David K. Adkins ’83 recently was named president of Blackhawk Bancorp, parent company of Blackhawk Bank, based in Beloit.

Adkins has been with Blackhawk Bancorp for 10 years and he most recently served as executive vice president and chief operating officer.

Congratulations David for all your accomplishments!

Dr. Douglas Carlson Named Chair of Pediatrics

Southern Illinois University School of Medicine alumnus Douglas Carlson, M.D., has been named professor and chairman of the Department of Pediatrics.
Among his many honors, he was inducted into the Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society and received an Award for Clinical Excellence from the Society of Hospital Medicine. He is a Fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics and a Senior Fellow of Pediatrics Hospital Medicine.
Carlson earned his bachelor’s degree at Illinois Wesleyan University in Bloomington (1981) and his medical degree at SIU (1984). He completed a pediatrics residency at the St. Louis Children’s Hospital in St. Louis (1987).  He is currently board certified in Pediatrics and Pediatric Emergency Medicine. His numerous presentations, book chapters and research publications focus on a variety of pediatric conditions, from child abuse and emergency care to procedural sedation and pediatric hospital medicine. A native of Decatur, he and his wife, Kate, have two children Erik, 24 and Emily, 11.

Brad McMillan ’84, executive director of the Institute for Principled Leadership in Public Service at Bradley University, will speak on “Bringing Good Government Back to the Land of Lincoln.”  McMillan will speak on the topic Monday, Sept. 15, at 7 p.m. in the City Council chambers at Kewanee City Hall. Also, the meeting will be broadcast on Comcast local cable on Channel 13.

*Taken from the Star Courier

Chris, a Mentalist, will return to IWU to perform on Saturday, September 20, during Family Weekend!

Her’s also been featured in an article for IWU Magazine, celebrating his many talents and revealing the start of his career.

His interest in mind reading and magic began at as a child. As he watched his uncle playing poker with his friends, Carter realized that he could tell when a man was bluffing. With more practice and the help of a book about body language his mother bought him, Carter learned to guess what cards each person was holding. When he began showing people this trick, “the reaction was more powerful” than he had ever experienced with traditional magic tricks.

“From that point on,” he says, “I pretty much knew what I wanted to do.”

Carter, who grew up in Springfield, Ill., came to Illinois Wesleyan intending to be a psychology major but later switched to theatre and business, knowing both majors would be helpful in his future career. Carter also honed his skills as a hypnotist at IWU.

He spent four more years in graduate school studying theatre, but left before completing his dissertation to devote himself to the task of becoming a full-time mentalist. Carter’s first two years — performing at private parties and small corporate events in the Chicago area — were lean. But when he discovered the college market, “I knew that I had found a home for my performing,” he says.

Congratulations on your success, Chris! We can’t wait to see you at Family Weekend.

If you’d like to learn more about Chris Carter, visit his website: http://christophercartermentalist.com/

Kathy would like to share some news!

Hi.  This summer our family traveled from St. Louis to Colorado.  We took some pictures with our IWU friends and family while we were there.  I wanted to share them with you.

Lisa Subar Fetters ’90 and Kathy Blattner Solodar ‘ 89 in Rocky Mountain National Park. Lisa and I were best friends and Elementary Ed majors and in the AOII house.

John Solodar ’91, Kathy Blattner Solodar ’89 and Lisa Subar Fetters ’90 with our IWU banner in front of the Rocky Mountain National Park sign.

Family gathering in Breckenridge, CO. Three alumni, 1 current student and 1 future student!

David was appointed president of Blackhawk Bancorp, Inc., where he has served as executive vice president and chief operating officer.

Click here to read about David and Blackhawk Bancorp in an article with Business Wire!

Bloomington-Normal was among the 50 best college towns in America!

This link leads to the article by Best College Towns: http://www.bestcollegereviews.org/50-best-college-towns-america/.

Michael Scudder ’82, Theta Chi, was featured in an article with Crain’s Chicago Business.

Here’s a link to the article:  http://www.chicagobusiness.com/article/20140816/ISSUE01/308169978/this-bank-has-a-small-appetite#