Monday, November 03, 2008

UIS presents Marantz with advocate leadership award

The University of Illinois at Springfield has named Tom Marantz, chairman of the board and chief executive officer of the Bank of Springfield, as the recipient of the 2008 William E. Winter Award for Outstanding Advocate Leadership at UIS.

The award honors a volunteer who has shown extraordinary leadership in supporting the development goals and efforts of the University of Illinois. It is named for William Winter, a 1942 graduate of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, retired chairman of the 7-Up Company, member of the U of I Board of Directors and Ambassador for the University of Illinois.

Marantz is a long-time avid supporter and advocate of the UIS Prairie Stars athletics programs. In 2004, he established the Jack Marantz Memorial Scholarship in memory of his late father. He also funded the purchase of a state-of-the-art scoreboard for the arena of UIS' Recreation and Athletic Center through the Bank of Springfield.

Marantz was also a featured speaker at the annual Scholarship Luncheon in 2004, where he discussed the importance of private giving in the development of a top university.

"Tom has been instrumental in increasing community awareness of the athletics corporate partnership program," said Nick Dolce, assistant athletic director for development at UIS, who nominated Marantz for the award. "He goes above and beyond anything asked of him, and he understands the importance of giving student-athletes the opportunity to attend college through private giving. He has never lost sight of the value of an education."

In addition to his contributions to UIS, Marantz also serves the Springfield community in a variety of ways, including director of the Springfield Urban League, director of the Springfield Redevelopment Corporation, past president of the Land of Lincoln United Cerebral Palsy and leadership panel of the United Way of Central Illinois.

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