When Anne Hanley first traveled to Brazil as a high school foreign-exchange student, she was enthralled by the noise and colors, the ubiquitous smell of sautéing onions and garlic, and the incredible warmth of the people. But when she returned several years later while studying economics in college, what stood out most was a question...

NIU has named Communication Professor David Gunkel, an internationally acclaimed scholar of information technology, as a 2021 Presidential Research, Scholarship and Artistry Professor. The award is NIU’s top recognition for outstanding research or artistry. It has been given out annually since 1982 in recognition and support of NIU’s research and artistic mission. Award winners receive...

NIU has named Meteorology Professor Walker Ashley, who has attracted international attention with his investigations into extreme weather and societal impacts, as a 2021 Presidential Research, Scholarship and Artistry Professor. The award is NIU’s top recognition for outstanding research or artistry. It has been given out annually since 1982 in recognition and support of NIU’s...

Professor Melissa Lenczewski, who directs NIU’s Institute for the Study of Environment, Sustainability, and Energy (IESE), has been named recipient of the 2021 Presidential Engagement and Partnerships Professorship. The professorship is awarded annually to faculty members who foster reciprocal partnerships, undertake socially responsive research, engage external communities, mentor students in collaborative projects outside the university and...

For the past 28 years, Paula Frasz has been designing dances that mirror her students, their experiences and the world we all live in. “All artists reflect wherever they are,” she said. “I don’t just see our students in the classroom. This is my community. This is their community and their surroundings.” As the makeup...

In nominating Prof. Sinclair Bell for the Presidential Teaching Professorship, Judith Testa, professor emerita of the NIU School of Art and Design, described Bell as “that rare individual among university faculty members: a brilliant, innovative and extraordinarily productive scholar who is also a brilliant and inspiring teacher.” Bell, professor of art history at NIU, is...

For some, their professions are in their blood. So it is for Mary Lynn Henningsen, a professor in the Department of Communication, who inherited from her ancestors not only a career path but a belief system as well. “My maternal grandmother and my mother were both teachers,” says Henningsen, who came to NIU in 2001....

Purushothaman Damodaran, Ph.D. joined NIU in 2009 as an assistant professor in industrial and systems engineering (ISYE) and in 2012 was named chair of the ISYE department. His teaching career, which spans 25 years and four states started when he was a research assistant. While he possesses a soft-spoken, quiet demeanor and a gentle persona,...

Teaching isn’t what Lisa Finkelstein does; it’s who she is. The 2021 NIU Presidential Teaching Professorship award winner and professor in the Department of Psychology has been sharing her passion with Huskie students for almost 25 years. “Coming to realize that teaching is not just what I do – but it’s who I am –...

For the past four years, NIU senior Alex Kramer has witnessed the growth of collegiate esports firsthand as a player, a student worker and a community ambassador, and through lectures and academics. Esports – the field of organized, competitive video gaming – is a multimillion-dollar industry with the same opportunities for coaching, marketing, management, data...

The Presidential Commission on Race and Ethnicity (PCORE), formerly the Presidential Commission on the Status of Minorities (PSCM), has reimagined the annual Diversity and Inclusion luncheon as a virtual summit. The event will take place on Wednesday, April 14 beginning at noon. The summit offers three programs including an afternoon awards ceremony, and afternoon program...

“Mini disk recorder slash player.” “The old cassette recorder.” “DAT tape, known for failing miserably and getting lots of crackles as you play them back.” “Ooh. That is a… What is it? …. Tube transformer?” A lot has changed in the 30 years since WNIJ 89.5 signed on the air, as Reporter Susan Stephens and...