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[adjunctivite]

     I'd like to get some information if anyone has it on Luther College, Decorah, IA.  I'm interested in the ethos of the school.  I'm applying for a position in religion there, and I'd like to know if they take seriously their religious heritage or if its exactly that, a heritage that has no significance for the present.  How should I approach the school in a cover letter in terms of what is most important to them?  Faith?  Teaching?  Research/  Desire to mentor students?  What's important to the school that needs to be in my cover letter if I can address it honestly?  Thanks.

[lulu_16]

As an undergrad I attended a school in the same system as Luther (ELCA), and I can say that while Lutheranism was a clear underpinning of the educational mission of the school, it did not necessarily play an obvious role in classroom life (especially in my very liberal humanities dept.).  The campus community was generally politically liberal, and tolerance (of all denominations and faiths) was certainly a campus priority.  As liberal and as a practicing Lutheran I felt the campus captured the best of both worlds.  Now, as an instructor, I would love to someday teach in the ELCA college/university system.

[trabb]

It might help to have a look at some other ELCA colleges; here's a link:  http://www.elca.org/colleges/find/

I interviewed last year with one of the schools listed there, and it's one that self-identified as being one of the more conservative of the bunch.  At every step of the way, I was asked how I would support the goals of Lutheran education.  I was also assured that doing so did not require me to be Lutheran or even Christian. 

In a cover letter, I would acknowledge the school's Christian heritage while deemphasizing it, if that makes any sense.  In other words, I wouldn't give an entire paragraph to describing your vision for the integration of faith and learning; something like "I look forward to working at a college that acknowledges the importance of faith in the education of the whole person" would probably suffice.  Other than that, I'd write the letter as you would for any other small liberal arts college.

Others may say different.

[justfornow]

I grew up in the area and would say that culturally, Lutheranism and Scandanavian heritage are a large presence: think Garrison Keillor, including his ornery liberalism, love of choral music, and the church ladies' cooking!

You don't ask, but I'll mention anyway, that Northeast Iowa is beautiful but remote and undeveloped even for a rural state.  On paper, Decorah isn't far from Iowa City or Minneapolis, but the roads are old and slowgoing.

[belleoftheball]

Well, it can't be too religious. My best friend attended Luther, and the school was in a constant struggle with the students to shut-down the end-of-the-year naked soccer match that the seniors held. Yup. Naked soccer. (Hurts me just to think about it.)

I went to a similar SLAC, not too far away, and I got the impression that Luther was religious in the way that my school was religious--in history only. But it may have changed. (Or I may have a distorted view of it.)

It is in a beautiful part of Iowa, and seems pretty dedicated to undergraduate learning.

[baseballs]

The choral singing at Luther is indeed beautiful.  From my understanding , the music program is very good. I've never heard anyone say that they are particularly religious on a day-to-day basis, regardless of what the mission may say.

[schoolmarm]

The music department is great!  The Christmas concert is second only to St. Olaf.

I have several cousins who went to Luther.  I know that the organist doesn't play a postlude on Sunday because when they open all the doors, the students whoosh out to the lunch room in under a minute!  It is religious, but ELCA Lutherans are typically tolerant and accepting of people of various religions, etc.

People hug each other there.  A lot!  There is special pride in the red-stoned Luther class ring.

Many of the folks in Decorah are Norwegian.  (Don't eat the Lutefisk unless you want to clear out your sinuses!)  Decorah is a small town in a hilly part of Iowa.  Public schools are typically good in Iowa.

Nearest airport?  Minneapolis?  Cedar Rapids?  A little tricky to get to an interstate as well.

Good luck in your search!

[schoolmarm]

There was a thread earlier this year about ELCA colleges.  I posted a really long reply as did several others.

Here's a link!

http://chronicle.com/forums/index.php/topic,29261.0.html

[espagnole]

I used to teach about an hour from Luther and visited there a few times. If you like rural America you will love it. If not, it's probably not for you. And as others have said, it's tough to get to bigger cities from there because Decorah is so isolated.