Cocurricular Programs

A great number of students contribute their time and effort to the many organizations and activities on campus. These are an integral part of the college experience, and all students are encouraged to participate.

Participation Requirement: Students participating in college-sponsored activities must be enrolled for at least 12 semester credits. Students who do not meet this minimum may appeal to the Curriculum Committee.

Athletic Programs
The men’s and women’s athletic teams participate in intercollegiate athletics through the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) and hold membership in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division III. Concordia women athletes compete in 11 sports: volleyball, soccer, golf, cross country, basketball, indoor and outdoor track and field, fastpitch softball, tennis, swimming and diving, and hockey. Concordia offers intercollegiate competition in 11 men’s sports: football, soccer, baseball, tennis, indoor and outdoor track and field, golf, wrestling, basketball, hockey, and cross country. Athletics participation rates and staffing information are available from the office of the athletic director. Intercollegiate athletics are an integral part of the educational experience at Concordia.

The Athletics program embraces the mission of the college and shares the responsibility to help students achieve their full potential as individuals. The philosophy of athletics at Concordia is to enable student-athletes to participate at the best of their ability for the love of the sport. As a member of NCAA Division III, Concordia views athletics as sport unencumbered by financial incentives and “win-at-all-cost” attitudes. We place the highest priority on the overall quality of the educational experience and, in doing so, we seek to strengthen the integration of objectives and programs in athletics with the academic and developmental objectives of the college. NCAA Division III member institutions place special importance on the impact of athletics on the participants rather than on spectators, and place greater emphasis on the students, alumni and friends of the college than on the entertainment needs of the general public. The athletics office believes in participation and encourages large squads and junior varsity programs, when facilities permit.

The Athletics program is controlled, financed and staffed through the same general procedures as other departments on campus. The program provides essential leadership, facilities and equipment. The college employs coaches who believe in the benefits of the game for the participants, and whose interest is in the development of student-athletes as well-rounded members of the college community. Our main concern is the academic progress of our athletes, a nurturing of their values and the clear understanding that they receive the same treatment as other students.

The college encourages participation by offering a variety of varsity, club and intramural sports, and gives equal emphasis to men’s and women’s sports. Because the physical education and health department and the Athletics program believe everyone who wants to compete in sports should be given the opportunity to do so, intramural sports are a high priority in the programs available. Every student at Concordia is eligible and encouraged to participate in intramurals. Flag football, volleyball and basketball consistently draw the largest number of participants, but competition is also plentiful in other sports.

There are also approximately 10 other student organizations offering recreational opportunities both indoors and outdoors, including Cheer Team, Dance Team, Tae Kwon Do, Ultimate Frisbee, men’s and women’s rugby and lacrosse.

Concordia continues to increase its sports and recreational facilities as programs in those areas expand. The Olson Forum, Memorial Auditorium and swimming pool contain equipment and space for many indoor sports. In 2002, a balcony was added to the Olson Forum to provide students with a selection of fitness and cardiovascular exercise equipment, each equipped with individual television monitors. Use of this state-of-the-art fitness center is free to all students. The campus also has six outdoor tennis courts, a football stadium, several intramural and recreational fields, an outdoor all-weather track and a soccer complex.

Concordia College has insurance coverage through Gallagher Koster Insurance Agency to cover athletic-related injuries that result in medical expenses. This coverage is secondary coverage for intercollegiate athletes and club sports participants, not for intramurals. The Risk Management Office, located in Lorentzsen Hall Room 230, handles these claims.

Departmental Academic Organizations
Many of the academic departments have voluntary organizations in their particular disciplines. These vary in nature and are often national in affiliation. They usually mix social activities with a professional or vocational emphasis. These departments and organizations include:
Art — Art Club
Biology — Health Professions Interest Club
Business, Offutt School of — Concordia People of Accounting, Marketing Club, Phi Beta Lambda, Student Healthcare Management Association, Student Human Resource Association
Chemistry — Chem Club (American Chemical Society Student Affiliate Chapter)
Chinese — Chinese Club
Communication Studies and Theatre Art — Public Relations Club
Computer Science
Education — Education Club
English — English Club
Environmental Studies — Student Environmental Alliance (SEA)
French and Russian Studies — French Club, Russian Cultural Club
German — German Club
Mathematics — Pi Mu Epsilon
Music — American Choral Directors Association Student Affiliate Chapter, American String Teachers Association Student Affiliate Chapter, Music Educators National Conference Student Affiliate Chapter
Neuroscience — Neuroscience Society
Norwegian and Scandinavian Studies — Scandinavian Association
Nursing — Student Nursing Association
Nutrition and Dietetics — Student Dietetic Association
Physics — Society of Physics
Pre-Pharmacy – Pre-Pharmacy Club
Psychology — Psychology Club
Religion — Mathetai
Social Work — Student Association of Social Workers
Spanish and Hispanic Studies — Círculo Hispano, Spanish Theater Club
Contact the appropriate department chair for detailed information about membership and organization activities.

Forensics
Concordia has the longest-running program in the Upper Midwest. As with theatre, no experience is required to participate, either as a member of the debate squad or as an individual speech competitor. Concordia students successfully compete in national tournaments in both debate and individual speech events, and our Forensics teams are regularly ranked at the national level. The Forensics program is housed in the communication studies and theatre art department. Information can be obtained from Dr. Fred Sternhagen, director of Forensics.

Honor Societies
Alpha Society is Concordia’s major scholastic honor society. All seniors and second-semester juniors who have a GPA of 3.7 or better are members. These students are recognized by being listed in the Commencement program.

Omicron Delta Kappa is a national leadership honor society recognizing outstanding juniors and seniors for major achievements and leadership roles in campus activities. ODK recognizes and encourages achievement in scholarship, athletics, student government, social and religious affairs, publications, speech, music, drama and the other arts. Contact Dr. Jonathan Steinwand in the English department for information on Omicron Delta Kappa.

In addition, some departments have honor societies that recognize students who have maintained a specified GPA or met other criteria for membership. These include:
• Biology — Tri-Beta
• Business, Offutt School of — Omicron Delta Epsilon (economics)
• Classical Studies — Eta Sigma Phi
• Communication Studies and Theatre Art — Alpha Psi Omega (theatre),
Lambda Pi Eta (communication), Pi Kappa Delta (speech and debate)
• English — Sigma Tau Delta
• German — Delta Phi Alpha/Kappa Tau
• History — Phi Alpha Theta
• Neuroscience – Nu Rho Psi
• Nursing – Sigma Theta Tau
• Psychology — Psi Chi
• Russian Studies — National Slavic Honor Society
• Social Work — Phi Alpha/Omicron Lambda
• Spanish — Sigma Delta Pi

Contact the departments listed for detailed information about membership and society activities.

LeadNow™
LeadNow™ is a comprehensive leadership development program for all students. The purpose of LeadNow™ is to provide opportunities for students to discover their potential as leaders and their capacity to influence the affairs of the world.

Students are able to earn three progressive leadership certifications within the LeadNow™ program: Personal Perspectives, Group Perspectives, and Global Perspectives. Specific requirements to attain each certification vary, but all include a combination of 90-minute leadership sessions, service experiences and reflection. After completing all requirements for a certification, the experience culminates in a one-on-one meeting with an assigned faculty leader-mentor. In this meeting, students discuss and reflect on what they have learned through their participation in LeadNow™.

LeadNow™ is designed to integrate all of a student’s campus experiences: academic, leadership, service and co-curricular and, therefore, easily complements involvement both inside and outside the classroom.

The LeadNow™ program is based on the mission of the college, the goals for liberal learning, and several theoretical models of leadership development. In addition, the program outlines five core values:
• Every person has a unique capacity for leadership
• Leadership is both positional and non-positional
• Leadership is collaborative and service-oriented
• Leaders effect change and work for the common good
• Leadership requires intercultural competence

LeadNow™ is coordinated through the office of Student Leadership and Service, located on the second floor of the Knutson Campus Center. For more information, contact Jess Almlie, assistant director of student leadership, at almlie@cord.edu or (218) 299-3640, or visit the program website at www.cord.edu/leadnow.

Mock Trial
Concordia College is a participant in the American Mock Trial Association, which sponsors mock trial competitions across the United States. Each year, participating colleges and universities receive either a criminal or a civil case. Students who participate play the role of an attorney and/or a witness, typically on both sides of the case. Teams must argue both sides of the case at invitational, regional and national competitions. Attorneys must master the federal rules of evidence, develop a theory of the case and demonstrate the ability to direct and cross examine witnesses, as well as offering opening and closing statements. Witnesses must develop convincing characterizations of their selected witness roles, work with friendly attorneys on direct examination and withstand the questioning of hostile attorneys on cross examination. Students need not be pre-law students nor have previous mock trial experience to participate. Contact Dr. Max Richardson of the political science department for further information.

Student Media
The Concordian is the official weekly student newspaper. Employing nearly 30 students on its production, news and editorial staff, The Concordian covers campus issues and events, highlights regional and national news, and invites students to submit articles for publication.

Two anthologies of work by students are published annually, with sponsorship from the English department. AfterWork literary magazine is composed of creative writing, ranging from short stories to poetry, and visual art, including drawings and photography. New Voices is a collection of nonfiction writing that is academic in nature. The contents of both collections are selected for publication from submitted material by an editorial board.

Concordia’s Beat is a student-produced CD of Concordia College. The purpose of this organization is to provide Concordia students with the opportunity to produce a professional-level CD that highlights diverse and original musical talent found on campus. Students involved with this project experience the process of recording, designing, promoting and producing an original product, and work to further promote community on campus through the medium of music.

Concordia On-Air is a student-run television program sponsored by the communication studies and theatre art department. The program is produced weekly in the television studio and is aired on the campus cable system and off campus on Moorhead, Fargo and West Fargo local cable stations. Started as a class project in 1983, what was originally Concordia Magazine has grown into a large production with a staff of 20 to 30 students who function as reporters, camera operators, technicians, on-air talent and management. Students need no prior experience to join and all positions are voluntary. The program focuses on campus news, activities and athletics.

KORD, Concordia’s student-run radio station, is a cocurricular activity of the communication studies and theatre art department. Broadcast during the academic year, KORD’s informative and entertaining programs can be heard in all the residence halls. The signal is transmitted by carrier current on 730 AM, by the campus cable TV system (Channel 12) and on the Internet.

Theatre
The Concordia Theatre produces up to seven plays a year, four on the Frances Frazier Comstock Theatre Main Stage and three in the Lab Theatre. Main Stage shows range from annual musicals such as “Guys and Dolls” and “Fiddler on the Roof” to dramas by Ibsen and comedies by Shakespeare. Advanced students with a vocational interest in theatre have the opportunity to write or adapt, produce and direct plays as part of the Lab Theatre program. All students, regardless of academic major or amount of experience in the theatre, are invited to contribute and develop their talents as actors, singers and dancers; set, light and costume designers; and house, business and publicity managers.

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