Saturday in the Arts is a weekly feature covering a trend, subject, event or personality of local interest. It runs every Saturday morning on your site for the best entertainment and arts coverage in the area, QuadCities.com! When James Lambrecht came to teach music at Augustana College, Rock Island, nearly 34 years ago, Bergendoff Hall of Fine Arts was already in need of a makeover. The building (which dates from 1955 and includes the 1,500-seat Centennial Hall) is finally getting one. Bergendoff, at 3701 7th Ave., Rock Island – named for Conrad Bergendoff, the college’s fifth president —... Read More

The new 52,000-square-foot Peter J. Lindberg, M.D., Center for Health and Human Performance at Augustana College not only stands at Rock Island’s intersection of 7th Avenue and 35th Street, but stands at a key intersection of academics and athletics. The gleaming $18-million building was celebrated and opened Monday morning, on the first day of classes for the 2021-22 year at the private school. The Lindberg Center’s primary objective will be to prepare graduates for health-related careers requiring a major in kinesiology or public health. Kinesiology, derived from the Greek word for movement,... Read More

Today, it was announced that Steven Bahls will retire as president of Augustana College effective July 1, 2022, after a notable 19-year career leading the private Rock Island school. And, on the Iowa side of the Mississippi River, the head of the other major private university in the Quad-Cities, is also retiring. St. Ambrose University president Sister Joan Lescinski announced last summer she will retire effective August of 2021. A national search for the 14th president in the university’s 138-year history has been underway. Trustee alumni John Anderson ’87 and Renee Citera ’81 were appointed... Read More