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Achievements
INSIDE ILLINOIS, Feb. 18, 2010 [ Email | Share ]
IN THIS ISSUE: ACES | campus rec | engineering | FAA | IL-IN sea grant | LAS | library | public affairs
agricultural, consumer and environmental sciences
The Moms Association at the UI has selected Karen Chapman-Novakofski, a professor of food science and human nutrition, to receive the 2010 Medallion of Honor Award.
Chapman-Novakofski will be recognized for her contributions at the association’s annual board meeting April 17.
According to the selection committee, Chapman-Novakofski, who also is affiliated with Extension and the College of Medicine, is committed to being an exceptional educator and is dedicated to engaging her students through relevant, multidimensional educational experiences.
She has served as a mentor to middle school girls through the Girls in Engineering, Math and Science program and to high school and college students through Women in Math, Science and Engineering.
The award was created in 1966 to pay tribute to individuals who, by example and service, have used their talents to enrich the lives of others.
campus recreation
Campus Recreation marketing staff members were recently recognized by the National Intramural-Recreational Sports Association. The association’s Creative Excellence Awards are designed to recognize the innovation and creativity of members and acknowledge their outstanding accomplishments in marketing recreational sports, fitness, facilities and programs.
The I-Cook television show placed first in the audiovisual category. The show, a collaboration between Campus Recreation and UI-7, is filmed once a month at the Instructional Kitchen at the Activities and Recreation Center. The program focuses on quick and healthy recipes and is broadcast weekly on UI-7. Team members: Executive producers Kate Brickman, UI-7 coordinator; Susan Kundrat, nutritionist in sports programming; and Erik Riha, lead assistant director of marketing at Campus Recreation; and producer Janet Kroencke, assistant director of Campus Recreation.
In the comprehensive brochure category, Campus Recreation’s “2008-09 Campus Recreation Annual Report” placed third. Mark Stinson, assistant director of communications, designed the report; Riha was the writer/editor.
In the large-scale signage category, the “ARC Wintergarden Banners” placed third. Eunmi Moon, assistant director of communications, designed the banners; Riha served as project manager.
The Activities and Recreation Center has received an Outstanding Sports Facilities Award from the National Intramural-Recreational Sports Association and was named one of “America’s Best Renovated Sports Facilities” by Sports Event Magazine.
The NIRSA facilities awards are presented for creative, innovative designs of new, renovated or expanded collegiate recreational facilities. As one of the “Best Renovated”sports facilities, the ARC will be one of several facilities featured in a special edition of the magazine, which is one of the industry’s leaders in sports tourism and business publications specifically designed for generating exposure for communities that host collegiate, amateur and semi-pro sports events.
The ARC, one of the country’s largest on-campus recreation centers, opened in August 2008 after three years of renovation to the 1971-constructed Intramural Physical Education building (IMPE).
engineering
The College of Engineering is No. 1 on “The Most-Cited Institutions in Engineering, 1999-2009” list of institutions with their research papers published in Thomson Reuters-indexed engineering journals. This month, ScienceWatch.com highlighted the top 20 institutions worldwide as of the fifth bi-monthly update of Essential Science Indicators (Jan. 1, 1999-Oct. 31, 2009). According to ScienceWatch.com: “The top-ranked institution in this field is the University of Illinois, with 5,821 papers cited a total of 44,094 times. Diverse topics such as mechanism-based strain plasticity, microchannel flow studies, single-wall carbon nanotubes, face recognition, direct formic acid fuel cells, and technology for climate research are among the most-cited papers for this university.”
The Web site noted, “These institutions are the top 20 out of a pool of 1,084 institutions comprising the top 1 percent ranked by total citation count in this field.”
fine and applied arts
Tere O’Connor, a UI professor of dance, has been selected as a United States Artists Fellow. The annual fellowships are awarded in the form of $50,000 unrestricted grants to 50 artists who have made significant contributions to their fields and demonstrated artistic excellence and unique artistic vision.
The fellowships are awarded to artists in eight categories of creative disciplines, including architecture and design, crafts and traditional arts, and the visual arts. The finalists for this year’s awards were chosen from 348 applicants. Since the grants are unrestricted, the recipients may use them to fund their work, for philanthropy or even for personal use.
USA is a grant-making, artist-advocacy organization dedicated to supporting America’s finest artists in diverse disciplines.
The Smart Energy Design Assistance Center, managed by the School of Architecture, received the Inspiring Efficiency Education Award from the Midwest Energy Efficiency Alliance at the organization’s 2010 Midwest Energy Solutions Conference in January.
The award is presented to organizations that have developed and implemented a local campaign, program, strategy or idea to increase knowledge and action on energy efficiency.
SEDAC provides advice and analyses enabling private and public facilities in the state of Illinois to increase their economic viability through the efficient use of energy resources.
Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant
Content from the “Nab the Aquatic Invader!” educational Web site about aquatic invasive species will be featured at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History as part of the Ocean Today Kiosk in the Sant Ocean Hall.
The Web site was created by Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant along with Sea Grant programs in Connecticut, Louisiana, New York and Oregon to provide the latest information about aquatic invasive species through colorful characters and a crime-solving theme. Since its inception, the project has expanded to include species from coastal regions around the country.
“In addition to being clever and fun, the site is rich with curriculum for teachers, ideas for stewardship projects and creative educational activities for students and other online audiences,” said Robin Goettel, associate director for education at Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant.
Kiosks also will be located at a growing network of aquariums across the nation through the Coastal America’s Ecosystem Learning Centers, including one already installed at the John G. Shedd Aquarium in Chicago.
liberal arts and sciences
Matti Bunzl, a professor of anthropology, of history and of German, has been appointed associate artistic director for the Chicago Humanities Festival. Bunzl joins the festival staff through mid-November 2010, which will mark the conclusion of the 21st annual festival. He will work closely with the festival’s programming and artistic staff to develop ideas and reach out to speakers and performers for this year’s event.
library
Paula T. Kaufman, the Juanita J. and Robert E. Simpson dean of libraries and university librarian, has been named the 2010 winner of the Hugh C. Atkinson Memorial Award. Named in honor of one of the pioneers of library automation, the award recognizes an academic librarian who has made significant contributions in the area of library automation or management and has made notable improvements in library services or research.
Kaufman will receive a cash award and citation during the joint Association of College and Research Libraries/Library Leadership and Management Association awards program in June at the American Library Association annual conference in Washington, D.C.
The award is jointly sponsored by four divisions of the American Library Association: ACRL, the Association for Library Collections and Technical Services, Library Leadership and Management Association, and the Library and Information Technology Association.
public affairs
Public Affairs presented its second annual ACME awards (Awards for Communications and Marketing Excellence) for campus professionals at its annual Public Affairs seminar last semester.
Those recognized:
Kirsten Ruby, director of marketing, University Housing, received the Media Relations Award.
The Branding Leadership Award was presented to Renee Lyell, marketing and communications manager in the Center for Training and Professional Development (formerly known as T4B).
The Team Player Award recognized a team of professional communicators at Facilities and Services: Andy Blacker, publicity and promotions specialist; Dee Dee Caneva, associate director of customer relations and communications; and Judy Lateer, communication specialist.
The Innovation in Marketing Award went to Brad Petersen, assistant director of marketing in the department of electrical and computer engineering. The Crisis Communications Award was presented to the University Relations Team: Tom Hardy, executive director; Ginny Hudak-David, associate director; and Melanie Kuehn, project coordinator.
Todd Short, director of emergency planning for the Division of Public Safety, was presented with the Extra Mile award.
The Communicator of the Year was presented to Trish Barker, senior public information specialist at NCSA.
