Sam Simataa '13
Windhoek, Namibia
Music

Sam grew up in Namibia but attended his final two years of high school at the United World College (UWC) in India.  

Sarah Czechowicz '12
Madison, Wis.
Biology

Combining a biology major with minors in religion and environmental studies strikes a good balance for Sarah.  

Mallory Heinzeroth '12

Denver, Colo.
Premedicine and Management 

Mallory believes that traveling offers some of the most valuable learning opportunities. In high school, she ventured to South Africa with her mom to work in a school that provided services for children with autism.

Jake Wessels '11

Dyersville, Iowa
Chemistry and biology

Spring Break trip: Jake will be one of 17 Luther students working at a vacation bible school in the Dominican Republic.

Josh Patterson '11

Zion, Ill.
Communication studies and management

Perspective on football: According to Josh, the best part about the sport is when your hard work in practice pays off in a game.

Jon Koch '12

Austin, Minn.
Music education

On-campus activities: Serves as vice president of Brandt Hall and sings second bass with Norsemen.

Jill Bohle '10

Sumner, Iowa
English and communication studies

Favorite J-Term class so far: Enjoyed a winter escape by taking a nonverbal communication course in the Canary Islands.

Matt Stump '12

Goshen, Ind.
Music education and music performance

Where he'd like to study abroad: Germany or another European country to learn more about the history of music.

Alicia Hale '10
Owatonna, Minn.
Psychology

Loves her on-campus job: Alicia works at Sunnyside Cafe (located in the Center for the Arts). She says, "It's really the perfect job because I enjoy making coffee, it has a wonderful, relaxed atmosphere, and the people are great to work with."

Alex Lange '11

East Dubuque, Ill.
Theatre/dance

What he considers good-reads outside class: Books authored by Vonnegut and Faulkner.

Michael Pettengill '10

Vinton, Iowa
Chemistry

An impressive swimmer: Michael is a two-time national meet qualifier in both the 100- and 200-yard breaststroke.

Megan Hallberg '10

Valders, Wis.
Math

Megan has faith in following threads--it seems whenever she pursues one of her interests, she discovers another.

Gina Klennert '10

Lake City, Minn.
Health and physical education

Gina heard through a neighborhood grapevine that Luther might match her interests in physical education and basketball--but she didn't expect the eclectic campus community to help her develop so many friendships beyond the Regents Center.

Maria Werner '10

Waseca, Minn.
Computer science and math

"I could have gone to a strictly science school," Maria says, "but I wouldn't be playing my flute right now, and that's more important to me than I'd thought."

Tristan Campbell '10

Monona, Wis.
Possibly interdisciplinary in history and Russian studies

Sometimes, Tristan says, a junior-high crush actually works out. Thats when he fell in love with Russian history.

Sharon Heyer '11

Cedar Rapids, Iowa
Biology

A multi-sport athlete in high school, Sharon decided to narrow her focus a little, concentrating her athletic endeavors on cross-country and track.

Ryan Kuhn '11

Santa Clarita, Calif.
Business management

Ryan weathers big changes pretty well. After all, he chose Luther--with an enrollment the same size as his high school's--without ever having lived in a climate not "70 degrees and sunny" year-round.

Rachel Bruns '11

Avon, Minn.
Possibly Spanish, political science, or economics

For Rachel, choosing Luther was rather mathematical. In her head, she tallied her gut reaction to her top colleges' academic rigor, spiritual opportunities, and swim team.

Makara Fairman '10

Bloomington, Minn.
Social work

Makara grew up with a roof over her head, but she suspects circumstances might have been otherwise had she not been adopted from India.

Lisa Torgerson '10

New Hope, Minn.
Management

Even though Lisa's parents are Luther alumni, she wasn't convinced she belonged on campus until she came for an overnight visit.

Leah Forsberg '11

Roseville, Minn.
Chemistry

Leah wasn't considering Luther until her mom suggested she visit. She loved the campus and immediately put Luther on her short list.

Kelsey Hake '10

Radcliffe, Iowa
Health and physical education

For Kelsey, choosing Luther was a heart-wrenching decision: she transferred in as a sophomore, leaving behind close first-year friends--primarily on the strength of Luther's softball program.

Emily Looft '10

South Lake, Texas
Management

Emily only applied to one school. You could say she was recruited before she knew what hit her. "I was that kid in Luther bibs and booties," she says with a laugh.

Aaron Shatzer '10

Woodridge, Ill.
Math and computer science

When Aaron set out to choose a college, there was high probability that he'd select Luther--his parents, one set of grandparents, and several aunts and uncles on both sides are graduates.

Greg Lonning

Lifetime wellness director

His view on sustainability: "It's really more than motion lights and windmills," says Greg. "It's about making changes in our behaviors."

Andi Beckendorf '93

Associate Professor of Library and Information Studies
Research and Instruction Librarian

Loves bass instruments: Andi started playing the double bass when she was nine years old.

Craig Mosher

Associate professor of social work and program director

"It's one thing to teach social work, and it's quite another to do it," Craig says.

Renae Hartl

Head softball coach, assistant volleyball coach, and instructor in health and physical education

A fierce competitor since her own college days, Renae admits she breathes softball sometimes to the brink of hyperventilation.

John Moeller

Professor of political science and director of Center for Ethics and Public Life

John Moeller is a classic facilitator. "I don't tell people things so much as I try to get discussions going," he says.

Eric Kutz

Associate professor of music

A North Dakota native, Eric Kutz knows what it's like to make big choices about college and vocation.

Jane (Greene) Hildebrand '74

Head women's basketball coach and associate athletic director

"I don't like to lose," Jane says, straight up. "Winning certainly isn't everything, and I know you learn from losing, but I just don't like it."

Scott Fjelstul '83

Head men's golf coach

Scott never tires of talking about Luther. "The college is a passion of mine," the management grad says. "It's given me lots of opportunities that I want others to know about."

Bob Larson

Professor of theatre/dance

"Sure doesn't seem like 42 years," Bob says, chuckling as he recaps his tenure at Luther. "The true joy of this job is that you get to know young men and women in the midst of their academic and personal journeys."

Scott Carlson

Associate professor of biology

It's perhaps a little unusual that Scott wound up at Luther--his academic career seemed oriented toward intensive research buried in a behemoth department at a research institution.

Philip Freeman

Associate professor of classics and Orlando W. Qualley Chair of Classical Languages

Though Philip leads a neatly organized scholarly life, his approach to the study of classical history is fairly free-form.

David Lester

Head women's golf coach and dining services cash operations manager

It's no surprise that David serves as a foodie/"music-holic"/coach/coffee-quality controller at Luther.

Mike Durnin

Head football coach and instructor in health and physical education

Like most incoming students, Mike chose Luther for its welcoming nature.

Lawrence Williams

Professor of Africana studies and history

It takes only a few minutes to understand that Lawrence is a storyteller.

Jeff Wettach '79

Assistant professor of health and physical education, and head track and field coach for men and women

Known as "Coach Dubs" to many students, Jeff is never far from cracking his signature broad smile.

Lori Stanley '80

Professor of anthropology and associate dean

As odd as it may seem for a decorated academic, Lori is known for ducking notoriety.

Harley Refsal

Professor of Scandinavian folk art

In many ways, Harley hasn't really left the farm he grew up on in west-central Minnesota. For one thing, he's still fluent in the Norwegian his family spoke.

Uwe Rudolf

Professor of accounting and management

After 10 minutes of conversation with Uwe (OOH-veh), it's obvious that his life and living have not been linear.

Yarrow Pasche

Head coach for women's cross country, assistant distance track coach, and administrative assistant in Luther's study abroad office

For Yarrow, no job proposition is really too far afield.

Wanda Deifelt

Associate professor of religion

Wanda's favorite part of teaching is talking with students in what she calls her Brazilian-South Dakotan accent.

Timothy Peter '86

Professor of music and head of the music department

As alumni go, Tim fits a classic script: In Act One, he finds his academic passion--music--at Luther.

Steve Pasche

Head men's and women's cross-country coach, assistant distance track coach, and skills instructor in orienteering and rock climbing

For Steve, coaching is more an adventure than a paycheck. You can't put your finger on any one thing that makes a program successful, he says.

Steve Holland

Assistant professor of economics

"Being a lawyer seemed a natural step for me at the time, but I realized after seven years that it wasn't my gig," Steve explains with a smile.

Rita Tejada

Associate professor of Spanish

The big events in Rita's life tend to come in pairs. For starters, her daughters are a year apart.

Rick Torgerson

President

Rick might joke about having imperfect hearing, but it's clear there's one sound he never misses--opportunity knocking.

Mona Nelson '75

Professor of accounting and management

Don't be deceived by her title--Mona is as quick with words as with numbers.

Lea Pickard

Assistant professor of anthropology and women's studies

The first thing you'll notice about Lea Pickard is that she doesn't affect the airs you might expect, given her status as an enterprising young professor and her aristocratic-looking name.

Juan Tony Guzman '90

Associate professor of music and education

To Tony (as he prefers to be called), music isn't as much a profession as a way of life.

Jon Jensen '89

Associate professor of philosophy and environmental studies

Director of environmental studies

In the four years since Jon arrived back at Luther, campuswide awareness of environmental issues has grown rather organically--no pun intended.

Jodi Enos-Berlage

Associate professor of biology

Jodi's dealings in biology range from microbial biofilms (the layer formed when bacteria attach to and grow on surfaces) to agriculture (she and her husband operate a small farm).

Jessica Paul

Associate professor of music

In her work as a professional voice coach and accompanist, Jessica illuminates the relationship between soloist and supporting instrumentalists.

Jeff Wilkerson

Associate professor of physics

Jeff counts almost everything. He even keeps track of the number of trick-or-treaters who visit his house--in 15-minute intervals so he can build a histogram.

Jayme Nelson '87

Associate professor of nursing

Soft-spoken and unassuming, Jayme doesn't at first appear the kind of person who is everywhere at once.

Jane Hawley '87

Associate professor of dance

Mention "Jane" in conversation virtually anywhere on Luther's campus, and you're likely to see a glimmer of recognition.

Dave Mitchell

Head wrestling coach and instructor in mathematics

You could say that Dave likes to keep things in the family--the Luther family, that is.

Brad Chamberlain

Associate professor of chemistry

By most counts, Brad is the quintessential science geek. He has molecule models on his desk.

Brad Miller '86

Assistant professor of computer science

Six years ago, Brad was a frenzied entrepreneurial executive who traveled nationally and internationally two or three days a week and lived via his laptop. "I was that guy clutching his cell phone in airports, conducting two meetings at once," he explains.

Bill Craft

Professor of English, dean of the college, and vice president for academic affairs

When Bill came to Luther, shifting from a professor to an academic administrator, he felt a little like a student again.

Kevin Ellingson

Locksmith and preventive maintenance mechanic

A biodiesel distiller: One of Kevin's job responsibilities includes converting the cafeteria's waste fryer oil into biodiesel fuel so it can be used in Luther's lawn and maintenance vehicles.

Diane Narum

Production manager, Luther's dining services

Local-food favorites: Diane believes that buying local foods makes it easier to offer more made-from-scratch cooking.