Computer Science professor wins outstanding service award

Keith Miller, UIS professor of Computer Science, is the 2006 recipient of the "Outstanding Service Award" presented by the Association for Computing Machinery and its Special Interest Group on Computers and Society.

The award recognizes Miller's many professional contributions and notes in part that his "active collaboration with computer ethicists from both the philosophy and computer science disciplines has earned him tremendous respect on an international scale." Read more>>

Alumni Association to host tour of wetlands restoration

The Uof I Alumni Association at UIS will present a tour of Illinois River wetlands restoration sites on Saturday, September 16. Hosts for the tour will be Michael Lemke, UIS associate professor of Biology and director of the Emiquon field station near Havana, as well as other UIS faculty and alumni involved in the project.

The program includes a tour of the Spunky Bottoms restoration near Meredosia, a brief tour of the Dickson Mounds State Museum, and an overview of the Emiquon project and trip to the site being restored. Read more>>

Taste of UIS series returns

The U of I Alumni Association at UIS will sponsor A Taste of UIS: Distinguished Faculty/Alumni Lunchtime Lectures – a series of three presentations to be held at Maldaner's Upstairs, 222 South Sixth St., Springfield.

The program on Wednesday, September 20, will be "The American Way: Government-Industry Collaboration in the War on Terror," featuring alumnus Mark Cheviron, who is responsible for security functions at ADM.

On Wednesday, October 18, the program will be "Politicians, Lobbyists, and Scallywags." Three veteran lobbyists will talk about what lobbyists do.

On Wednesday, November 15, the topic will be "Today's Decisions, Tomorrow’s Consequences: Challenges and Opportunities for Aging Boomers and Their Communities," with Carolyn Peck, assistant professor of Human Services-Gerontology.

Advance reservations are required. Read more>>

UIS kicks off citywide celebration of sculptor Preston Jackson

A citywide progressive celebration on September 9 will mark the grand opening of "Bearing Witness: The Art of Preston Jackson" at four locations in Springfield -- at UIS, the Illinois State Museum, Springfield Art Association, and Prairie Art Alliance -- through October 28. Each venue will display different bodies of his work.

The celebration starts with a reception and ceremony beginning at 4 p.m. Saturday, September 9, on the UIS quad in front of a monumental Jackson sculpture called "Travels of My Seven Sisters." The artist will be present. An exhibit from his most recent series, titled "Fresh From Julieanne's Garden," will be on display in the Visual Arts Gallery. Read more about Jackson's work and see the schedule for the progressive celebration>>

UIS announces spring semester deans' list

A total of 500 students were named to the UIS Deans' List for the 2006 spring semester. To qualify for the designation, a student must be an undergraduate who took at least eight graded hours and maintained a grade-point average of at least 3.75 for the semester.

Click here for a printable list of students' names, arranged alphabetically by hometown.

Auditions set for 06-07 theater season

Audition schedules for the 2006-2007 season of UIS' Theatre Program have been set. Everyone is welcome to attend and learn more about opportunities to get involved, both on and off stage.

The three productions are Anton in Show Business, As Bees in Honey Drown, and Two Rooms. Read more about the plays and see the audition schedule>>

Friday night Star Parties will resume

After a three-year hiatus, UIS will once again offer its popular Star Parties beginning Friday, September 8, and continuing every Friday night through October 27, weather permitting. Star Parties are from 8 to 10 p.m. in the UIS observatory.

This year, Professor of Astronomy/Physics Charles Schweighauser, who initiated the Star Parties and served as their host for 27 years, will be joined by John Martin, who joined the Astronomy/Physics faculty this fall. Read more>>

UIS welcomes 41 new faculty

Forty-one new faculty members have joined UIS for the 2006 fall semester. Twenty-four will teach in programs within the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences; ten will teach in the College of Public Affairs and Administration; five in the College of Business and Management; and two in the College of Education and Human Services. Read more>>

IBHE approves construction of residence hall, townhouses

Following Illinois Board of Higher Education approval this week, two new building projects will begin at UIS. Planning for a $15.8 million residence hall will start immediately and construction of six new townhouses will begin in October.

The 200-bed residence hall, to be located southwest of Lincoln Residence Hall, is expected to be open by fall 2008. The six new townhouses, set to open in 2007, will each have four, four-bedroom units and will be located near the existing townhouses. Read more>>

Media Advisory: Annual Fall Convocation

Convocation – a celebration of the new academic year with remarks by Chancellor Ringeisen and the introduction of new faculty members and administrators – will be held at 3 p.m. Thursday, August 17, in the Studio Theatre. The theme of Dr. Ringeisen’s talk will be that UIS is on an upward trajectory as it becomes a full-fledged, four-year university this fall. Read more>>

Community invited to join UIS musical groups

Members of the community interested in sharing their musical talents are invited to join one of the campus ensembles gearing up for the fall semester at UIS. Auditions are not required. Rehearsals begin the week of August 21. Read more>>

First Week welcomes students back to campus

UIS will welcome students to the fall semester with a variety of "First Week" events August 18 through 27.

Director of student life Cynthia Thompson said that First Week is a campus tradition and "a time when we try to provide all students with opportunities to meet new people, to participate in a variety of fun events, and to become acquainted with various locations and services available across campus."

Events include an Involvement Expo, an ice cream social, Camp Out on the Quad, the Chancellor’s Welcome Back Picnic, and open houses for a number of academic programs and other departments. Read more>>

Biology professor is co-author of award-winning curriculum resource

Michael Lemke, UIS associate professor of Biology, is co-author of "Exploring Microbial Diversity through a Microbe Collection," which has been named winner of the 2005 MicrobeLibrary Curriculum Resource Editor’s Choice Award presented by the American Society for Microbiology.

Lemke's co-authors were Michael Levandowsky and Thomas Gorrell from Pace University in New York, and Debra Wohl from Elizabethtown College in Pennsylvania. Read more>>