News Bureau

The Senate Committee on Honorary Degrees invites all departments and units to identify and nominate individuals who have made substantial contributions to their respective academic disciplines for an honorary degree award. Information regarding the nomination procedure and criteria for honorary degree award nominations can be found on the Senate website.

A U. of I. professor discusses drones and the implications of their use in terrorism and warfare.

The Secretariat organization at Illinois has named James McGraw, an administrative aide for the Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology, the 2018 Office Professional of the Year. The announcement was made at the organization’s April 18 luncheon. The Secretariat is a group comprised of U. of I. employees in certain civil service classifications. Rohit Bhargava, a professor of bioengineering, nominated McGraw for the annual award, which is celebrated during Administrative Professionals Week.

The University of Illinois broke ground for the Siebel Center for Design, a multidisciplinary hub of student-focused design thinking and learning. 

Joseph Frederick Green ... Elmer Osterbur

Animal sciences adjunct professor Vickie Jarrell has been elected to the Council on Accreditation for AAALAC International, a private, nonprofit organization that promotes responsible and humane treatment of animals in research.

Students will be able to self-report their standardized test scores in new freshmen applications to the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign for the fall 2019 semester, a change made to improve accessibility for students applying to college.

The public is invited to a May 1 event designed to continue the momentum from an April 10 group conversation on Native imagery. The gathering will take place from 3 to 6 p.m. in the South Lounge of the Illini Union, 1401 W. Green St., Urbana.

A pending U.S. Supreme Court case could lead to the most significant changes in labor relations since the Taft-Hartley Act of 1947, says Robert Bruno, a professor of labor and employment relations at Illinois.

A groundbreaking ceremony for the Siebel Center for Design will take place Tuesday, April 24 at 2 p.m. on a site located on Fourth Street between Gregory Drive and Peabody Drive, Champaign.

Richard Francis Earl Crang ... Donald Earl Hiner ... Thomas E. Jean ... Michael Earl Schlesinger ... Leonard “Lennie” Dean Seward Sr. ... Mary Sleator Temperley ... Cora L. Williams 

Esther Ngumbi, a postdoctoral researcher at Illinois, has been selected as the Society for Experimental Biology’s SEB+ section 2018 President’s Medallist. Candidates for the medal are selected on the basis of their outstanding contribution to one of the four fields of research represented by the SEB’s four sections (SEB+, plant, cell and animal biology).

Krannert Art Museum will feature the work of graduate students in art and design in its MFA Exhibition, opening April 21.

Robert Flider joins the staff of Chancellor Robert Jones effective April 23 as the director of community and government relations. The hiring is subject to approval by the University of Illinois Board of Trustees.

Speech and hearing science professor Laura DeThorne and doctoral students Henry Angulo and Veronica Vidal discuss how the neurodiversity movement recognizes autistic individuals’ unique experiences, skills and strengths, and resists the medicalization of autism.

Colder weather led to cooler than normal soil temperatures during the first half of April in Illinois, according to Jennie Atkins, Water and Atmospheric Resources Monitoring Program manager at the Illinois State Water Survey, part of the Prairie Research Institute at Illinois.

The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is one of 100 top universities taking part in the American Talent Initiative, with a shared goal of increasing the recruitment, enrollment and graduation of high-achieving lower- and moderate-income students.

Three University of Illinois students have been nationally recognized with Barry M. Goldwater scholarships, which support students with potential to contribute to the advancement of research in the natural sciences, mathematics or engineering.  A fourth Illinois student was selected for honorable mention

Jennifer Kee Anderson ... Joel M. Dexter ... William H. “Doc” Pirkle ... Pola Fotitch Triandis 

News media attending the April 17 Chancellor’s Critical Conversations event will be allowed to record content from the session.

News reporters interested in covering the sixth annual Day of Caring meal packaging event Saturday, April 14, are encouraged to go to Memorial Stadium between 10 a.m. and noon.

The University of Illinois is honoring 21 faculty and staff members and graduate teaching assistants for excellence in teaching, mentoring and advising.

On Thursday, April 19 at 4 p.m., Spurlock Museum of World Cultures at Illinois presents the talk “University of Illinois Wheelchair Athletics: A Tradition of Excellence.” Adam Bleakney, the head coachof men's and women's track, field and racing, and Stephanie Wheeler, the head coach of women’s basketball, will discuss the program’s roots, its legacy and its continuing leadership and success in wheelchair sports. 

The University of Illinois has received a three-year, $1 million grant from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation to continue funding for the Sloan University Center of Exemplary Mentoring at Illinois. The program, started in 2015, supports underrepresented minority doctoral students in science, technology, engineering and math fields and is one of nine UCEMs throughout the country.

Who was Robert Allerton, the creator of the English-style country house, grounds and sculpture park in central Illinois? Author Maureen Holtz will share insights about the life and estates of Allerton, called “Chicago’s Richest Bachelor” by the Chicago Tribune in 1906. The event is Thursday, May 17, at Spurlock Museum of World Cultures at Illinois, 600 S. Gregory St., Urbana. Allerton’s Monticello, Illinois, estate, now owned by the U. of I., is listed as one of the state’s Seven Wonders, and his Kauai, Hawaii, estate, Lawai-Kai, is now a botanical garden.

This year’s “Ebertfest” will close with a performance by Native American artist Pura Fe following its final film, “Rumble: The Indians Who Rocked the World.”

Clinton Frederick Fink ... John T. Scott ... Helen T. Smith ... Al Ricco John Stasi

Political reporting in the Trump era will be the subject of a panel discussion April 12 featuring the Washington Post’s Dan Balz and columnist Roger Simon.

Six employees are recipients of the 2018 Chancellor's Academic Professional Excellence awards, which recognize academic professionals for their work, personal and professional contributions.

University of Illinois professor of geography Jesse Ribot has been awarded a 2018 Guggenheim Foundation Fellowship.

R. Marie Griffith, the director of the John C. Danforth Center on Religion and Politics at Washington University in St. Louis, will talk about political and religious disagreements surrounding sex when she delivers the annual Majorie Hall Thulin Lecture in Religion at the University of Illinois.

Illini Emergency Medical Services, a program of the Illinois Fire Service Institute at Illinois, will be honored by the Congressional Fire Services Institute and Masimo, a medical device manufacturer, for excellence in emergency medical services. IEMS will receive the 2018 Excellence in Fire Service-based Emergency Medical Services Award at the 30th annual National Fire and Emergency Services Dinner on April 19 in Washington, D.C.

A new, automated system that allows flyers to pay for parking with credit cards has replaced the parking booth at the University of Illinois Willard Airport. Customers who wish to pay with cash may pay for parking inside the terminal.

The statewide average precipitation for February-March was 8.69 inches, which made it the fourth-wettest February-March on record, according to Illinois State Climatologist Jim Angel of the Illinois State Water Survey, part of the Prairie Research Institute at Illinois.

A new website celebrates the achievements women have made during the University of Illinois’ 150-year history.

The “Chancellor’s Critical Conversations” series of discussions will begin with a session on native imagery April 10, followed by an April 17 conversation on the topic of free speech.

Artists Basel Abbas and Ruanne Abou-Rahme want you to listen to, and not just look at, their work on view at Krannert Art Museum.

“Interstellar” in 70mm coming to 20th annual “Ebertfest,” as well as documentary on the role of American Indians in rock music.

A citizenship question on the 2020 census could add to existing undercounts, says an Illinois professor who serves on a Census Bureau advisory committee

Kathleen L. Hornaday ... Mary Katherine Newman ... Charles P. Slichter

“The Big Lebowski” is coming to the 20th annual “Ebertfest,” along with the man who inspired the movie’s central character, “The Dude,” as a guest.

Rachel Switzky has been selected as the inaugural director of the Siebel Center for Design at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, pending approval by the University of Illinois Board of Trustees. Switzky, who earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in industrial design at Illinois, will begin the new role June 18. 

The University of Illinois Wind Symphony and Chamber Singers will perform a new composition written to celebrate the U. of I.’s sesquicentennial in April concerts at New York City’s Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts and at Urbana’s Krannert Center for the Performing Arts.

Spurlock Museum of World Cultures invites visitors of all ages to the 12th annual WorldFest celebration on Sunday, April 8, from 1-4 p.m. Experience performing arts from around the world and hands-on crafts. Admission is free. The museum is located at 600 S. Gregory St., Urbana. Parking is free in lot D-22 in non-reserved spaces. 

“Quantum Voyages,” an interdisciplinary theater piece created by University of Illinois physics and theatre professors, gives a glimpse into the strange world of quantum physics.

Have you wondered how to preserve an old film of family memories or take proper care of grandma’s quilt? Bring your small items or come with images of larger pieces to the Preservation Emporium at Spurlock Museum of World Cultures at Illinois on Saturday, April 7, from 1-4 p.m., and have your preservation questions answered by experts.

Joanne Daugherty Hayes ... Mildred Alene Maddock Landreth ... Vivian Phyllis Larson ... Michele Henriette Miller ... Rosemary Rutledge ... Nancy Jean Stark 

Cooler, drier weather has led to declining soil temperatures and moisture levels, according to Jennie Atkins, Water and Atmospheric Resources Monitoring Program manager at the Illinois State Water Survey, part of the Prairie Research Institute at Illinois.

Etha Jereen Broom ... Constance “Connie” Ellen Brown ... Carole Couch ... Sue Jones ... Maurice “Doc” Mecum ... Emily Ann Stipes Watts 

Native Pop, an organization that brings American Indian pop art and art making to widespread venues and communities, will present a weekend of events March 30-31 titled “Native Pop Presents: Strong Women: Reclaiming Imagery.” The events feature MaryBeth Nelson (Cherokee), Serena Penaloza (Navajo and Maricopa) and Brent Learned (Cheyenne-Arapaho), who will bring their art, insight and skills to a variety of programs.