Lake Superior College News Releases

(Duluth, Minn.)  — J.Clark Laundergan has been appointed coordinator of the Tri-Campus Coalition on Student Drinking.  Laundergan will be responsible for organizing, guiding, and administering the work of the coalition toward its objective of promoting the responsible use of alcohol by students at three participating institutions:  the College of St. Scholastica, the University of Minnesota Duluth (UMD), and Lake Superior College.  As coordinator, Laundergan will serve as a liaison with the community, interacting with organized citizen groups, law enforcement, and other government agencies.

Laundergan holds a Ph.D. in sociology from Iowa State University, a master’s degree in sociology from Iowa State University and a bachelor’s degree in sociology from the University of Minnesota Duluth.
Laundergan taught at the University of Minnesota Duluth from 1966– 2008, most recently as a professor of sociology in the Sociology-Anthropology Department.

He also served as head of UMD’s Sociology-Anthropology Department from 1971–1976 and also directed UMD’s Center for Addiction Studies from 1991–2007.  He has published numerous studies on alcohol consumption in college populations.

LSC is a member of the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system. With more than 4,800 students enrolled this spring semester, LSC is northeastern Minnesota’s largest two-year college. LSC provides a wide range of programs and services, including liberal arts and science courses for transfer, technical programs intended to provide occupational skills, continuing education, and customized training for business and industry. LSC is also a leader in Internet-delivered courses and programs in Minnesota.

Lake Superior College of Duluth, Minnesota has announced the appointment of Dr. Mark Magnuson as vice president of academic affairs.  Magnuson will lead the college’s academic unit and supervise all instructional activities.

“I am thrilled to be joining such an excellent faculty, staff and college with the wonderful reputation of LSC,” Magnuson stated. “As LSC continues to move forward to serve the community’s educational and training needs, I am looking forward to working with the leadership team under Dr. Nelson and with everyone else at the college to foster student success.”

Prior to joining LSC, Magnuson served as division dean of liberal arts/general education at Ivy Tech Community College – Central Indiana in Indianapolis.  He also served as developmental education division dean and executive director of community campuses for Ivy Tech.  He has also held teaching assignments at the University of North Dakota and Kelsey Community College in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.

“Dr. Magnuson has a passion for learning and a commitment to students,” Dr. Kathleen Nelson, LSC’s president explained. “He will bring energy, enthusiasm and creativity to his new assignment.”

Dr. Magnuson earned a Ph.D. in higher education leadership from the University of North Dakota. He also holds a master of education degree in K-12 educational administration, a bachelor of education degree in secondary education, a bachelor of arts degree in English and a bachelor of arts degree in history, all from the University of Saskatchewan.

Lake Superior College is a member of the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system. With more than 4,500 students enrolled this spring semester, LSC is northeastern Minnesota’s largest two-year college. LSC provides a wide range of programs and services, including liberal arts and science courses for transfer, technical programs intended to provide occupational skills, continuing education, and customized training for business and industry. LSC is also a leader in Internet-delivered courses and programs in Minnesota.

Outstanding Leadership and Innovation Recognized at FUSION 2008 Conference

(Duluth, Minn.) — Desire2Learn Incorporated, a leading provider of eLearning solutions, recently announced the winners of its 2008 Desire2EXCEL Award program. Three awards, in the categories of Teaching and Learning, Program and Community Service, were handed out at the FUSION Desire2EXCEL conference in Memphis, Tennessee.

In the Program category, Barry Dahl, vice president of technology and the e-campus at Lake Superior College, received the award for his work with the Online Student Mentor program, a first of its kind in higher education. The program has successfully employed 120 online student employees over its five years of operation. A sense of community within the LSC Virtual Campus has been fostered by providing online students with a peer connection. The course-specific mentor has proven to be a greater resource for a student than a mentor/peer/advisor who is more of a generalist. The mentoring experience provides the mentor with a solid means of giving back to the college as well as providing employment opportunities for off-campus students.

“I’m excited and happy to receive this award for Lake Superior College,” Dahl explains. “But this award really belongs to the many online students and faculty who participated in the program and helped us develop an innovative approach to eLearning.”

Dahl and Lake Superior College previously won a 2007 Desire2EXCEL Award for Community Service in recognition of partnerships with Grandma’s Marathon and the American Birkebeiner Nordic Ski Marathon.

“We were overwhelmed with the creativity, innovation and caliber of the award submissions from this year’s nominees,” said John Baker, president and CEO, Desire2Learn. “The Desire2EXCEL Awards Committee conducted extensive reviews before selecting the winners from the pool of nominees who have made enormous contributions to their organizations, to the Desire2Learn User Community and to eLearning as a whole.”

The awards were handed out in Memphis, Tennessee, where 600 members of the global eLearning community convened at FUSION 2008, the Desire2Learn annual Users’ Conference focused on best practices and innovative breakthroughs in eLearning.

For more information about the conference and its award program, visit www.Desire2Learn.com/Fusion.

LSC is a member of the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system. With more than 4,800 students enrolled this spring semester, LSC is northeastern Minnesota’s largest two-year college. LSC provides a wide range of programs and services, including liberal arts and science courses for transfer, technical programs intended to provide occupational skills, continuing education, and customized training for business and industry. LSC is also a leader in Internet-delivered courses and programs in Minnesota.

(Duluth, Minn.) – Lake Superior College has appointed Matt Ferrari director of the Center for Advanced Aviation. Ferrari will supervise Lake Superior College’s aviation programs, including the professional pilot program and the aviation maintenance technician program, which is tentatively scheduled to begin accepting students for fall semester 2009, pending Federal Aviation Administration approval. Ferrari will also oversee the development of LSC’s proposed Center for Advanced Aviation.

“We are very excited to have Matt join Lake Superior College,” Tom Tonkin, dean of business and industry, explains. “He brings the knowledge, skills and abilities needed to make our aviation efforts a great success.”

Ferrari has more than eighteen years of experience in the aviation industry. He served in the U.S. Air Force, owned an aviation company and has been a captain, instructor pilot, and check airman for a commercial airline. He has more than 8,000 hours of documented flight time and is a certified aircraft maintenance technician.

LSC is a member of the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system. With more than 4,800 students enrolled this spring semester, LSC is northeastern Minnesota’s largest two-year college. LSC provides a wide range of programs and services, including liberal arts and science courses for transfer, technical programs intended to provide occupational skills, continuing education, and customized training for business and industry. LSC is also a leader in Internet-delivered courses and programs in Minnesota.

(Duluth, Minn.) — Lake Superior College has named Tom Tonkin interim dean of business and industry. He will administer and lead the college’s Business and Industry Division, supervising more than 70 full- and part-time faculty members and staff in 22 programs.

Tonkin served as dean of construction, manufacturing and transportation and taught surveying and civil technology at Hennepin Technical College in the Twin Cities. He has worked in the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system since 1975. Prior to that, he taught high school industrial technology courses for Minneapolis Public Schools.

Tonkin is a graduate of the University of Minnesota Duluth. He is originally from Duluth where he now lives. He retired in 2005 and moved back home to Duluth after living and working in the Twin Cities for 38 years.

LSC is a member of the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system. With more than 4,800 students enrolled this spring semester, LSC is northeastern Minnesota’s largest two-year college. LSC provides a wide range of programs and services, including liberal arts and science courses for transfer, technical programs intended to provide occupational skills, continuing education, and customized training for business and industry. LSC is also a leader in Internet-delivered courses and programs in Minnesota.

(Duluth, Minn.) — Lake Superior College has named Hanna Erpestad Dean of Liberal Arts and Sciences. She will administer and lead the college’s Liberal Arts and Science Division, supervising more than 100 full and part-time faculty members.

Erpestad served as interim dean at Lake Superior College during a national search to fill the position. Prior to that, Erpestad was an English instructor at LSC, and also served as Faculty Chair of the Liberal Arts and Science Division. She has been a member of the LSC faculty since 1999 and has received several awards for teaching, including Minnesota State Colleges and Universities Faculty Award of Excellence (2006) and LSC’s Award for Innovative Excellence in Teaching, Learning, and Technology (2007).

Erpestad holds an associate in arts degree from Lake Superior College and bachelor and master degrees in English from the University of Minnesota Duluth. She has also completed graduate courses in humanities and educational leadership at Hamline and Bemidji State University respectively, and is a 2006 graduate of the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities’ Luoma Leadership Academy.

LSC is a member of the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system. With more than 4,300 students enrolled this fall semester, LSC is Northeastern Minnesota’s largest two-year college. LSC provides a wide range of programs and services, including liberal arts and science courses for transfer, technical programs intended to provide occupational skills, continuing education, and customized training for business and industry. LSC is also the leader in Internet-delivered courses and programs in Minnesota.

Roger Reinert has been appointed coordinator of the Tri-Campus Commission. Reinert will be responsible for organizing, guiding, and administering the work of the commission toward its initial objective of promoting the responsible use of alcohol by students of the three participating institutions: the College of St. Scholastica, the University of Minnesota Duluth, and Lake Superior College. As coordinator, Reinert will serve as a liaison with the community, interacting with organized citizen groups, law enforcement, and other government agencies.

Reinert holds a master’s of science in education from Mankato State University, and a bachelor of science and associate of science degrees from the University of Minnesota and Willmar Community College, respectively. Roger also teaches graduate and undergraduate courses as an adjunct political science instructor for the University of Minnesota Duluth and Lake Superior College. Reinert also serves as an at large Duluth city councilor and has been on the Duluth City Council since 2004.

The Tri-Campus Commission on Student Use of Alcohol was formed seven years ago by the member institutions. It has worked with community partners to address issues raised by student use of alcohol. Its member campuses develop preventative strategies and programming aimed at promoting responsible use of alcohol as well as controlling inappropriate and dangerous alcohol consumption by students enrolled at their institutions.

This is the first position ever jointly funded by Duluth’s three largest higher education campuses. These member institutions hope the Commission will also provide an ongoing venue to address other shared
student-community issues.

For more information about the Commission, contact Beth Adams, Commission Chair and Vice President of Student Services at Lake Superior College, b.adams@lsc.edu, (218) 733-5928; or Roger Reinert, Commission Coordinator, r.reinert@lsc.edu, (218) 733-2037.

(Duluth, Minn.) — Paul Damberg has been hired as the new executive director of the Lake Superior College Foundation. He will be responsible for developing and maintaining relationships with alumni and members of the community. He is also tasked with seeking and securing funding from existing supporters and new potential contributors to the Lake Superior College Foundation.

Damberg previously served as the director of development for KUMD-FM at the University of Minnesota Duluth for the last 16 years. During that time, he expanded underwriting support of programming from businesses seven-fold and also contributed to more than tripling the membership support of the station. He also managed marketing and public relations for KUMD.

Damberg is a graduate of Macalester College in St. Paul. He lives in Eveleth, Minnesota.

The Lake Superior College Foundation exists to facilitate active involvement in the development of Lake Superior College. Its mission is to support the educational, cultural, and service goals of Lake Superior College by acting as its designated friend and fund-raiser.

LSC is a member of the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system. With more than 4,100 students enrolled this fall semester, LSC is Northeastern Minnesota’s largest two-year college. LSC provides a wide range of programs and services, including liberal arts and science courses for transfer, technical programs intended to provide occupational skills, continuing education, and customized training for business and industry. LSC is also the leader in Internet-delivered courses and programs in Minnesota.

(Duluth, Minn.) — Lake Superior College has named Hanna Erpestad Interim Dean of Liberal Arts and Sciences. She will administer and lead the college’s Liberal Arts and Science Division, supervising more than 100 full and part-time faculty members. She will serve in that role as LSC conducts a national search to fill the position.

Erpestad, an English instructor at Lake Superior College, also served as Faculty Chair of the Liberal Arts and Science Division prior to her appointment. She has been a member of the LSC faculty since 1999 and has received several awards for teaching, including Minnesota State Colleges and Universities Faculty Award of Excellence (2006), and the Teaching Excellence Award (Runner-up) for Lake Superior College Online (2007).

Erpestad holds an associate in arts degree from Lake Superior College and bachelor and master degrees in English from the University of Minnesota, Duluth. She has also completed graduate courses in humanities and educational leadership at Hamline and Bemidji State University respectively, and is a 2006 graduate of the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities Luoma Leadership Academy.

Erpestad will be on a leave of absence from her teaching duties while serving in the interim position.

LSC is a member of the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system. With more than 4,000 students enrolled this fall semester, LSC is Northeastern Minnesota’s largest two-year college. LSC provides a wide range of programs and services, including liberal arts and science courses for transfer, technical programs intended to provide occupational skills, continuing education, and customized training for business and industry. LSC is also the leader in Internet-delivered courses and programs in Minnesota

(Duluth, Minn.) — Deb Johnson has been hired as the foundation director for Lake Superior College. She will be responsible for managing all the Foundation activities, including fundraising, scholarship endowments and foundation special event planning.

Johnson comes to Lake Superior College from Schering Plough where she worked to promote cardiovascular drug therapy. Her fundraising background includes working with the Junior League of Duluth, the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwa, the South Mississippi Humane Society and the Lyn Meadows Discovery Center.

The LSC Foundation’s mission is to support the educational, cultural, and service goals of Lake Superior College by acting as its designated friend and fund-raiser.

The Lake Superior College Foundation is the center for creatively developing business, community, and college resources, supporting student needs, and promoting excellence in teaching and learning.

LSC is a member of the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system. With more than 3,800 students enrolled this fall semester, LSC is Northeastern Minnesota’s largest two-year college. LSC provides a wide range of programs and services, including liberal arts and science courses for transfer, technical programs intended to provide occupational skills, continuing education, and customized training for business and industry. LSC is also the leader in Internet-delivered courses and programs in Minnesota