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Ursula Lindqvist, PhD, is Thorstensson, McKnight, Nordstrom Endowed Chair and Professor in Scandinavian Studies and a founder of the interdisciplinary minor in Comparative Literature. She is known for her research in Nordic global cinema and in postcolonial studies, commitment to undergraduate teaching and mentorship, and her leadership within the College and in her field. Before coming to Gustavus in 2013, Dr. Lindqvist directed the undergraduate program in Scandinavian Studies and founded the Scandinavian Languages Program at Harvard University. 

A passion for interdisciplinary teaching and research brought her to Gustavus, where she contributes to programs in Gender, Women, & Sexuality Studies; Peace, Justice, & Conflict Studies; African & African Diaspora Studies; Film & Media Studies; Latin American, Latinx & Caribbean Studies; and Comparative Literature. She leads a college-wide grant project, “Storytelling and Sensemaking at a Settler Institution: Walking a Shared Path with Dakota Neighbors,” funded by the Council of Independent Colleges/the Lilly Endowment.

Dr. Lindqvist’s research has focused on Nordic cinema, global literatures, and unsettling colonial narratives. Her first book, Roy Andersson’s Songs from the Second Floor: Contemplating the Art of Existence, was published in the University of Washington Press’ Nordic Film Classics series. She also co-edited two global anthologies: A Companion to Nordic Cinema (Wiley-Blackwell) with Mette Hjort, and New Dimensions of Diversity in Nordic Culture and Society (Cambridge Scholars) with Jenny Björklund. She has published articles in peer-reviewed journals including PMLA, Modernism/Modernity, and African and Black Diaspora. Her most influential work, “The Cultural Archive of the IKEA Store” (Space and Culture, 2009), has been taught at colleges worldwide. Her expertise as a Nordic film scholar has been sought by media outlets such as the New York Times and National Public Radio as well as film festivals and retrospectives. 

In recent years, Dr. Lindqvist’s research has pivoted toward settler history, culture, and decolonization. Her current monograph in progress, Unsettling the Settler Archive, includes a critical examination of the founding story of Gustavus Adolphus College on Dakota lands. She has involved Gustavus students in her research since it began in 2021 and sponsored a student advisee to present at a national scholarly conference in 2023. Dr. Lindqvist recently received external grants to support additional archival work at the Swenson Center for Swedish Immigration Research at Augustana College in Illinois and at the House of Emigrants in Växjö, Sweden, where she gave an invited public lecture in 2024. From this work she developed the college’s first approved Signature Experience (SigX) research course, SCA-290 Unsettling the Archive, to immerse students in archival research and to train them to carry out sensitive, intercultural interviews with Indigenous people, bringing their stories in dialogue with settler archives.

Dr. Lindqvist spent five years as news writer and investigative reporter in the Arabian Gulf, India, and Florida prior to earning her PhD. Her roots are in Finland’s Swedish-speaking minority, and she is bilingual in Swedish and English.
 

Learn how to use military education benefits at Gustavus, including eligibility, certification steps, and how military service connects to financial aid and tuition support.

Valerie Struthers Walker, PhD,  is a teacher educator with a passion for children’s literature, inquiry-based learning and working alongside beginning and experienced teachers. She began her career as an elementary and middle school teacher in two international schools: the American International School in Bamako, Mali and the American International School of Vienna, Austria. Dr. Walker joined the Gustavus Education Department in 2010 and currently teaches elementary language arts and social studies methods and supervises practicum and student teachers.

Dr. Walker is active in both local and national professional organizations such as the National Council for the Social Studies, the Minnesota Council of Social Studies, and the Minnesota Council of Economic Education. Highlights of her career include serving on the Notable Social Studies Trade Book Award committee, collaborating with K-8 teachers to publish social studies curricula, and leading professional development workshops on reading and teaching with diverse children’s literature.

In her spare time, Dr. Walker enjoys strengthening her French skills, hiking with her family, and binging the newest Netflix shows with her kids. 

We offer a variety of virtual events that allow you to explore all that Gustavus has to offer—within the comfort of your home.

Visit the Gustavus Arboretum, open year-round with no admission fee. Coordinate a tour, find a map, and see Arb policies.

Campus map and parking, information on visitor accessibility support, lactation rooms, foot-washing stations, gender-neutral bathrooms, and campus sculptures including those by Paul Granlund.

At Gustavus, every student who wishes to sing in a choir has the opportunity. No student is turned away, regardless of their skills or experience. Most students (85 percent) who sing in a choir at Gustavus are not music majors. Choir students represent a variety of academic majors and life interests but share a common passion for choral singing and making music together in community. Whether you are motivated by the desire to travel the world, express yourself through singing, or simply get involved in something outside your major, choir is for you. 

Gusties historically vote in high numbers. Learn more about where you can vote in Saint Peter for political elections.