Category: Awards
NIU President John G. Peters invites the entire university community to join him in congratulating the newly named Board of Trustees Professors, Presidential Teaching Professors, Presidential Research Professor, Presidential Engagement Professor, and the Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching and Instruction Award. A reception in their honor is planned from 3 to 5 p.m. Monday, April 22,...
NIU College of Law Dean Jennifer Rosato was honored with a 2013 Vanguard Award from the Hispanic Lawyers Association of Illinois April 17 at the Standard Club in Chicago. The Vanguard Award recognizes lawyers, judges and institutions who champion diversity, making the law and the legal profession more accessible to and reflective of the community...
What is an “educated” person? For those who teach, such as the NIU Department of History’s E. Taylor Atkins, it’s an important question without consensus. “Is it someone whose mind is a storehouse of data that can be recalled instantly? Or is an educated person a critical, free thinker and problem solver?” asks Atkins, who...
Sometimes, E. Taylor Atkins becomes frustrated and cynical when confronted with students who aren’t academically well prepared or who have little interest in what he has to offer. Yet whether they fail to bring intellectual curiosity, the willingness to tackle challenging material or goals beyond good jobs after graduation, Atkins is not deterred. “I inform...
Christopher Jones wants his political science students to interrupt him with thoughtful questions and comments. He wants them to steer classroom discussion. He wants them to feel comfortable. He also wants to give them some gain without the pain. “My students have been especially receptive to the use of published case studies based on controversial...
Count Pam Smith among NIU’s legion of lifelong learners, especially when it concerns effective teaching. Her goal is to “create a learning environment based on respect, individual accountability, ethics and personal integrity.” “When I started teaching, I thought if I provided sound technical content and motivated students, they would learn the material. Therefore, much of...
NIU’s Presidential Commission on the Status of Minorities has announced the recipients of the 2013 Deacon Davis Diversity Awards: student Latasha Bennett, staff member Sandy Lopez, faculty members James Cohen and Nancy Russo and the Society of Women Engineers. Named in honor of Deacon Davis, founder and former Director of the CHANCE (Counseling Help &...
Chemist Elizabeth Gaillard, geographer Wei Luo and physicist Philippe Piot have been named recipients of the 2013 Presidential Research Professor, Northern Illinois University’s top recognition for outstanding research and artistry. “Each of the individuals selected for this honor is recognized as a leader and innovator in their fields,” said Lisa Freeman, NIU Vice President for...
Over the next two decades, the number of Americans with macular degeneration is expected to double, to more than 24 million. NIU’s Elizabeth Gaillard is working to slow, or stop, that process. During her 16 years as a professor the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry and Biological Sciences at NIU, Gaillard has established herself as...
Mention geography and most people think of things like states, capitals, mountains and rivers. NIU geographer Wei Luo gets even more fundamental, spending a great deal of time also pondering time and space. Using geographic information systems, remote sensing, computer modeling, statistics and machine learning to ponder those factors, Luo has built a career that traverses...
Philippe Piot is working toward a day when the mammoth charged particle accelerators that allow scientists to peer into subatomic depths, can be reduced to cheap table-top devices for use in science, homeland security, medicine and industry. Piot, who holds a joint appointment between NIU and Fermilab, is an expert in advanced techniques to produce,...
NIU’s College of Engineering and Engineering Technology is committed to strengthening the pipeline of STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) students through middle school and high school programming. Building a pipeline of young students and funneling them into these disciplines ultimately ensures a more technically powered workforce for the future. One of the ways this...
