Change in Bill Cycles Effective June 15, FM&CS work order billings are being processed twice a month to provide more up-to-date cost information.
With the exception of June, billings will be processed as of the 15th and last calendar day of the month. To help create a more accurate end-of-year budget status and accommodate lapse transactions, June billings will be processed as of June 15, June 29 and June 30.
The journal number (i.e., WKO062016) will remain the same for all billings within each month but dated for each bill cycle as outlined above. All project encumbrance offset journals will also follow this new schedule.
Furniture Repair Starting Friday, July 1, Furniture Repair will use the Work Management System. All furniture repair charges will be included in the WKO journals as outlined above.
Portal A web-based portal for initiating work requests in the work management system is coming soon. Once the portal is available for campus use, further information will be communicated.
For more information, email Adrienne Arhos at aarhos@niu.edu.
Date posted: June 30, 2016 | Author: Mark McGowan | Comments Off on Facilities Management & Campus Services enhances processes
NIU College of Law alumna Karoline Carstens stands out from her peers thanks to a lifelong desire to help others, a commitment to know each of her clients on a personal level and a drive to be involved with every step of her cases.
Carstens’ compassion and accomplishments, both as a lawyer and volunteer in her community, has earned her distinction and recognition from the Illinois State Bar Association (ISBA) as a Young Lawyer of the Year for 2016.
“Karoline’s significant settlement results, her exceptional lawyering skills and her commitment to the Illinois bar and Illinois pro bono community make her an exceptional choice for the Young Lawyer of the Year award,” said Perry J. Browder, a shareholder and head of the Asbestos Litigation Group. “Karoline works on all aspects of her clients’ cases which are filed in multiple courts around the country. Her work generates immediate results for her clients who have been diagnosed with mesothelioma – one of the rarest and deadliest forms of cancer.”
Carstens was presented the award June 18 at the ISBA Assembly Meeting in Chicago. Each year, two attorneys – one from Cook County and one from elsewhere in Illinois – receive the award. ISBA Young Lawyers of the Year recipients must be ISBA members in good standing who have not yet reached the age of 36.
Since joining Simmons Hanly Conroy in 2006 as an associate, Carstens has assisted in recovering hundreds of millions of dollars for her clients. Following her early work in the firm’s Complex Litigation Department prosecuting consumer class action, Qui Tam and pharmaceutical cases, Carstens focuses her practice on helping those affected by asbestos-related diseases, such as mesothelioma.
Prior to joining the firm, Carstens served as an intern at the McLean County, Ill., State’s Attorney’s Office and as a legal assistant at Robert Half Legal, working on a lead poisoning case. At NIU, she externed at the Zeke Giorgi Legal Clinic in Rockford and served as vice president of the NIU chapter of Amnesty International.
Date posted: June 30, 2016 | Author: Mark McGowan | Comments Off on NIU Law alumna named Illinois’ Young Lawyer of the Year for 2016
Do you have a great idea for a new or improved product but are unsure where to start?
Whether your “next big thing” is currently at the “idea on a napkin” stage or beyond, join NIU EIGERlab to discuss moving it forward: The Innovation Tuesday Meetup for July 12 will cover “Commercializing Your Product: Where do You Start?”
NIU EIGERlab boasts more than a decade of experience assisting both inventors and entrepreneurs with all aspects of product development.
The July 12 discussion will focus on product development covering product design, design analysis, prototyping, reverse engineering, manufacturing, assembly, field testing and packaging. The presentation also will touch on the business side including market research, identifying similar products on the market, patents, copyrights, trademarks, business plans and more.
All are invited to attend from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at NIU-Rockford, 8500 E. State St.
Digging beyond his professional career as an attorney and his goals for the ISBA presidency – “working to brighten the future of young lawyers, advocating for diversity and inclusion in the profession, and offering relevant continuing legal education for small-firm members” – the story also explores his childhood in Joliet.
Cornelius … has memories of wanting to be an attorney since he was in elementary school, citing “both substantive and shallow” reasons for being drawn to the profession. The substantive piece traces to his mother, who had a master’s degree in human development and “loved helping people,” he says. “I loved that about my mom. And that was something that was important to me. I saw my mom help people a lot when they were at their lowest points.”
And the “shallow” reason? “I was a big fan of a show called Perry Mason,” he says with a laugh. “And somewhere, between those two things, I decided way too early in life that I wanted to be a lawyer.”
The Chicago Daily Law Bulletin also reported on Cornelius: “It’s a tremendous honor, especially to know that you are elected by your fellow members of the Illinois State Bar Association. I am really excited about the opportunities that are out in front of us right now and what the future holds for our association.”
Recipients of this biennial award will present their research at the 2016 MAPC Conference at Indiana University Southeast and the University of Louisville, scheduled from Oct. 5 through Oct. 8.
Hill will conduct research and experimentation in monotype and relief processes on fiber materials. This new body of work also will be exhibited in the fall at Northeastern Illinois University’s Fine Arts Center.
An artist and educator from Chicago, Hill works as a teaching artist who brings transformative arts education to Chicago youth with limited access. She is an active member of the art community in Chicago, serving as a board member for the Chicago Printers Guild.
The Vermont Studio Center’s mission is to provide studio residencies in an inclusive, international community, honoring creative work as the communication of spirit through form.
Date posted: June 28, 2016 | Author: Mark McGowan | Comments Off on MFA candidate Rachelle Hill receives travel grant to Vermont
Gena Flynn, the new director of NIU’s Center for Black Studies, brings 16 years of higher education leadership experience to her new job directing the center’s efforts to promote excellence and engagement in teaching, learning, scholarship, artistry, outreach and service.
Flynn, who will assume her new role July 1, has spent most of her career developing initiatives to promote diversity, equity and inclusion.
She began at the University of Michigan, where she worked in the Office of Academic Multicultural Initiatives, first as a program assistant, then as a director and consultant. There she coordinated symposia, promoted diversity education and directed the Pathways to Student Success and Excellence program.
From 2007 until 2014, she worked at Columbia College Chicago, where she helped lead the Conaway Achievement Project, directing programs and initiatives designed to assist underrepresented students. In that role she collaborated with college advising, counseling services, the dean of students and academic units on campus to facilitate student success.
More recently, she led the office of Academic Support at North Central College in Naperville. For the past year, she helped lead a strategic planning process at the University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre & Dance, developing programs and processes to promote diversity and inclusion.
“We are delighted to have her as part of the NIU community,” said NIU Chief Diversity Officer Vernese Edghill-Walden, senior associate vice president for Academic Diversity. “She brings with her a tremendous understanding of our students and their needs. She has demonstrated an ability to connect with students, and understands the value of such interactions to the Center for Black Studies. I believe she will engage nationally recognized organizations like the Association of Black Cultural Centers to strengthen the center and take it to new heights.”
Flynn said she is eager to work with staff at the Center for Black Studies to maintain its role as a place where students, staff, faculty and community members can engage in a culturally conscious manner. She also is eager to expand its offerings.
“As the director, the ability to develop new initiatives, is exciting. I look forward to building relationships across campus that support student success and faculty scholarship. There are many issues affecting the Black diaspora that deserve attention, and there is no better space to explore, study and dialogue than at the center.”
LaVerne Gyant, the outgoing director of the center, said she looks forward to welcoming Flynn to campus.
“This is a great opportunity for the center to move forward and continue its growth,” Gyant said. “It’s a new era, new opportunities, new successes, a new journey – and I know that Dr. Flynn will lead the way.”
Flynn holds a bachelor’s degree in African American Studies and Political Science from DePaul University; a master’s in political science (with a focus on black politics/law and politics/public opinion) from the University of Michigan; and an Ed.D. from Vanderbilt University in Higher Education, Leadership, and Policy.
Established in 1971, the center works to support student success. It also conducts research on the experiences of people of African descent and offers a minor in black studies. It also promotes the retention of black students and sponsors lectures, workshops, conferences and other student-oriented activities.
Date posted: June 27, 2016 | Author: Mark McGowan | Comments Off on Gena Flynn to lead NIU Center for Black Studies
DeKalb Mayor John Rey, NIU President Doug Baker and DeKalb City Manager Anne Marie Gaura
When DeKalb Mayor John Rey and I first shook hands April 2, 2013, it became clear that he and I shared a common and urgent goal: to knock down the silos between NIU and the City of DeKalb.
We want a great place to live and work. We want our teaching and research to boost the prosperity of our city and region. We want students and faculty to enjoy engagement opportunities off campus that enhance their work and transform their learning.
We want a strong and successful business community that serves faculty, staff and students and fosters a positive local culture. We also want a safe environment – and we are working together to provide and maintain that.
Just three short years later, our flourishing spirit of collaboration is being held up as a model of transformative policy that creates a town-gown culture of mutual benefit.
Our talk was well-received, especially by one member of the audience who is not only a university professor in Michigan but also the mayor of her city.
She was amazed and impressed to hear a mayor – without prompting – speak of issues of student recruitment and retention, faculty research and university engagement. Or a city manager explain how she talks with her staff on the need to integrate town and gown. Or a university president reference issues of poverty, Section 8 housing and local quality of life.
Indeed, NIU has actively reserved seats at our table for our friends from City Hall – and they for us.
We have established regular meetings. We have created visions together. We have gathered to map out strategic roads to accomplish those goals. We have shared our capital, both intellectual and financial.
Successful outcomes of our collaboration include Proudly DeKalb – that group elevated our city to the semifinals of the America’s Best Communities competition – and Camp Power.
Needless to say, I’m proud of the work NIU and our community partners do together – and of the peer recognition from the International Town & Gown Association that validates our efforts. We are on the right track.
Date posted: June 16, 2016 | Author: Mark McGowan | Comments Off on Baker Report: A model of the thriving university community
This support group will provide caregivers a place to discuss their personal experiences and hear presentations from speakers on topics ranging from educational, legal, medical, mental, transitional and adaptive challenges for families of children with ASD.
Meetings are planned from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. on the second Thursday of each month at 3100 Sycamore Road in DeKalb.
The first meeting is planned for Thursday, July 14. Diane E. Elliott, an attorney who focuses her legal practice on family law matters, will speak. Elliott has worked in school law and has more than 20 years of teaching experience.
Refreshments will be served. Childcare and activities will be provided; feel free to bring the whole family.
For more information, call (815) 753-1664 or email dfannin@niu.edu.
Date posted: June 13, 2016 | Author: Mark McGowan | Comments Off on Support group planned for caregivers of children with autism
The program aims to promote the interrelationship of teaching, research and service through theory, action and reflection in response to community needs and to develop and translate academic knowledge, critical thinking and community engagement into civic responsibility.
The Faculty Fellows program provides an opportunity for one or two exemplary faculty members to serve as ambassadors, advocates and mentors for NIU faculty and staff, providing leadership and guidance around the incorporation of service-learning pedagogy into existing or new courses.
Faculty Fellows will receive up to $2,500 in compensation and professional development funds over the two year commitment ($1,500 the first year and up to $1,000 the second year) and will be provided with an undergraduate teaching assistant, if desired.
The program is open to all tenured and tenure- rack faculty involved in undergraduate teaching from any department on campus.
Student email will remain in Gmail throughout the summer semester and switch to Office 365, starting Aug. 11; more communications are coming.
Don’t wait until August to get started, however; students can begin moving their Google Drive content to OneDrive now. See how.
Since 2014, NIU students have had access to free Office 365 features such as 1TB OneDrive accounts with the ability to look up and share documents with classmates and faculty, as well as up to five full desktop installs of Microsoft Office 2016 and multiple O365 mobile apps.
NIU’s Operating Staff Council will host crochet and knit workshops open to all faculty, staff and students this month.
