Like most universities, Northern Illinois University is a hub for research and discovery. Unlike at many other schools, however, NIU undergraduates get in on the action.
On Tuesday, April 24, more than 200 of those students will show off projects ranging from research aimed at curing cancer to creating greater understanding of cyber-bullying to work that illuminates the history of grave robbers in DeKalb County.
Those projects will be part of NIU’s Undergraduate Research and Artistry Day, scheduled from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. in the Duke Ellington Ballroom of the Holmes Student Center.
An awards ceremony will wrap up the event at 3 p.m.
The campus community and the public at large are invited to attend. Admission is free.
“At Northern Illinois University, we place a premium on providing students with opportunities for learning that extend far beyond the classroom, and nothing better illustrates the success of those efforts than Undergraduate Research and Artistry Day,” said NIU Provost Raymond Alden.“Every piece of work on display at this event represents not only knowledge acquired by our students, but also new knowledge and new artistry created.”
The day includes work by some of the most motivated students on campus, said Julia Spears, director of NIU’s Office of Student Engagement and Experiential Learning, which coordinates the event. “It’s amazing to see the level of work that these students are capable of, and the quality of support and mentoring that they receive from faculty to advance those efforts,” she said.
A panel of judges will evaluate the projects based upon quality of the abstract, accuracy of the data, how well it is presented and various other factors. At the end of the day, awards ranging from $50 to $200 will be given to the top projects in the categories of Science, Technology, Engineering, Math, and Social Science, Health, Humanities, Arts.
For more information, call (815) 753-8154 or email engage@niu.edu.
Date posted: April 17, 2012 | Author: Joseph King | Comments Off on Undergrads to show off research April 24
Faculty interested in finding ways to make large introductory classes more interactive and engaging are invited to attend one of two informational sessions next week for the Course Transformation Project.
Sessions will be offered at 10 a.m. Tuesday, April 17, in Lowden Hall 304, and at 1 p.m. Wednesday, April 18, in Altgeld Hall 203.
Vice Provost Anne Birberick and Julia Spears, director of the Office of Student Engagement and Experiential Learning, will facilitate the sessions.
Faculty selected to participate could receive up to $12,000 in funding to transform large, lecture-based, classes into more interactive experiences that incorporate things such as multimedia learning, small group projects and experiential learning.
Beyond an overview of the project, Birberick and Spears will outline expectations for participants, explain allowable uses for the funding and discuss the types of support that will be made available by the Office of Student Engagement and Experiential Learning, the Office of Assessment Services and others.
The CTP is a key part of the university’s efforts to meet its Vision 2020 goal that ensures that, by the year 2020, at least half of all students who graduate from NIU have some sort of engaged learning experience.
That program has successfully demonstrated that these kinds of courses not only can be transformed but that their redesign promotes a learning environment in which students are cognitively engaged – developing critical thinking skills necessary to deepen learning – and socially engaged – developing relationships with faculty and peers.
For more information, contact Birberick at (815) 753-0494 or annie@niu.edu or Spears at (815 753-8154 or jspears1@niu.edu.
Date posted: April 13, 2012 | Author: Joseph King | Comments Off on Faculty invited to learn details on ‘2020’ project to make introductory courses more interactive
NIU marketing alumnus Dean DeBiase and billionaire Donald Trump reminisced a bit over old times Sunday, April 8, when DeBiase appeared on Trump’s show, “The Celebrity Apprentice.”
DeBiase was there on behalf of Entertainment.com, where he serves as chairman and CEO.
The 1980 College of Business alum challenged the show’s contestants to create a 60-second commercial for the company’s new service for online and mobile couponing.
Before the cameras got rolling, however, DeBiase reminded Trump that the two had spoken before.
In 2004, DeBiase played the role of Trump in The NIU Marketing Apprentice, a class the NIU College of Business modeled after Trump’s show. The similarity was almost too much for Trump’s lawyers.
“We were nervous when they called,” said DeBiase. But the NIU Marketing Apprentice team sprang into action and talked to Trump directly about how they were thoughtfully adopting key components of the show into the new popular NIU class.
“Rather than jumping all over us for blatantly copying his brand and TV show, he instead told us that it was a gutsy move, and then agreed to talk to the class,” DeBiase said. “When he called, that was a pivotal learning moment for those students, taking ‘Where the Classroom Meets the Business World’ to a whole new level.”
Trump even spotlighted the class on his weekly radio show, propelling it into the national spotlight.
When DeBiase reminded Trump about their conversation, The Donald” recalled it well, saying, “NIU … terrific school, great kids!”
DeBiase’s challenge for the current cast of celebrity contestants helped to spark some fireworks of its own, prompting one of the most intense boardroom showdowns ever between teammates. The episode can be viewed online.
Date posted: April 9, 2012 | Author: Joseph King | Comments Off on Alum chats up The Donald, ‘Trump’ to Trump
“It began with one trip to Galveston, Texas, to assist with clean-up following Hurricane Ike, which hit in fall of 2008,” said Becky Harlow, assistant director for community service with the office of Student Involvement and Leadership Development. “Since then, the program has grown to include multiple destinations, each of which are chosen and led by a group of student coordinators.”
The program provides students with a chance to escape the grind of their studies, while giving back a little something to society.
“Many of my friends decided to escape reality for spring break and head to beaches in Florida and Mexico,” said Khaled Ismail, a senior political science major. “I felt like I needed to do something that would help me get focused and motivated when I get back to the final stretch of the semester,”
This year, NIU offered six Alternative Spring Break programs:
Kissimmee, Fla. Students volunteered at Give Kids the World, a specialized resort used by families making Make-A-Wish Foundation trips to Florida theme parks. They served meals, gave train rides, oversaw game rooms and participated in safety patrol, among many other tasks.
Niceville, Fla. Students participated in a program called Community Collaborations helping with a Gulf Coast restoration project by installing new plant life along the coast. By the end of the week, volunteers had collectively moved 30 tons of plants.
Pensacola, Fla. Students who participated in the Habitat for Humanity trip helped build houses for low income families from the ground up. They put up walls, nailed down roofs, and installed windows.
Newark, N.J. Students helped clean-up Boys and Girls Club facilities, volunteered in an elementary school, helping with homework, leading class activities, and engaging in outdoor and gym-time play experiences with the children.
Washington, D.C. Students who were part of the Youth Service Opportunities Project volunteered for different organizations with activities that included preparing and serving meals at soup kitchens, providing recreational activities and companionship to young, formerly homeless children and distributing food and supplies at food pantries.
Washington, D.C. A group of students enrolled in a political science course traveled to the nation’s capital where they met and networked with NIU Alumni toured the White House, Capitol Hill, and the Supreme Court, to gain a greater understanding of how the government works.
The participating students said that they had no regrets about trading fun in sun for a week of service.
“It was just great to meet new people who had the mutual priority of helping others,” said junior Rosa Mejia, who participated in the Habitat for Humanity trip.
Many of the students said that they hoped more of their peers would opt for the Alternative Spring Break experience in the future.
“My experience was life changing,” junior Brooke Pillar said. “My hope is that all people get the opportunity to experience something like that at least once in their lifetime.”
by Constance Ervins
Date posted: April 8, 2012 | Author: Joseph King | Comments Off on Students spend spring break serving others
The last time DeBiase was connected with “The Apprentice,” he was the one at the head of the table telling contestants, “You’re fired.”
That was in 2004, when he and two other alums filled the role of Donald Trump as part of The NIU Marketing Apprentice. That class, based on Trump’s hit show, had teams of students competing against one another for scholarship money.
On “The Celebrity Apprentice,” DeBiase will play himself – the chairman and CEO of Entertainment.com, which recently launched a mobile phone app that allows members to find and take advantage of discounts, promotions and coupons at participating businesses.
He will be tasking the teams of celebrities with creating a 60-second commercial for his company, and will ultimately choose the winner of that competition.
One reason he agreed to appear on the show, he says, were his memories of the NIU competition.
That class got headlines around the nation, and Trump used his weekly radio spot to praise the program. The Donald even took the time to speak with participants of the class via conference call to encourage them in their efforts.
He has been chief executive of more than a dozen private and public corporations and Fortune 500 subsidiaries, including TNS Media, where he orchestrated a roll-up of advertising, entertainment, digital media and social networking groups that was subsequently acquired by WPP. He also has served as CEO of Autoweb, which he took public, and built into one of the top web brands and merged with Autobytel.
In addition, DeBiase was CEO of The Imagination Network, a social media games company that was acquired by AOL.
“The Celebrity Apprentice” airs at 8 p.m. Sundays on NBC.
Date posted: April 5, 2012 | Author: Joseph King | Comments Off on NIU business alum DeBiase will appear Sunday on NBC’s ‘Celebrity Apprentice’ reality TV show
An April 3 panel discussion on wrongful convictions gave law students at Northern Illinois University a powerful lesson about the long, and sometimes twisting, road to justice.
Delivering that lesson was Juan Rivera, who spent 19 years of his life behind bars for a crime he did not commit – the rape and murder of an 11-year-old girl. Rivera was released Jan. 6 from Statesville Prison, thanks to the efforts of the Center on Wrongful Convictions at Northwestern University.
“This case was like a class in criminal procedure, but rather than a hypothetical, it is real, something that was in the headlines,” said Leonard Mandell, associate dean of the NIU College of Law, who organized the event in conjunction with the school’s Criminal Law Society.
NIU law students got a firsthand description of the events of the case from Rivera, members of his defense team, Judge Susan Hutchinson (who wrote the decision for the panel that exonerated Rivera) and Hutchinson’s clerk, Stacey Mandell, a 1996 graduate of NIU Law.
“This was one of the most sensational cases ever to come out of Lake County,” said Jane Raley, who began handling Rivera’s appeal in 2003, in her role as senior staff attorney at the Center on Wrongful Convictions. “The facts of the case unfold like a John Grisham novel, and the injustices that we saw along the way made it heartbreaking for all of us.”
Rivera, who was 19 at the time he went to jail, was convicted three separate times, based largely upon the strength of a confession that he later recanted. Each conviction resulted in a life sentence. He finally regained his freedom when an appeals court decided that, based upon new DNA evidence presented at his third trial that, “no rational trier of fact could have found the essential elements of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt.”
Despite nearly two decades in jail, which he described as “a place that is literally Hell,” Rivera says that he is not bitter.
“In order to be bitter I would have to live life angry, and I don’t have time to be angry. I just need to move forward with my life, get my education, get a job … I’m looking forward to a brighter future. I’m not thinking about the past.”
The panel discussing the wrongful conviction of Juan Rivera included (from left): Jane Raley, senior staff attorney for Northwestern’s Center on Wrongful Convictions; Juan A. Rivera, Jr.; Judy Royal, staff attorney for Northwestern’s Center on Wrongful Convictions; NIU Law alumna Stacey Mandell (’96), senior law clerk to Justice Hutchinson; and Justice Susan F. Hutchinson of the Illinois Appellate Court, Second District.
Rivera, who taught himself to speak both Arabic and Hebrew while behind bars, is currently working at a lab at Northwestern and will attend school there.
Raley said that she hoped that by sharing Rivera’s story with students at the NIU College of Law, some of them might be inspired to battle injustice in the future, no matter what career path they choose.
“Once they have been exposed to the issue of false confessions or wrongful identifications, maybe they will go on to a career as a criminal defense attorney,” she said. “Even if they work in a big law firm, maybe they’ll fight to take on a big pro bono case and represent someone who has no money. Or, if they work in a prosecutor’s office they will make the right kind of decisions at critical times during a criminal case.”
Date posted: April 5, 2012 | Author: Joseph King | Comments Off on Compelling story of wrongful conviction at heart of NIU Law event to inspire future attorneys
Team Light Up Africa is a step closer to its goal of providing cheap, affordable electricity to the developing world.
Their portable generator/energy storage device, the Zoom Box, was selected as one of 200 semifinalist in the Dell Social Innovation Challenge. The competition drew more than 1,700 submissions.
NIU’s four students are hoping to launch a company that will build and sell portable electric generators, starting in Africa.
Simple, durable and inexpensive, the device is designed to attach to just about any moving object (car, boat, oxen, bicycle, etc.) and will transform the kinetic energy of that movement into electrical energy that is stored in a battery. It can be used to replace dangerous kerosene lamps with safe electric light, charge cell phones or operate small appliances.
The team is currently working on its second generation of the device.
Engineering student Alan Hurt and accountancy majors Jason Schwebke, John Harkness and Mike Sutarik comprise the team. Their long-term goal is to provide safe, inexpensive electrical power to the 1.4 billion people worldwide who currently do not have access to electricity.
“That class was the best possible preparation for a competition like this one,” Hurt said. “(Instructor) Dennis Barsema didn’t just teach us things that you can find in books. He had a way of helping us to look inside of ourselves and find our passion, that thing waiting to be challenged and explored.”
Light Up Africa’s victory in that class came with a $10,000 check to provide some seed funding, and an introduction to some experts who can provide business-start-up advice. The Dell Competition offers an opportunity to win up to $50,000 more to help launch their venture.
Although the team got a late start compared to some of the other teams on the Dell site, its proposal resonated with visitors.
It drew 289 votes, and finished fourth among 119 energy related projects, eighth out of 391 for-profit projects, and 15th out 379 projects directed at improving conditions in Africa. Overall, it placed 42nd out of 1,721 projects.
As semifinalists, the team members will have the opportunity to work one-on-one with a DSIC-certified mentor who will help them refine their project page and develop the required finals materials – including a video pitch and a project road map.
The finals of the competition will be held in Austin, Texas, in June.
Date posted: April 3, 2012 | Author: Joseph King | Comments Off on Team Light Up Africa’s Zoom Box advances to semifinals of Dell Social Innovation Challenge
The NIU College of Law’s Criminal Law Society will host an Innocence Panel at 3 p.m. Tuesday, April 3, in the Francis X. Riley Courtroom of Swen Parson Hall inside the NIU College of Law.
Panelists will discuss the case of Juan Rivera, who spent nearly 20 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections wrongfully convicted for the rape and murder of an 11-year-old girl.
Rivera was convicted in three separate jury trials.
With the aid of the Center on Wrongful Convictions at Northwestern University, however, his conviction was overturned in December 2011 by the Illinois Appellate Court for the Second District. The decision was based on crime scene evidence and proof that DNA recovered during the investigation did not match Rivera.
The panel will include Juan A. Rivera Jr.; Jane Raley, senior staff attorney for Northwestern’s Center on Wrongful Convictions; the Honorable Justice Susan F. Hutchinson of the Illinois Appellate Court, Second District; and NIU Law alumna Stacey Mandell (’96), senior law clerk to Justice Hutchinson.
A reception will follow the event in the Thurgood Marshall Gallery. The event is free and open to the public.
The printed word was one of the greatest accomplishments in the history of mankind.
Learning how the human mind translates the printed page into complex thoughts and ideas, however, has been an important point of research for only about 40 years.
One of the leaders in that effort is NIU Professor of Psychology Joseph Magliano, whose work has attracted international attention, garnered more than $7 million in research funding and now has earned him the title of Presidential Research Professor.
“I believe that his work reflects precisely the kind of intellectual ambition that we most prize in academia and is deserving of our highest recognition for research,” says Greg Waas, chair of the Department of Psychology, in making the nomination.
Created in 1982, the NIU Presidential Research Professorship recognizes individuals who have a record of significant and sustained scholarly or creative work that helps them achieve national or international acclaim.
Since his arrival at NIU in 1996, Magliano has written more than 30 book chapters and has published more than 40 peer-reviewed papers, several of which have been featured in top journals such as Memory & Cognition and Cognition.
He has served on the editorial panels of several prominent international journals, and has worked as an officer on the governing boards for the Society for Text and Discourse and is the past president of the Society for Computers in Psychology.
He also is in demand as a lecturer and has presented his research at gatherings around the globe. He will present a series of lectures at the University of Oslo in May.
Arthur Glenberg of Arizona State University says Magliano’s ideas are influencing the entire field of cognitive psychology, pushing it to adopt a broader perspective as he works toward the creation of a general theory of event comprehension and representation.
His research also has the potential to improve how teachers teach and students learn. Toward that end, much of his research relates to improving literacy.
“Many students do not possess the higher level literacy skills that are necessary to succeed in higher education,” Magliano says. “Students in secondary education are typically not provided curriculum that focuses on developing the reading strategies necessary for success in school – exactly at the time when they need to ramp up their literacy skills to accomplish complex, disciplinary specific tasks.”
To attack that issue, Magliano has teamed with NIU colleagues Anne Britt, Keith Millis and Katja Wiemer to form what Morton Ann Gernsbacher, of the University of Wisconsin, calls “one of the strongest assemblies of text comprehension researchers in the U.S.”
Magliano also is working with colleagues around campus to develop the Center for the Interdisciplinary Study of Language and Literacy. The center, which will include scholars from the colleges of Education, Liberal Arts and Sciences and Health and Human Sciences, will strive to develop a reputation for NIU as a major center for research on language and literacy.
Some of Magliano’s current work includes:
Developing reading comprehension assessment tools to determine whether early college students use reading strategies known to promote comprehension, and reading training interventions to teach those strategies.
Developing strategies to better teach students how to use knowledge gained from multiple documents to promote critical reasoning about texts.
Exploring the relatively new, and under-studied, field of psychocinematics, the study of the psychological processes that support processing of film – how the mind and brain support the understanding and appreciation of film.
Such efforts not only helped Magliano win the honor of Presidential Research Professor; they make him stand out among his peers internationally.
“I believe that Dr. Magliano is a mover and shaker in this field, one of the world’s leaders, and he will continue to be that,” says Paul van den Broek of Leiden University, in the Netherlands, who places Magliano at the top of his area of study.
Date posted: April 2, 2012 | Author: Joseph King | Comments Off on Magliano wins Presidential Research Professor
Teresa Tanner, chief human resource officer for Fifth Third Bank, will be the keynote speaker at the 2012 Leadership Summit, scheduled for Thursday, March 22, in the Altgeld Hall Auditorium.
The event, which will be hosted by Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc, in partnership with Fifth Third Bank, is part of Women’s History Month activities at NIU. It will kick off with a reception from noon until 1 p.m., followed by a presentation and panel discussion from 1 until 3 p.m.
Tanner and the panel, which is comprised of leading women from across the university, will discuss how they broke through the glass ceiling to become influential leaders.
Tanner is responsible for human resources operations for all of Bancorp, including benefits, business partners, compensation, diversity, employee relations, executive development, HR operations, learning and recruiting. She previously served as senior vice president and director of enterprise learning for the bank, and prior to that held numerous human resource positions at other banks and for McDonald’s Corp.
Joining Tanner on the panel are:
Stacey Barsema, president of the Barsema Foundation and a member of the Board of Directors for the NIU Foundation.
Cherilyn Murer, president and CEO of Murer Consultants, Inc., and chair of the NIU Board of Trustees.
La Vonne Neal, dean of the NIU College of Education.
Seasoned sales professionals love to tell war stories about the pressure of trying to close a deal.
Very few of them, however, have faced anything like the finals of the World Collegiate Sales Open, held Friday, Feb. 24, and Saturday, Feb. 25, at the NIU College of Business.
There, the final four contestants had to persuade a “client” to sign on the dotted line, knowing that the top sales students in the world, their coaches and professional salespersons from some of the country’s largest businesses were analyzing their every move.
None of that fazed Joshua Woolls, a University of Akron student who clinched the deal, earning $2,000 in prize money, and an unbeatable story to tell interviewers as he pursues a job in the months ahead.
Woolls was the last man standing in a competition that began with 192 students from 28 business schools around the globe. The competition began in October, with students participating via telephone and Adobe Connect – the software that also happened to be the product each student was trying to “sell. Their “customers” were actually seasoned sales professionals recruited by the Professional Sales Program at NIU to judge the competition.
From that initial group, judges selected 20 finalists – including a team of three students from Austria, and a one-student team from the United Kingdom – all of whom traveled to NIU for the final round.
The contests emphasis upon telephone and online skills, are what sets the WCSO apart from other collegiate sales competitions, said NIU Professor of Marketing Robert Peterson, who was named the Outstanding Faculty Coach at the event.
“The WCSO is uniquely dynamic in that it covers everything a salesman will do,” Peterson said. “Leaving voice mails, getting past a gatekeeper, making a pitch to a CEO in a moving elevator – those things aren’t done in any other competitions.”
The goal is to make the experience as realistic as possible – and it works, said Justin Jawor, of Bolingbrook, who is studying international marketing and earning his professional sales certificate. For the last two-and-a-half years, Jawor has traveled the country on behalf of an organization that encourages companies to provide internship opportunities for students around the globe. He found the competition tougher than facing his clients.
“I think the real world might be a little bit easier,” Jawor said. “When you are a student selling, people give you a little bit of a break, but not here. But that is good. This is to prepare me for when I am not a student anymore.”
The challenges facing contestants were magnified for the international competitors.
“We had to make a lot of adjustments to compete in a U.S. competition,” said Lisa Pecnik, part of the Austrian contingent. “There is a different language and different customs you have to adjust to,” she added, noting that Americans are much more likely to ask direct questions than Europeans.
When students weren’t role-playing the sale of a product, they were busy selling their talents. The afternoon of the first day was dedicated to a reverse job fair, where potential employers visited booths set up by students looking for jobs, rather than the other way around.
Students also got several opportunities to socialize with sales executives.
Such interactions helped some of the participants at last year’s inaugural WCSO land jobs, including runner-up and NIU graduate Ashley Schulter, who now works for White Lodging and served as an early-round judge at this year’s event.
“The experience of competing was great because it walked you through the entire sales process,” Schulter said.
“Sometimes in the classroom you focus on the various segments separately, or get caught up focusing on the face-to-face sale.This makes you think about things like phone skills getting past the gatekeeper, and other important aspects – things I do every day now.”
Woolls walked away with the top prize of$2,000, followed by Zororo Makama of Michigan State University in second place ($1,500), Corey Kravitz of NIU ($1,000) and Casey Klauck of the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater ($500).
NIU sales student Chareen Bogner also did well in the competition, taking first class in the Voice Mail and Appointment Call categories.
Date posted: March 6, 2012 | Author: Joseph King | Comments Off on NIU hosts global sales competition
NIU President John Peters pays tribute to former Trustee Manny Sanchez during the March 1 board meeting.
Manny Sanchez, one of the founding members of the Northern Illinois University Board of Trustees, said an emotional farewell to the board Thursday, saying that while his title at the university had changed, his pride in the institution had not.
“I am ending my status as a trustee at NIU, but not my status as a lifelong ‘Go Huskies!’ NIU alum … and I’m proud of that,” he said in an emotion-choked voice.
Sanchez’s smiling face, booming voice and infectious laugh have been a fixture at campus events from NIU Foundation fundraisers to football games throughout his 15-year tenure on the board. He was a tireless promoter of NIU, whether talking to fellow alums or lobbying on behalf of the university in Springfield.
His devotion to NIU in began in 1966 when he arrived on campus as a first-generation college student full of street smarts earned growing up on the West Side of Chicago.
However, he was not prepared for what he found in the cornfields of DeKalb County. “It may only have been 65 miles west of Chicago, but for me it was 65 worlds away from where I grew up.”
He adjusted quickly, however, and flourished.
He graduated with a degree in political science in 1970, and then went on to the University of Pennsylvania, where he earned his law degree and served as president of his class.
Returning to Chicago to practice law, he eventually founded Sanchez Daniels & Hoffman, which today is the nation’s largest minority-owned law firm. He also built a reputation as a civic leader, serving on many the city’s most prominent boards and foundations.
Reflecting on Sanchez’s success, NIU President John Peters said that the outgoing trustee epitomized the story of the thousands of first-generation college students who have had a transformational experience at the university. “You think about Manny … Manny is the NIU success story. He is what NIU is all about,” Peters said.
NIU Trustee Bob Boey, left, congratulates former Trustee Manny Sanchez for his service to the board.
When the call came from Gov. Jim Edgar in 1995 to become a founding member of the NIU Board of Trustees, Sanchez jumped at the chance. By 2001, he was elected chair of the board, becoming the first Latino in Illinois to head up a public university board and one of a select few in the nation’s history.
While involved in all aspects of university business, he placed special emphasis on expanding opportunities and support for Latino students.
During his tenure as chair, he organized a groundbreaking conference that brought together key lawmakers, national policymakers, renowned educators and Latino community leaders to begin dialogue on how to improve college retention and graduation rates for Latinos.
His many other contributions included playing a major role in successful efforts to pass Senate Bill 770, which resulted in the university’s acquisition of 200 acres now know as the West Campus – the largest land acquisition by NIU in the last half century.
Sanchez also helped preside over a campus building boom that included dozens of construction projects such as the Convocation Center, NIU-Naperville, the Center for Latino and Latin American Studies, a new Campus Child Care Center, the Barsema Alumni and Visitors Center, Barsema Hall and the renovation of Altgeld Hall.
However, he is most proud of serving as part of the search committee that brought Peters to the university 12 years ago.
“I think that is the proudest accomplishment I have as a trustee,” he said. “Look at where we have gone thanks to that great leader.”
“I am thrilled to have the opportunity to try to elevate the whole situation for Latinos in this country,” said Sanchez, reiterating his belief that some sort of educational opportunity beyond high school is the key to improving lives for future generations.
Wheeler Coleman replaced Sanchez on the NIU Board of Trustees. Trustee Robert Boey is now the only original trustee appointed 15 years ago still serving on the board.
Date posted: March 1, 2012 | Author: Joseph King | Comments Off on Longtime NIU Trustee Manny Sanchez bids farewell to board, receives award from Peters
Like most universities, Northern Illinois University is a hub for research and discovery. Unlike at many other schools, however, NIU undergraduates get in on the action.
