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Volume 11 • Number 2 • Fall 2010
Cradled in care: Young alum nurtures infants in their fight for life
While her classmates hung out at movie theatres and football games, Janessa (Stimpert) Jenkins ’06 endured a battery of medical testing and treatments during her freshman year of high school. Chronic pain syndrome kept her in the hospital months at a time. The experience was traumatic, yet there was a positive outcome. Jenkins eventually received
Research team seeks solution to superbugs
While bacteria are all around us, Illinois State University’s Science Laboratory Building is home to a particularly hazardous strain. Distinguished Professor Radheshyam K. Jayaswal is purposefully nurturing Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus), which he and a team of colleagues and students within the Department of Biological Sciences are studying to unravel mysteries surrounding the superbug that
Making headlines: Sun-Times purchase puts business grad in the spotlight
When it comes to matters of money, it’s hard to find anyone more savvy or successful than James Tyree ’78, M.B.A. ’80. Under his leadership as chairman and CEO, Mesirow Financial has flourished to become the largest independent financial services firm in Chicago. The company manages $40 billion in assets and reported $526 million in
For the love of the game
The team has shared a locker room with the women’s basketball players, but that’s about to change with the Jami Kehl Head Volleyball Locker Room. Darrell ’64 and Karen Kehl named the project for their daughter, Jami, who played and coached volleyball in high school and came to Illinois State to earn a second degree
Rippling effects of a scholarship
She chose Illinois State University, even though it was a one-hour commute, because she was familiar with the campus and she had relatives who graduated from ISU. The empty-nester was in her mid-40s and recently divorced. After working all day, she drove to classes two nights a week for five years. Her goal was to
Gladly supporting campus programs
She also wouldn’t have met her husband Roger ’62, been launched into an education career, or still be involved with the University nearly 60 years later. Now that she is a donor the roles have been reversed, and she proudly gives students the same opportunities she had. “We’ve received so much from ISU, our education,
Fueling passions through bequests
“That’s the way the world improves,” Dave said. “I’ve seen great improvements at ISU, and that’s because people before us have left things better than they found them.” Born in Paxton and raised in Normal, Dave became close to the University through athletic and campus events, even before his first day of classes. Unsure of
Lifelong friendships spark scholarship
The male-only organization that produced an annual show wrapped in satire was blamed for everything from footprints on the Old Main dome to a missing birdcage after the lights suddenly went out in the Old Union’s Cage restaurant. The social organization was as Greek as it could get, building loyalty at a time when fraternal
Feeding dreams
With that encouragement from Louie Striegel, he signed up for six hours at Illinois State University, which turned into 12 hours, which turned into a degree in business administration. That launched a 38-year career that ended with Brown’s retirement as State Farm Insurance Companies executive vice president and member of the Chairman’s Council. And now
A fighting legacy
Trevor Grant ’10 always manages to set himself apart from the crowd and at 25, he’s already left a legacy to the Illinois State University. A couple of them. During the University’s first football game against the University of Illinois in 2003, Grant helped the Redbirds hold their own against the Illini. As the Reggie
Matching dreams
Although she was working her way through school, Kate was always prepared for class and attacked her lessons. The father of four was impressed. “Here was someone who was highly motivated and I thought, ‘How do you develop that? How do you reward it?’” On breaks they’d sit at a table and chat, and he
Where Are They Now? Alumnus remembers caring couple
Gary and Judy Fish exemplify why Illinois State can claim to be a place where faculty and staff care about students. Their kindness to Bill McMichael empowered him to finish his business administration degree in 1980. Personal interaction with students is what made an Illinois State career so meaningful for the couple. Gary is a
Class Notes: U-High alum dedicates himself to the cause of sexual violence
Joshua Daniel Phillips ’02 had no idea his life’s work would turn out to be raising awareness for sexual violence. A state champion wrestler at one of Illinois State’s Laboratory Schools, University High School, he went on to Central Michigan University. There he joined a peer advocacy group that operated a 24-hour rape counseling line.
Pause for applause: Fall 2010
Teaching a world apart Kevin Suess ’99, ’01, is among the nation’s best high school history and geography instructors. He was one of six teachers across the U.S. awarded a 2010 Grosvenor Teacher Fellowship. Offered through Lindblad Expeditions and the National Geographic Society, the program welcomed teachers aboard the National Geographic Explorer to survey the
Redbird legacy: Lucille (Speers) Shurr family
What was it like to attend Illinois State University more than 80 years ago? The Shurr family answers the question by asking their mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother Lucille—who reached the century mark in September. Lucille Elizabeth (Speers) Shurr, born and raised in Odell, graduated in 1930 with a two-year degree in elementary education. She immediately
How We Met: Illinois State University connections
When Jack Powell Sr. ’52 entered the now demolished Old Main for his English class in November of 1949, something other than the syllabus captured his attention. He noticed Wanda Rae Bryant ’55, who was a switchboard operator making 50 cents an hour. “He wrote me a note saying, ‘I was going to go home
Air rifle team shoots past competition
“Sports can be a game of inches.” Although true with many sports, this adage does not do justice to the Illinois State University Air Rifle Team and their sport of competitive target shooting. Truly a game of millimeters, target shooting has quickly evolved into both a competitive sport and global pastime. The team, comprised of
