Andrea Kathryn Talentino will be inaugurated as the ninth president of Augustana College in an outdoor ceremony beginning at 12:30 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 15, on the Quad.
Seating will be limited. Guests are welcome to bring lawn chairs and blankets. The inauguration will be livestreamed for those unable to attend.
Events
The college will celebrate the inauguration all weekend. Most events will take place on campus.;
An Inauguration Kickoff Student Picnic will be held from 4-6 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 9, on the Viking Plaza.
An art exhibition will be in Wallenberg Hall throughout the semester, including during inauguration weekend. Featured artists: Steven Banks, Gray Cunnar '21, Matt Fitzsimmons, Elizabeth Hord '19, Paul Lange, Dr. Margaret Morse, Esme O'Rourke '20, Vickie R. Phipps, Faith Pickslay '19, Megan Quinn, Henry Roderick '17, Rowen Schussheim-Anderson, Corrine Smith, Lee White and Peter Xiao.
Friday, Oct. 14
2-5 p.m. Academic sessions in Wallenberg Hall, Denkmann Memorial Building – session descriptions and presenters
2 p.m. Session 1: Rock Island Lead Service Line Equitable Inventory, Finance and Replacement Project
3 p.m. Session 2: Focusing on the Future: New Programs at Augustana College
4 p.m. Session 3: The Value(s) of Augustana as a Lutheran Liberal Arts College
6-8 p.m. Inauguration Grand Reception (invitation only), Quad Cities Waterfront Convention Center, Bettendorf
Saturday, Oct. 15
9 a.m.-noon Academic sessions in Wallenberg Hall, Denkmann Memorial Building – session descriptions and presenters
9 a.m. Session 1: Sweden as Our Classroom: Partnerships with Uppsala University and Beyond
10 a.m. Session 2: Music faculty recital
11 a.m. Session 3: Political Science and World Relief
12:15 p.m. Processional line-up for inauguration ceremony
12:30 p.m. Presidential Inauguration Ceremony on the Quad
2-4 p.m. Post-inauguration Street Party with food, music, children's activities — open to all on 7th Avenue from Centennial Hall to the new Lindberg Center (closed to traffic).
Bring $1 bills, as all items will cost $1. All dollars will be donated to the Rock Island High School Resource Room, as selected by President Andrea Talentino.
Contacts
• Delegates: Kai Swanson
• Reunions and Homecoming: Kelly Noack
• General inquiries: Keri Rursch
About President Talentino
President Andrea Kathryn Talentino succeeds Steven C. Bahls. Her selection was announced on campus Dec. 7, 2021.
Prior to joining Augustana, she was the provost of Nazareth College in Rochester, N.Y. She also served as the dean of the College of Liberal Arts at Norwich University in Vermont. She was an associate dean at Drew University in New Jersey, held a faculty position at Tulane University and a postdoctoral position at Princeton University.
Talentino earned a bachelor’s degree in political science at Yale University, then completed a master’s and doctorate in political science from UCLA. While serving as dean at Norwich, she earned an MBA with a concentration in organizational leadership.
Born in Binghamton, N.Y., Talentino grew up in nearby Cortland, N.Y. She is married to Thomas Tarnow, a public interest attorney, and they have two children: Lucien, 15, and Julia, 11.