Distinguished Professor of English Emerita Roberta Seelinger Trites and Emeritus Professor of Mathematics George F. Seelinger have committed their time, talent, and treasure to Illinois State University. Both Dr. Trites and Dr. Seelinger have had an immense impact on university students, faculty, and staff.
Trites, who joined the Department of English in 1991, is a literary critic of children’s and adolescent literature. The International Institute of Children’s Literature, Osaka, awarded her the Brothers Grimm Award in 2017, and the Children’s Literature Association honored her in 2023 with its award for Outstanding Achievement in Children’s Literature. Trites was associate dean and acting dean of the College of Arts and Sciences (1998-2004), interim chair of the Department of Management and Quantitative Methods in the College of Business (2017-21), and interim associate vice president for Academic Administration (2021-22). “Serving Illinois State University has always been an honor,” she said.
From 2002-22, Seelinger served as chair of the Department of Mathematics, where he supported and advanced students, staff, and faculty working in mathematical sciences. In addition to conducting research in abstract algebra, he helped establish new programs in undergraduate statistics, data science, and graduate biomathematics. He also helped create a new undergraduate research program in mathematical sciences and developed several international partnerships. He worked with partners across the state to improve standards for transferring math credits among public colleges, so he has made significant contributions to mathematical sciences throughout the state and across the globe.
In 2023, Trites and Seelinger enhanced their investment in the College of Arts and Sciences through the creation of an endowment. The couple’s generosity was recognized with the naming of the Seelinger/Trites Conference Room in room 140 of Stevenson Hall, where both leaders spent countless hours during their careers. Funds from the endowment will sustain the space, while remaining resources will support travel for graduate students in the Department of English’s children’s literature program and will also be used to support math majors engaged in undergraduate research.
The couple’s gift is a fitting continuation of their legacies, and one Seelinger hopes will inspire future donors. “Roberta and I have dedicated our careers to the College of Arts and Sciences,” Seelinger said to friends and colleagues who gathered for the November 9, 2023, dedication of the Seelinger/Trites Conference Room. “We hope to inspire others to also give to their department, college, and the University.”
