NIU Today

Toni Van Laarhoven used to share the stage with her twin sister as they rocked clubs with their band Go Figure. But those days are behind her now as she devotes her attention to making a difference in the classroom. Since childhood, she always wanted to work with children with disabilities. Having a sister with...

NIU’s College of Education has introduced four new department chairs. “This is an exciting time in the college, and I am impressed by our new department leaderships’ experience and innovative ideas,” Dean La Vonne I. Neal said. “I am confident that these scholar/administrators will not only continue the excellent work of their predecessors but also...

Jodi Sticken and Gaylen Kapperman, both of the NIU College of Education’s Vision Program, were awarded a $1.25 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education to train teachers and orientation and mobility instructors to work with children who are blind. Kapperman said the grant – which will be dispersed over the next five years – enables...

Taking a preview course before starting training for a new career is a little like taking a new car for a test drive – informative and helpful. Northern Illinois University’s Department of Special and Early Education in the College of Education is offering people the chance to “test drive” the Early Childhood Studies program by...

Finding the motivation to get to class can be difficult at times. Many individuals have experienced the desire to participate and learn in the comfort of their own living spaces. Some Northern Illinois University students are currently “living the dream,” because NIU now offers a number of classes that meet online either completely or at...

Use a chainsaw while wearing a blindfold. Would you do it? Two students from the NIU Special Education program were champing at the bit to be able to do so after being accepted into the National Federation of the Blind (NFB) Teacher of Tomorrow Program. The program debuted in 2010 with a cohort of 16 students...

Moses Mutuku, who cried as a child because he had no books to read, wanted to give opportunities to the children of his rural Kenyan homeland. Opportunities to learn. To grow. To gain the aspirations and tools for careers other than farming. The professor in NIU’s College of Education frequently returned home to foster educational...

Nathan LaForte served eight years in active duty with the U.S. Marine Corps and one year in the reserves, working as a mechanic and a journalist. Other Marines showed him those ropes. “They always had me do the on-the-job training,” says LaForte, who received his undergraduate degree in psychology from NIU in May of 2011,...

Albinism. Some have heard the word before, but few people fully understand the difficulties a person with albinism faces. Individuals with albinism lack pigmentation, usually in the hair, skin and eyes. The lack of pigmentation in the eyes causes visual impairments and can also cause nystagmus (involuntary movements of the eyes). While these impairments can...

Northern Illinois volleyball seniors Kristin Hoffman (Batavia, Ill./Batavia) and Allison McGlaughlin (Morton, Ill./Morton) and sophomore Lauren Wicinski (Geneva, Ill./Geneva) earned Capital One Academic All-District 5 recognition, the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) announced Thursday. Both Hoffman and McGlaughlin were named to the first team, while Wicinski garnered a second team selection. Last season,...

On Molly Clesen’s last day of teaching, one of her students asked her for a token of remembrance. They had formed a special bond over the summer, and Clesen was touched that the child had asked. She found a bracelet with her name on it and described what it looked like to the young girl,...

NIU and National Taiwan Normal University (NTNU) in Taipei, Taiwan, signed an historic memorandum of understanding (MOU) June 28, 2011, agreeing to foster academic exchange and cooperation between the two institutions. This agreement allows for the exchange of students, faculty and information as well as collaboration in academic programs, conferences and research. Any college or...