UIS' Ann Comerford named to International Association of College Unions Board of Directors

Ann Comerford, executive director of the UIS Student Union has been chosen to serve as an at-large board member for the International Association of College Unions (ACUI.) Comerford's two-year term will include advancing the principles in the Association's vision and core values, performing various ceremonial duties such as attending regional conferences, speaking functions and writing articles for ACUI publications. 

Comerford has volunteered and been recognized for her work within the Association in various capacities. She was a member of the 2018 annual conference planning committee, served on the International Education Council, was director of ACUI's Region 9, and has volunteered as a course instructor, presenter and faculty member for a variety of ACUI education courses and institutes. 

The International Association of College Unions is a nonprofit educational organization that brings together college union and student activities professionals with the primary mission of building campus community through education, advocacy and the delivery of services.

UIS student to serve as the Student Representative on the Illinois Board of Higher Education

Mackenzi Matthews of Springfield, a senior political science major at the University of Illinois Springfield, has been chosen to serve as the Student Representative on the Illinois Board of Higher Education (IBHE) for the 2020-2021 academic year.

Matthews was elected by her peers, after having successfully served on the IBHE Student Advisory Committee articulating policy and student issues on their behalf. The Illinois Board of Higher Education is made up of 14 members, one student representative and one non-traditional student representative.

“Mackenzi has personified Leadership lived in her extracurricular involvement, academic diligence, and active interest in student leadership and policy development,” said Ginger Ostro, IBHE executive director.

At UIS, Matthews currently serves as the parliamentarian for the Student Government Association (SGA). Last year, she worked to rewrite parts of the SGA constitution and bylaws as chair of the Constitution and Rules Committee. As a member of Model Illinois Government, she was elected as Majority Leader and was awarded Outstanding Member of the House in 2020.  Matthews currently works as a committee clerk in the Office of the Clerk for the Illinois House of Representatives.

Matthews plans to earn a master’s degree and pursue a career in politics. She hopes to one day become a United States Senator.

Ken Owen: On Pace for a Healthier Lifestyle

Ken Owen, UIS Associate Professor of history, recently placed 4th overall and 1st in his age category in the Prairie Star 5K, held earlier this month on the UIS campus. 

“If you would have told me a few years ago that I would be running a 5K voluntarily, of my own free will, I would not have believed you,” joked Owen who buckled down into a healthier lifestyle after the birth of his daughter almost three years ago.

In fact, the 2018 Prairie Star 5K was his first race ever. Since then, he’s been a regular face at The Recreation and Athletic Center at UIS.

“I had been going to TRAC regularly and using a stationary bike. But during a conference in Cleveland, there were no stationary bikes, so I started using the treadmill,” he said.

Owen downloaded a fun-inspired Couch to 5K app on his phone when he returned to Springfield and headed back to TRAC, this time opting for the indoor track.
So far, he’s dropped between 80 and 90 pounds and feels better than ever.

“I’m adamant exercise was not the primary factor,” Owen said. “It was about controlling my eating. Exercise was just another way of getting into a healthy habit where I could feel the benefits of losing weight.”

Owen credits meal planning, shopping for and cooking heathier foods, and tracking his meals for most of his success. 

“I found that I liked roasted vegetables more than I thought. I learned to cook better,” Owen said. “When you’re limiting what you eat, you want to enjoy it more.”

And he has learned to enjoy running, and regularly runs more than a 5K.

“My ultimate goal is to break 20 minutes,” said Owen, whose Prairie Star 5K time this year was 20:22. “I’m frustratingly close, but close enough that I should get there soon.”

A worldwide pandemic may have thrown a wrench into his regular workout schedule, but Owen said that running gave him a sense or routine and the activity was a welcome change from being stuck at home. He appreciated the safety measures at the Prairie Star 5K.

“It was very carefully organized,” Owen said. “We never congregated in groups, there was a staggered start, and we lined up in rows that were 7 feet apart from other runners, 10 feet apart front and back.”

His advice to those thinking about getting started is simply to take the first step. 

“Don’t feel like you have to go fast. Run slowly, your body will adapt and you’ll get quicker naturally,” he said. “Go at a pace that is slow, then slow that down a bit.”

“A mile done slowly is a better than one you don’t run at all.”

Newest Prairie Stars meet through virtual KickStart

KickStart Orientation is a UIS staple in preparing new Prairie Stars for a transition from home to campus. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, this year's orientation transitioned to an all-online format, and according Lisa McGuire, director of New Student Orientation and Parent Relations, it has been successful. 

Behind the scenes, McGuire and her team of experienced orientation leaders worked fast to attend webinars and trainings on how to take their programming online. They were guided by schools who had years of experience in online orientations.

“The National Orientation Directors’ Association was a great place for sharing ideas on how larger schools do online orientation or have components of it online. It was like having 3000 colleagues sharing resources to help with online development,” McGuire said.

McGuire used the university’s new learning management system, Canvas, to build orientation modules introducing new Prairie Stars to academic advising and expectations, financial information, student success, living on campus and technology. An optional module on student life and opportunity fairs was also available. KickStart attendees begin with a 90-minute online Zoom that includes an introduction to McGuire and her team; they then are placed in breakout rooms with other students and orientation leaders like UIS senior Libby Price.

“The whole point of summer orientation is to get to know each other, which is a little harder on Zoom, but we’re getting there,” Price said. “We have several ice breakers that help students get comfortable in a group and we allow them to share their thoughts and feelings anonymously on going to college.”

McGuire said with the change to online format, she was not able to hire all of her orientation leaders back, but those who are working, like Price, have gone above and beyond making the experience special for incoming freshmen.

“It is our job to create that first sense of community, engagement and relationship building,” said McGuire. "We are missing the in-person component, especially the evenings -- that’s where relationships develop -- but our orientation leaders are going above and beyond to keep these new students in contact with each other. They are hosting extra activities like trivia nights each week where new students can log in, trying to create those experiences and maintain those interactions.”

McGuire admits it was a lot of work to transition KickStart to an online format, but it was worth the effort.

“An online version of KickStart had been on our back-burner for a while,” McGuire said. “This year it became a front burner project.”

McGuire also credits the many faculty and staff who helped in the success of the transition and created content through videos and Google slides to share information or experiences with new students. 

And even when things go back to normal, and KickStart can return to an in-person format, McGuire said she plans to maintain some of the online components she worked so hard to build. “There are more things we can look at, things we can do online to create a richer experience in a shorter time and be mindful of costs,” she said.

New students will have one final Kickstart module available to them closer to move-in day which will give them the latest information on plans for move-in and health checks.

Collaboration Success

The moment the Illinois “stay at home” order went into effect on March 21, the wheels were turning in Bruce Sommer’s head. Sommer, UIS’ Director of Economic Development and Innovation knew businesses would have questions on how to handle the temporary shutdown, so he gathered a team of experts to field those questions online.

“In the beginning, there were so many questions and so many things going on,” Sommer said. “People were concerned, so our first webinars were about the relief programs for businesses, how to take your business online and the economic impact of a shutdown. No one was providing them that information.”

Sommer used his own personal Zoom account for the first free webinar which limited his capacity to 100 attendees. Those spots filled within the first minute. The next week he used a UIS Zoom account, and attendance surpassed 100.

Since that time, Sommer and his rotating team of experts have hosted nearly 1,500 attendees with weekly webinars on business, education, health and the economy. Some topics came about as suggestions from frequent flier attendees.

“The amazing thing is that, for many of the panelists, I’ve asked them to participate on very short notice and no one has turned me down. We typically have five panelists each week. The collective collaboration around this has been my greatest reward,” Sommer said.

The weekly webinars are a collaboration between the UIS Office of Economic Development and Innovation, Innovate Springfield, and the UIS colleges of Business and Management and Public Affairs and Administration. Community partners include The Community Health Round Table, SIU School of Medicine, local businesses and state and local government officials.

“When I moved back to Springfield, people in social impact circles within the community felt like UIS was an underutilized resource,” Sommer said. “Through these webinars, we have inserted UIS into the conversations. We have incredible researchers and teachers and the community is craving that leadership."

Sommer said the success of the webinars is directly attributable to the layers of knowledge around the Springfield community and UIS campus. That is what Innovate Springfield, the first hub in the Illinois Innovation Network is about, bringing local resources and collaboration together.

“People came together in a time of crisis,” Sommer said. “It’s a great example of IIN’s goal of working collaboratively at all times.”

Moving forward, webinars will alternate between a business and health focus. Older webinars can be accessed on the UIS Academic Affairs website.

Virtual summer stargazing

The University of Illinois Springfield's long-standing Star Parties have gone online, for now, to accommodate safe social distancing of participants. UIS Associate Professor of Astronomy and Physics John Martin hosted the first virtual Star Party on May 30.

“We didn’t know what to expect. We could have had from three to 300 participants,” Martin said. “We did not have 300, but it went really well. Those who showed up were interested and captivated.”

UIS Information Technology Associate Jeff Suddeth logged on to the virtual Star Party to make sure all technology was working properly. His children logged on to participate in the fun.

“The iPad app that Dr. Martin used was really fun because you could see what was happening in the sky right now,” said Suddeth’s son, Weston, age 11. The free app is called GoSkyWatch.

Suddeth said his youngest child was equally captivated by the constellations and how they could create pictures in the sky.

“I encouraged people to be outside,” Martin said. “We started with a tour of the night sky just before sunset. I told them that if they looked west, they could see planets and the Big Dipper. We looked at the moon and were able to identify where the first moon landing happened.”

The virtual Star Party happened the same day SpaceX launched. “We had a visible pass of the International Space Station where the Dragon capsule was six to ten minutes behind it,” Martin said.

The next UIS Star Party also will be hosted virtually on June 27. Viewing information can be found on the star party website.

 

“We are taking it a month at a time,” Martin said. “We like to do the live ones; they are a ton of fun with more than a few telescopes. The Sangamon Astronomical Society comes out with their telescopes. But in the meantime, we wanted to do something to sustain the interest.”

Martin said he will be working with Lincoln Memorial Gardens, with advice from health professionals, to assess transitioning back to live Star Parties later in the summer.

Photography students shift focus to capture pandemic moments

UIS Associate Professor of Communication Kathy Novak, Ph.D., was only a few weeks into  her COM 407 Photojournalism and Photo Documentary Class when Illinois began to shelter in place and UIS students returned home to begin remote learning.

The already-online class did not have to adjust for remote learning, but assignments had to be modified immediately.

“Their weekly photo assignments normally send them out into the public to photograph people, places and events,” Novak said. “I encourage them to meet people, introduce themselves and take photographs, these are all professional skills. Meeting and photographing people are central to what this course is about.”

But in the midst of a pandemic, when the world is essentially shut down, meeting people in public spaces would prove to be a challenge.

“A teacher’s goal is to impress and exercise the content of the course, and I was worried that wasn’t going to happen,” Novak said.

But it did.

Olivia Mitchell, a 2020 PAR graduate and student in the class, was worried whether she would be able to complete assignments on lighting, profiles and angles.

“I was scared to be outside and be around people,” Mitchell said. “But I let go of the fear and decided to take pictures of any opportunity I saw.”

One of those opportunities was her 30th birthday, when she snapped photographs of her niece and nephew playing outdoors.

Mitchell admits the pandemic closures forced her to re-think her dynamic angles assignment, as she had originally planned to take pictures from the top of the Wyndham Hotel.

“I still went downtown. It was so empty,” she said. “Since I couldn’t go inside, I laid down on the ground to take the photo looking up. Despite the challenges of the pandemic, I still accomplished everything I was supposed to do.”

Novak said when students turned in their final project photo essays, she was amazed at the stark moments that were captured; photos that tell the story of how the world stood still and how life was altered by COVID-19.

Some of those photos included a hospital laryngoscope prepped and ready to be used on patients, a pop-up COVID-19 testing site, social distancing while grocery shopping, volunteers delivering meals and the empty streets of downtown Chicago during rush hour.

“Even with the added restraint on their daily lives, students were able still to chronicle what it has meant to live during the COVID-19 outbreak, to create visual work of consequence,” Novak said.

A sampling of this important work can be found on the UIS Communication Department Facebook page. Mitchell’s work is also featured on the NPR Illinois website.

“I learned that I loved to take photographs,” Mitchell said. “People may read the story, but they will always look at the photos. A picture really is worth one-thousand words.”

Chris Lowe: Athletic performance on and off the field

University of Illinois Springfield athletes may be at home, but during remote learning they were still actively training with athletics staff and preparing for their next season. UIS Director of Strength and Conditioning Chris Lowe had played a large role in that.

“We’ve been using an online software program, and the athletes have an app on their phone that is really user friendly,” Lowe said. “Normally they would be on campus training with me, and I could make changes. We have had to be extremely creative with at-home workouts. Not every person has the luxury of a weight room and access to weights. Our staff has done a great job developing programs for at-home settings.”

Lowe said athletic staff is concentrating on more than reps and sets, they are focusing on the athlete as a whole. The app allows for connections beyond just physical workouts. It comprises overall wellness including mental, physical and emotional well-being.

Athletes had weekly challenges to learn new skills while at home, such as cooking which is tied directly into nutrition, an important part of being an athlete. Lowe said cooking proved to be motivational.

Zoom has also helped UIS athletes connect with their teammates. “It allows for that face-to-face interaction, which is great to see in coaching, it’s that human interaction you don’t get in text messages,”

Lowe said. He is impressed with the dedication UIS athletes have demonstrated at home. “They take a step every day to be champions, to reach a goal. This has not deterred them, “Lowe said. “That is a testament to them and the coaching staff.”

Lowe also said the virus has opened doors for athletic staff from throughout the Great Lakes Valley Conference to connect and learn from each other. “For the first time ever, we had a Zoom session with all of the coaches in the GLVC to learn from each other, how each one operates and how it differs from school to school. Lowe also recently attended the Collegiate Strength and Conditioning Coaches Association online convention. We all still want to get better in our profession and there is so much more communication than we have had in the past.”

With finals over, Lowe said athletes are on a summer schedule with no mandatory Countable Athletic Related Activity (CARA) hours. He is hopeful the fall semester will resume and with it, fall sports.

“When that comes up, we are being realistic and optimistic,” he said. “We can only control our response and that is a huge mental piece of this puzzle. I remind them of our mission statement which is to be the best version of themselves as a person.”

Marie Watson; Stepping out of the box

When she couldn’t meet students face-to-face, UIS Associate Director of Student Life Marie Watson stepped out of her comfort zone and into the social media spotlight.

She has been a regular face on weekly Student Life Instagram Live chats.

“That’s a positive thing about all of this, I have opened myself up to new opportunities and different ways of engaging with students,” said Watson, who admits she is more comfortable with small groups and one-on-one communication. “I’ve been putting myself out there on social media, and I’ve grown both personally and professionally.”

Each week, Watson has hosted the Student Life Instagram Live chats, which have featured a guest from the UIS campus. She said the engagement and energy with students has been high.

“As soon as we went to remote learning we had to think creatively. Student life is so tied into student success. It impacts how they live and what they experience.” Watson said she did not realize how underutilized technology was prior to remote learning.

Zoom has been instrumental in helping Student Life staff stay con
nected to students with face-to-face interaction. It is used for weekly trivia nights and Student Activities Committee planning sessions. And Watson credits Microsoft Teams for helping staff communicate and work remotely together.

She admits she is missing spring on campus. “I miss my students, I miss the smell of the food from the Food Studio,” she said “I miss the nice weather on campus, walking across the campus, seeing the flowers and trees. Our campus is so beautiful. I miss seeing the students out in their fashions. The mood is light and fun.”

She also said missing Springfest was difficult. “The SAC Traditions Coordinator and Springfest committee had all worked so hard to plan out Springfest,” she said. “Everything was looking beautiful, but next spring it will be 10 times better. It will build anticipation and that will be huge.”

Watson encourages graduating seniors to return to campus for Springfest 2021 and participate as alumni. “They can come back and rejoin the family, participate in Springfest and get their full experience of their last year.”

Watson wants all UIS students to know the Office of Student Life is committed to their success.
Planning has already begun on Welcome Week activities for the fall, with the hope that students will be able to return to campus.

Despite connecting remotely, Watson remains committed to helping UIS students have the best possible college experience. “I’ve come to understand that there are great days and challenging days. But it is important to be able to connect with my students through email, Facetime, Group Me, texting me, Zoom, whatever it takes. I want to know what they’re doing because I care, because of that relationship and connection I have with them.”

Strength in numbers

It would be nearly impossible to have a health class without acknowledging the elephant in the room, COVID-19.

Assistant Professor of Exercise Science Angela Doehring said one of her first assignments for students in her EXR352 Health Promotion and Disease Prevention class this semester was to research a hot health topic in the news. Nearly every student chose to write about Coronavirus.

“The very first week of class we discussed a novel virus originating in China,” Doehring said. “Even though this was January and there were no confirmed cases in the United States yet, it was just this strange, unknown virus in China.”

Doehring said tracking the spread of the virus in real time is helping teach students that exercise science and health and wellness are integrally linked to disease prevention, infections and epidemiology.

The virus is providing extra opportunities for learning. Doehring’s students can receive extra credit for participating in Centers for Disease Control and Prevention webinars. Many have logged in to learn about social distancing and the spread of the disease.

But while extra opportunities for learning is positive, the loss of the annual UIS Health and Wellness Fair on campus was a blow for her classes.

Each year, students in EXR233 Personal Health and Wellness class create poster presentations and health assessments they deliver during the fair. “We had to figure out how to do a virtual health fair,” Doehring said. Students had to create their posters and make a video of themselves sharing it. Everyone has had different approaches. It’s been interesting how you envision it and then how someone interprets it.”

Another important part of the Health and Wellness Fair presentation was the physical assessments that accompanied it for the other EXR classes like EXR 412 Exercise Management for Special Populations.

“Originally the whole class would work together to plan out one or two assessments to deliver at the health fair. Instead, I let students take the lead at home, choose one assessment they’ve done and perform it on someone in their home and take a video of it,” Doehring said. “Students had to assess the individual, just like they would have at the Health Fair, and explain how they could do better or how it applied to their overall health.”

Doehring said with remote learning, she let her students help direct how the classes would work best for them.

“I put a survey out to my students to see if they wanted the class to be synchronous with zoom meetings at the same time, or asynchronous with a video or Powerpoint each week so they could work at their own pace,” she said. Doehring said her students chose asynchronous learning to work at their own pace. They can log in anytime, and most students are working ahead.

“It seems to be working well,” she said. “But I miss the face-to-face comradery and students interacting with each other. That’s what I miss, classroom discussion, that is the part of teaching that I enjoy most, the student interaction.”

Doehring said despite the initial challenge, both she and students in the class are feeling accomplished and she has tapped into COVID-19 as a teaching tool.

“From a health promotion standpoint, what they’ve learned is playing out in real life, and they are learning the importance of disease and early detection,” Doehring said. “It’s a real-life invaluable lesson.”

Associate Professor Holly Thompson, finding a rhythm

Every morning Associate Professor of Human Development Counseling Holly Thompson goes to work upstairs in her guest bedroom with one of her favorite co-workers, three-year old Xaria. After a brief consultation and a quick hello on Zoom, Xaria heads back downstairs to consult with dad about more pressing issues like toys.

Thompson has found that separation of home and work life has been one of the most difficult challenges of remote learning.

“I’ve not really had to be a mom and a professor at the same time, all day long,” she said. “But now that we are several weeks into it, we are figuring it out. I have a supportive partner, and we have found a rhythm that works for us.

Thompson says her Human Development Counseling faculty and students are also finding their rhythms.

“We were moving into this world as quickly as we could with skill and competence,” she said. “There are a lot of things to factor in when you can’t meet face to face.”

Thompson was referring to clinical counseling skills.

“There was a halt to all of our clinical activities and that was challenging because our students weren’t able to meet with clients,” she said. “It created some interesting challenges. They had to learn telehealth, but we are moving forward.”

The department received HIPAA-approval for their Zoom telehealth portal and students were able to take advantage of free online training curriculum offered by the Professional Education Systems Institute (PESI) to all helping professions such as professional counseling, social work and psychology.

“Technology has improved vastly, but it’s not the same as sitting in the same room. I can’t imagine a way that technology could account for being in the same time and space,” Thompson said. “Zoom isn’t so bad, but there is energy in a room that technology can’t account for, but it will work in this situation.”

Zoom has also been instrumental in keeping things like Campus Senate and job searches moving forward.

“Last week we had a teaching demo and there were 40 to 50 people who logged in. In person, we probably wouldn’t have had that many attendees. It was wonderful to have that level of participation and support. We really didn’t expect that.”

Her advice is to breathe.

“I say it 25 times a day,” Thompson said. “The most important thing to do is just breathe deeply. It’s something we don’t do well. It is something we don't do well normally. In this unique time, we also must have flexibility and allow some space for the unknown and imperfection. We’re moving through this journey, this process where the destination is unknown, but we’ll be tougher in the long run, wherever it is.”

Jumping through hoops

Despite being one thousand miles apart, UIS Women’s Basketball Coach Casey Thousand is running drills with her team and having weekly meetings.

“Our biggest challenge is not having a post season,” she said. "We are still a new staff needing to tweak what we’re doing and how. Normally we would be in the gym doing workouts and could demonstrate in-person what we wanted them to work on to prepare for next year. Not being on the court with our team is hard.”

Spring is also when basketball recruits, who are current high school juniors, are invited to campus.

“It’s really weird right now, figuring out how we can get our offers to these kids without showing them campus. We don’t like to offer scholarships until they come to campus. We like to get to know the whole family and this time is very different because it’s all over the phone,” she said.

Thousand jokes that her phone is usually dead by noon because of so many calls she is on with recruits, coaches and her own players.

Thousand, her coaching staff and team connect on Zoom at least once a week and she monitors their workouts on a new app that all UIS athletes are using to track their progress.

“They are bored. They miss campus. They miss being around each other. We do a lot of texting and calling. When we Zoom, they are usually pretty talkative and happy to see one another,” she said.

Thousand considers herself lucky that they were able to finish their season. But she is disappointed her seniors won’t get a proper send-off.

“It’s hard, I talk to them a lot about resumes and being alumni and make sure they know we want to stay in contact with them,” she said.

Thousand feels for the spring sport athletes, who are missing their entire season.

She says one positive thing that has come out of the extreme circumstances is a connectedness between basketball coaches around the country. During the NCAA Final Four, college coaches typically connect in conferences and learn from speakers, but this year, with the cancellation of the NCAA tournament, those conferences didn’t happen.

“They didn’t happen in person, but they did happen online,” said Thousand. The NCAA moved the conference virtual. We connected on Zoom. People are just figuring out how to do it differently and stay connected. We are able to learn as a staff to make our team better.” Thousand considers the virtual platform better, as D1, D2 and D3 coaches are in regular contact with one another, instead of just for one weekend.

As for the summer, it’s still to be determined. Thousand and her staff would normally spend the summer visiting potential recruits playing AAU ball. “AAU tournaments typically happen April, May, June and July,” she said. “The April tournaments have been cancelled, but players are getting creative, they’re utilizing their home courts.
We’re all learning from this.”

“We cannot wait to get everyone back together," she said.

Governor appoints UIS professor to Illinois State Museum Board

University of Illinois Springfield Wepner Distinguished Professor of Lincoln Studies Graham Peck, Ph.D. has been appointed to the Illinois State Museum Board by Gov. J.B. Pritzker.

Peck was one of ten people appointed in the Governor’s administration. Pritzker called the group a strong team of diverse experts in their fields.

Peck was the author of the book “Making an Antislavery Nation: Lincoln, Douglas and the Battle Over Freedom,” which received the 2018 Book of the Year Award from the Illinois State Historical Society. He also wrote, directed and produced a feature-length documentary on Stephan A. Douglas, which is on permanent exhibit at the Douglas Tomb State Historic Site and has numerous scholarly publications.

Peck received his master’s and doctorate in American History from Northwestern University and, before joining the UIS faculty in 2019, taught for 17 years at Saint Xavier University in Chicago.

A different kind of theatrical transition

Professionally, the COVID-19 closures and cancellations dealt a double blow to Missy Thibodeaux-Thompson, UIS associate professor of theatre; she lost face-to-face contact with her students, and was forced to cancel the university’s spring production, "Twelfth Night," which was set to open in mid-April.

“It was just heartbreaking, there was so much time and energy that had been put into it already,” she said. "We were really in the home stretch. And, we didn’t get closure, which is important in theatre productions.”

Before she could even think about how to convert her classes to remote learning, Thibodeaux-Thompson had to drive across the country to bring her own daughter home from college.

She credits several colleagues and Kara McElwrath from ITS for helping her get ready to teach remotely. “Kara is my hero, she needs to be the employee of the millennium,” Thibodeaux-Thompson joked.

“I learned that you don’t have to replicate everything that you would in an on-ground class,” she said.

Thibodeaux-Thompson’s students will use Zoom’s Kaltura feature to act and record monologues for class feedback. And she’s found workarounds. Instead of students writing a paper on a live production they’ve gone to see, they are watching a production online from provided links.

One of the best remote-learning experiences she has had so far is her students showing up for her first Zoom class. “They’re dealing with crazy things like being at home,” she said. “On that first day, they just showed up and waved from their bedrooms, just to say hi. Their heads were in the game and that speaks volumes of our students, that they would rather be in the classroom.”

Thibodeaux-Thompson is also applying her newfound technology skills to other parts of her career, participating in Zoom meetings with UIS Campus Senate, other directors in Art, Music and Theatre as well as the regional leadership team from the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival.

And she says "Twelfth Night" will debut on stage in spring 2021. “The design and conceptual work were already done,” Thibodeaux-Thompson said. “We understand some people will have graduated and may have other plans or commitments but they are welcome to come back. We’ll take as many people who can come back.”

Adapting to online learning in MLS

Like most professors across the country, Amandailee Adams, assistant professor of medical laboratory science, had to re-think her curriculum at a moment’s notice, or so it seemed.

She chose Zoom learning for her lectures and said it has worked well, although she admits there are a few kinks to work out in the coming weeks.

“I like that I can create breakout rooms in my Zoom sessions. I can lecture for 20 minutes and then place students in breakout rooms for interactive learning,” she said. While lecturing online, Adams has students submit their questions to Blackboard, and she answers them at the end of the lecture. 

Adams found online videos for some of her laboratory work.

She said internet connection is the biggest challenge for both her and her students.

Covid-19 challenges have caused her to step out of her comfort zone and try instructional techniques she might not have tried before. “I feel lucky we live in this technological state, that we have options,” she said.

Every day when she logs on, she reminds herself to be flexible, patient and willing to try something new. It’s the same advice she gives her students. “We’re all learning this new process; you have to be willing to laugh at yourself.”

UIS business students win big at International Collegiate Business Skills Championship

The University of Illinois Springfield Society for the Advancement of Management (SAM) chapter took home eight awards from the International Collegiate Business Skills Championship 2020, including first place for Campus Chapter Performance in the small chapter division.

Nineteen university chapters competed in the annual skills competition, which was held remotely this year.

The following UIS students received awards: Adam Shaw, first place Extemporaneous Speech; Sruthi Puranapanda, Animesh Pawar, K. Sneha Shenoy and Srinjoy Meta, second place in Case Competition; Nikhil Aatrei, Abhishek Sheshagiri, Adam Shaw and Manasa Nagamalla, second place Written Case, K. Sneha Shenoy received the third place Overall Individual Award and Nikhil Aatrei was named Outstanding Student.

Besides placing first in Campus Chapter Performance in the small chapter division, the team took home second place Overall Performance Award and Hasan Kartal was named Outstanding Adviser.

The International Collegiate Business Skills Competition provides students with an exciting learning experience in which they compete directly with other college teams running a simulated company.

UIS Model Illinois Government Delegation Wins Outstanding Large Delegation at 2020 MIG

The University of Illinois Springfield Model Illinois Government delegation was named the Outstanding Large Delegation at the 2020 Model Illinois Government simulation at the Illinois State Capitol.

The delegation also took home three individual honors. Mackenzi Matthews, of Springfield, was named Outstanding Member of the House, Collin Moseley, of Flora, was named Outstanding Committee Chair in the House and Aislinn Diaz, of Chicago, was named Outstanding Committee Chair in the Senate.

Four UIS students were elected to leadership positions within MIG. Kallie Matthews, of Springfield, who served as the Speaker of the House this year, was re-elected to that position for 2021. Mackenzi Matthews was named Majority Leader, Joseph Partain, of Iuka, was named Minority Leader and Collin Moseley was named Majority Whip.

Each year, students from more than 20 colleges and universities around the state gather at the Illinois State Capitol to serve as legislators, staffers, lobbyists, journalists and officials of the executive branch.

Through committee actions, a regular legislative session and a veto session, participants learn the legislative process by actively participating in the simulation.

MIG members start preparing legislation during the fall term, polish their parliamentary skills and organize membership into a delegation for the spring conference.

The UIS delegation is led by Kenneth Owen, MIG faculty advisor and UIS associate professor of history.

Executive Director of UIS' Center for State Policy and Leadership honored for career

David Racine, executive director for UIS’ Center for State Policy and Leadership has been chosen to receive the 2020 Rail Splitter Public Service Award, given by the Central Illinois Chapter of the American Society for Public Administration.

Racine was chosen as outstanding individual whose career exemplifies public service.

He began his career with the American Public Welfare Association in Washington, DC, and went on to serve as a senior policy advisor, legislative director and was the founding staff member and Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of the Points of Light Foundation.

Racine came to UIS to direct academic research and training at the Institute for Legal, Legislative and Policy Studies. He now serves as the executive director over that program and also oversees UIS’ Survey Research Office, NPR Illinois, GPSI, Innovate Springfield, the Illinois Innocence Project and Child Protection Training Academy.

Racine also offers his expertise to community projects including MOSAIC, the Community Health Roundtable and Sangamon County Continuum of Learning.

Racine will be presented with the award during the chapter’s annual spring banquet and awards ceremony on March 16, 2020 in the UIS Student Union Ballroom.

UIS professor pens book about the environmental and human rights impacts of Kenyan rose farming

Springfield native Megan Styles, an assistant professor of environmental studies at the University of Illinois Springfield, has written a new book investigating how the floriculture industry shapes Kenyan livelihoods, landscapes and politics.

“This book tells the story of one of many global commodities that we purchase and use daily without thinking about who made or grew them, how far they have traveled, and how they connect us to the world,” said Styles.

“Roses from Kenya: Labor, Environment, and the Global Trade in Cut Flowers,” explores the experiences and perspectives of the many people who work in the fresh cut roses industry; low-wage farm workers, farm managers and owners, Kenyan officials and the human rights and environmental activists advocating for reform. The lucrative and controversial industry employs approximately 90,000 workers, mostly women.

“Roses from Kenya isn’t just about cut flowers, it is also about Kenyan aspirations for development and the particular place, Lake Naivasha, where most of these roses are grown,” said Styles. “I wanted to tell this story from the viewpoint of people living and working in Naivasha, through their eyes and words. My hope is that once readers understand the deeper history of the Kenyan rose, they will want to know more about the people and places that provide us with chocolate, coffee, tea and all of the other everyday luxuries that enrich our lives.”

Styles is a Springfield native, who graduated from Southeast High School. She holds a bachelor’s degree in anthropology from Washington University in St. Louis and a master’s degree and Ph.D. in anthropology from the University of Washington. Styles is also the co-editor for Culture, Agriculture, Food, and Environment (CAFÉ), a peer-reviewed journal published by the American Anthropological Association and helped to start the Community Garden at UIS.

“Roses From Kenya” is available for purchase online from the University of Washington Press at https://uwapress.uw.edu/book/9780295746500/roses-from-kenya/ and locally at Barnes & Noble in Springfield.

UIS Police Captain Ross Owens graduates from Northwestern University’s Center for Public Safety

University of Illinois Springfield Police Captain Ross Owens has graduated from the School of Police Staff and Command at Northwestern University.

The 10-week program provides upper-level college instruction in leadership, human resources, employee relations, organizational behavior, applied statistics, planning and policy development, plus budgeting and resource allocation.

The Center for Public Safety was established at Northwestern University in 1936 with the goal of expanding university-based education and training for the Law Enforcement Community.

Since its inception, the center has broadened its original objective and now provides a variety of courses and programs in the area of police training, management training and executive development.

The program has graduated more than 20,000 students both nationally and internationally.

Owens has been with UIS Campus Police since 1999. He is an alumni of UIS with degrees in both business administration and management. Owens is a former resident of Virden. He currently resides in Springfield.