For the first time since the inception of the Alumni Association Awards, honorees will receive their awards at the Founders Day Convocation on Thursday, Feb. 15, at 1 p.m. in the Bone Student Center’s Braden Auditorium. The award recipients will then be introduced at a dinner that evening.
Outstanding Young Alumni
The Outstanding Young Alumni recipient is Todd Heisler ’94. Heisler graduated with a bachelor’s degree in art. He is a Pulitzer-Prize winning photojournalist, who recently joined the photography staff of the New York Times and was previously a staff photographer at the Rocky Mountain News. Heisler began his photojournalism career at a number of community newspapers in suburban Chicago, where he grew up. He was awarded the 2006 Pulitzer Prize for Feature Photography and was a member of the photo team that earned the 2003 Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News Photography. He resides in Brooklyn with his wife, Kelly (Campbell) Heisler ’93.
Heisler has also received top awards from World Press Photo, National Headliners, American Society of Newspaper Editors, National Press Photographers Association, Pictures of the Year International, Visa Pour L’Image (France), Lead Awards (Germany) and International Press Photo (China).
E. Burton Mercier Service Award
The E. Burton Mercier Service Award recipient is Linda Herman. Herman retired in the spring of 2005 with 33 years of service to the Illinois State University Athletic Department, finishing a career as a former head volleyball coach, senior athletic administrator and interim director of Athletics. During her time as an administrator, the Redbirds won 117 Missouri Valley Conference Championships and 16 All-Sports Awards. In 1972, Herman received her M.S. in physical education, followed by a Ed.D. in educational administration in 1983.
Herman was honored with the ATALANTA Award from Athletics Management Magazine for her dedicated service and leadership in college athletics. In 1995, she was named the National Association of Collegiate Women Athletic Administrators District V Administrator of the Year. Herman was also the recipient of a YWCA Women of Distinction award for outstanding leadership and excellence in 1997. In December 2003, she was inducted into the American Volleyball Coaches Association inaugural Hall of Fame class, and in 2005 she was inducted into Illinois State University’s Athletic Hall of Fame.
Herman serves as a member of the Senior Professionals of Illinois State University. She is part of the Mentoring Program for ISU honor students, a member of the University Relations Committee and participates in the Mock Interview Program for student-athletes. She has supervised Illinois State student-athletes in several community service projects including the WJBC Brotherhood Tree, Christmas for Underprivileged Children and the State Farm/Missouri Valley Just Read Program for elementary schools. Herman is a member of the Bloomington Kiwanis Club and serves as the chairperson for the Business and Public Affairs Committee, which coordinates member participation in the Jaycees Christmas Parade, Bell Ringing for the Salvation Army and the On-Track-Scholarship Program. She supports the Camp Limber Lost summer activities for underprivileged kids in our local community and the Children’s Foundation Adopt-a-Family program as well as serves as a VIP co-chair for the Illinois Heart and Lung Foundation’s and Verizon Communication’s Annual Women’s Health Night Women’s Fund-raiser.
Alumni Achievement Award
Joan Forney
The Alumni Achievement Award recipients are Joan Forney and Reg Weaver. Forney ’68 completed her bachelor’s degree in deaf education, a master’s degree from the University of Illinois at Springfield in educational administration, a specialist degree in educational administration from Western Illinois University and an honorary doctorate in education from MacMurray College in 2003.
Forney’s career spans over 39 years serving as a public school teacher, college professor and administrator. She served as superintendent of the Illinois School for the Deaf for 11 years and is presently the acting superintendent of the Illinois School for the Visually Impaired.
Reg Weaver
Danville native Weaver ’61 received his bachelor’s degree in education from Illinois State and his master’s degree at Roosevelt University in Chicago. He spent several years in the classroom as a middle school teacher in Harvey. Weaver rose through the National Education Association (NEA) ranks, serving as a local association president in Illinois and the president of the Illinois Education Association. He served on the NEA Executive Committee from 1989-1995, and for six years as NEA vice president. As NEA president, Weaver travels across the country speaking on behalf of education reform and innovation in the nation’s schools.
Weaver was named as an Ebony Magazine Influential Black Educator and has received national recognition for his many contributions to public education across the country. He is an honorary life member of the National Parent Teachers Association and is listed in Who’s Who and Who’s Who in Black America. Weaver has served on the Illinois Commission for the Improvement of Elementary and Secondary Education, Illinois Project for School Reform Advisory Council and the Task Force on At-Risk Youth.
Distinguished Alumni Award
The Distinguished Alumni Award recipient is John Dossey. Dossey ’65, M.S. ’68 received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in mathematics from Illinois State and his Ph.D. ’71 from the University of Illinois. He was a faculty member in the Department of Mathematics at Illinois State from 1967 until his retirement in 1998, and is now Distinguished Professor Emeritus. During the 1993-94 academic year, he served as the Distinguished Visiting Professor of Mathematical Sciences at the United States Military Academy at West Point. Dossey’s professional involvements are extensive, including the presidency of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, chair of the Conference Board of the Mathematical Sciences and chair of The College Board’s Mathematical Sciences Advisory Committee. In addition, he has chaired or served on commissions or committees for the National Research Council, Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, the U.S. Department of Education, the National Center for Education Statistics and the International Educational Evaluation Association.
Dossey is the author of a number of well-known texts spanning the spectrum from mathematics for middle school students to research and graduate texts in mathematics education as well as over 150 articles and chapters in other publications. He has received a number of national, state and university awards, including Illinois State University’s Alumni Achievement Award, the Illinois Council of Teachers of Mathematics’ Max Beberman Award for outstanding research contributions in mathematics education, the Illinois Mathematics Association of Community Colleges’ James Armstrong Award for outstanding service and teaching in mathematics, the Outstanding Civilian Service Medal from the Department of Army and the Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics.
