Area
Education Luther College
Luther College has appointed Decorah native and longtime faculty member Brian Solberg to the inaugural Hamlet Peterson Distinguished Professorship in Exercise Science. Two other faculty members were also reappointed to endowed chairs for 2026–2029.
Education Luther College
Broadway’s Next Hit Musical will bring an improvised awards show to Luther College’s Center for Faith and Life Main Hall at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 12, 2026. Audience suggestions and votes will shape the performance, which is the opening event in the college’s 2026-27 Center Stage Series.
Education Luther College
South Winneshiek voters approved a PPEL measure, according to a Decorah News report. The supplied report does not include the vote date, tally, funding amount or additional details about the measure.
Education Luther College
Luther College has opened its academic year under a theme focused on belonging, according to a Decorah News report. The supplied material does not include details about the opening event, speakers, dates or planned activities.
Education Luther College
Broadway’s Next Hit Musical will perform its audience-driven “The Phony Awards” at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 12, in the Center for Faith and Life Main Hall at Luther College in Decorah.
Crime & Public Safety Luther College
Decorah News reports five recent arrests involving allegations of operating while intoxicated, stalking and probation violations. The available source material does not provide the names of those arrested, arrest dates, locations or case outcomes.
Education Luther College
Author and illustrator Nora Krug will deliver Luther College’s Opening Convocation address Sept. 3 in Decorah, with an event centered on her acclaimed visual memoir, “Belonging: A German Reckons with History and Home.”
Education Luther College
Longtime Luther College facilities leader Jay Uthoff has received the 2026 Spirit of Luther Award posthumously, recognizing more than four decades of service, campus construction work, emergency leadership and sustainability efforts.
Education Luther College
Luther College will announce the inaugural recipient of its Hamlet Peterson Distinguished Professorship in Exercise Science during Opening Convocation at 9:40 a.m. Thursday, Sept. 3, in the Center for Faith and Life Main Hall. The professorship honors longtime Luther coach and educator Hamlet E. Peterson and is funded by an estate gift from Jack F. Hustad and Regent Emerita Helen Peterson Hustad.
Culture Luther College
Adults with special needs are invited to a free G2G Summer Celebration on Aug. 27 at Whalen Cabin near Phelps Park, with registration required by Aug. 24.
Education Luther College
New York Times bestselling author David Epstein will speak at Luther College in Decorah at 7 p.m. Sept. 24, 2026, about why broad-based education can prepare graduates for complex and rapidly changing careers.
Education Luther College
Vesterheim will welcome Luther College families to its Decorah campus on September 19, 2026, with free admission for Luther students, faculty, staff and museum members, plus two guided tours.
Education Luther College
Luther College alum Andrew Ellingsen has been appointed director of the Richard L. and Judith A. Torgerson Center for Nordic Studies. Ellingsen brings more than five years of leadership at Vesterheim, nearly two decades of elementary music teaching and longstanding ties to Decorah’s Norwegian-American heritage community.
Education Luther College
Luther College visual communication professor Aaron Lurth has published “Small Luxuries: Film Cameras,” a 128-page book exploring camera technology, historic brands, famous models and the cultural history of photography.
Sport Luther College
WinnMed says Megan Slattery, D.O., will join its medical team at the end of August 2026, providing family medicine, obstetric and hospitalist care for patients in the Decorah area.
Education Luther College
Luther College’s spring 2026 graduating class included three students from Decorah, with Andrew Bradley Chamberlain earning cum laude honors, Elizabeth Clement graduating cum laude and Dylan Joseph Muhlbauer receiving magna cum laude recognition.
Education Luther College
Luther College has named Rose Baldwin its associate director of programming and outreach. She began work on campus July 27 and will manage the Center for Faith and Life box office and event operations as the college prepares for upcoming performances, Homecoming and Family Weekend.
Traffic & Construction Luther College
A section of the Pulpit Rock trail is temporarily closed for repairs, while Decorah Parks and Recreation lists summer activities including a movie in the park, a special-needs celebration, Trail Night and Nordic Fest’s Gnomes in the Park scavenger hunt.
Education Luther College
Luther College has named Diego Rodriguez its new director of student activities and leadership. Rodriguez brings more than 20 years of experience from higher education, NASA and student affairs, including recent work supporting more than 40 clubs and student organizations at the University of Iowa.
Education Luther College
Sophia Chadima, a 2026 Luther College graduate from Swisher, will serve as an English teaching assistant in the Czech Republic during the 2026-27 academic year after receiving a Fulbright award.
Education Luther College
Five Luther College students, including students from Harpers Ferry and Elma, Iowa, have each received a $1,000 Karen Julesberg Scholarship for the 2026-27 academic year. The awards support students in Luther’s TRIO Student Support Services program, which serves 165 students annually.
