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BEACOM RESEARCH FELLOWS Reflect On Learning Opportunities | BY KEELEY MEIER ‘20 Poppinga with Active Generations President & CEO Gerald Beninga and Director of Programming Nancy Wehrkamp
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generous donation from Lisa and Miles Beacom in February allowed Augustana students the chance to conduct impactful, hands-on research while better serving the Sioux Falls community. Charlotte (Berg) Poppinga ‘21, Annie Olson ‘22, Grace Bucklin ‘22 and Gedion Alemayehu ‘23 had the opportunity to be the first Beacom Research Fellows. The 2-year pilot program, which is part of the Augustana Research Institute, made it possible for organizations with limited resources to access research, analytics and field-specific expertise in operations and data management. Poppinga is a sociology major with an emphasis in family & community services and minoring in psychology and children & youth. The Rock Rapids, Iowa, native worked with Active Generations, researching aging trends as the non-profit organization prepares for the next generation of older adults. With a new location planned for the east side of Sioux Falls, the organization sought to understand the challenges they face and how the population is changing. Poppinga, along with the other fellows, first went through the process of obtaining approval from the Institutional Review Board (IRB), and then began her project in March. After interviewing Active Generations staff members, she drafted a “scope of work” document, performed a literature review, contacted neighboring senior centers and began her rough draft. After the draft was finalized, Poppinga presented her findings to the organization’s Board of Trustees. “Honestly, I am so glad that I got to experience this because undergraduates in social science fields don’t have many opportunities to actually do research,” Poppinga said. Gerald Beninga, president & CEO of Active Generations, said that Poppinga’s research was not only helpful for
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THE AUGUSTANA | FALL 2021
their organization, but requested by similar organizations throughout the country. “Charlotte’s research of our current programming and services, her contact with similar organizations in the United States and the analysis of the research was outstanding,” Beninga said. “Her detailed report helped support the design of our architectural process in evaluating a second location.” Before becoming a Beacom Fellow, Poppinga had planned to pursue a career in social work for child protective services. Working with Active Generations, however, led her in a new direction. “I definitely didn’t think that I wanted to go down a research path,” Poppinga said. “I really enjoyed putting all this work together and presenting it. And, now, I’m thinking of getting my master’s degree in gerontology. This may have totally changed my career path.” Olson had a similar career-altering experience with her research. The psychology major, who is minoring in biology and business administration, worked with the Sioux Falls Childcare Collaborative, a group formed to address funding and workforce issues for child care providers. “Being a part of this made me realize I really like research, but I also really like working in the community,” Olson said. “In the future, I’m excited to work with different people and help solve issues. Being a fellow made me sure that I want to pursue maternal and child health tracks in a public health program.” Olson, who worked with the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Sioux Empire, Sioux Empire United Way and Sioux Falls Thrive, looked at what issues exist with the child care system locally, how those issues could be solved and how to garner support from local philanthropic and business sectors in the community.
