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'This is what collaboration looks like'

By Kari VanDerVeen
December 7, 2012

Samantha Botz '14 shelves books in Rolvaag Library. St. Olaf and Carleton colleges have already merged their library collections into the Bridge, and materials are exchanged between campuses via a twice-daily courier. Photo by Star Tribune photographer Renee Jones Schneider '01

In a story titled "Colleges Partner to Fight Rising Costs," Star Tribune reporter Jenna Ross outlines how St. Olaf and Carleton are working together to seek savings.

"Playful fights over which college has the taller wind turbine have given way to talk about partnering on payroll," she writes.

The story notes that the two colleges have already merged their library collections, but are looking at a host of other partnerships ranging from merging business operations to collaborating on technology contracts.

"I think the big goal is enriching the student experience and finding a way to expand our programs without expanding the budget," St. Olaf Assistant Director of Instructional Technology Nancy Aarsvold tells the paper.

The colleges are using a $50,000 grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation to explore the opportunities and challenges related to expanded collaboration. St. Olaf President David R. Anderson '74 and Carleton President Steven Poskanzer have led the way, the Star Tribune notes.

"This is what collaboration looks like," Anderson is quoted as saying during a conference call in which he and Poskanzer finished each other's sentences.

Contact Kari VanDerVeen at 507-786-3970 or vanderve@stolaf.edu.