

For more on the completed Phase I of the Lund Center project, turn the page.

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PHASE I, IN ACTION 1. The Gustavus women’s soccer team showing up as the first team to work out at the new Lund Center addition. It was 6 a.m. | 2. Two students studying at the third-floor student lounge overlooking both the football field and the cardio area. The open concept area includes study, hangout, and lounge spaces with many tables, plus a recruiting room. | 3. Cross country teammates work out at the benchrack equipment. The weight room includes rows of benches and racks, plus free weights on two levels. All told, it’s five times the space of the previous weight room. | 4. The atrium into the first-floor portion of the weight room. All workout and cardio equipment and spaces are open to the entire Gustavus community, not just student-athletes. | 5. The third floor athletics lounge and recruiting space. | 6. A locker in the football locker room. Varsity sports teams now have locker rooms specific to their teams. (Previous locker rooms were shared among teams.) The new locker rooms are larger, and best-in-class. | 7. Students hanging out post-workout in the third-floor student lounge overlooking the cardio area.

UP NEXT, PHASE II Fundraising continues for a full renovation of the existing Lund Center building, new learning spaces for health and exercise science and athletic training, and ultimately, a 53,000 sq. ft. field house with synthetic turf that will add allseason practice, exercise, and recreation space.