Concordia College, 1891-current
Founding of Concordia College
Founded in October 1891 in Moorhead, Minnesota, at the former Episcopalian Bishop Whipple School that had closed in the 1880s. From the very start, the school was co-educational and offered classes in English literature, natural sciences, mathematics, piano, and organ. The founding president of Concordia College was Ingebrikt Grose. Grose attended primary school in Kenyon, Minnesota, and St. Olaf College where he was strongly influenced by Rev. Bernt J. Muus. For two years, Grose was the president of Concordia before he returned to St. Olaf.The Merger of Park Region and Bruflat Academy
Under Johan Aasgaard’s presidency from 1911-1925, the nearby Park Region College and Bruflat Academy merged into Concordia and helped build a new library that is now called Grose Hall. Park Region College was a high school and junior college sponsored by the Norwegian Lutheran Synod in 1892. With the merger of the Norwegian Lutheran Synod with two other Lutheran synods in 1916, changes were made to the education system to avoid duplication with the schools that were only 50 miles apart and in the same synod. Park Region Luther College agreed to discontinue its four-year college department. Aasgaard, who oversaw the merger with the Norwegian Lutheran Church of America, helped with the merger that formed the American Lutheran Church in 1960.Concordia Today
Today Concordia College is a private liberal arts college that is associated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. The mission of Concordia College “is to influence the affairs of the world by sending into society thoughtful and informed men and women dedicated to the Christian life.”Sources to explore in the NAHA Archives:
Johan A. Aasgaard Papers (P0005)
Oscar I. Hertsgaard Papers (P0154)
Concordia College papers (P0490)
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- Norwegian-American Education Kristina Warner