Ryan Kaplan ’18 combined his knowledge of finance  as an economics major with his experience as a student-athlete to reveal the multi-million dollar economic impact of IWU’s Department of Athletics on the Bloomington-Normal community.

While examining the various expenditures and sources of revenue generated by IWU’s NCAA Division III Athletics Department, Kaplan calculated that food and gas consumption from five IWU teams alone – football, men’s and women’s soccer, and men’s and women’s basketball – generated three jobs and $250,000 for the local economy over the course of his four-year study. Additionally, ticket sales from football, men’s basketball and women’s basketball created an estimated economic impact of $750,000 and six jobs over the course of four years. Kaplan generated these figures by running data through The Regional Input-Output Modeling System (RIMS II), which – according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis – is a tool used by investors, planners and elected officials to objectively assess the potential economic impacts of various projects.

Kaplan compiled attendance records from ticketed IWU sporting events from 2013 through 2017 and used Google Maps to calculate team transportation fuel consumption. Along with collecting data, Kaplan spent much of his time manipulating Microsoft Excel functions to generate the economic impact statistics before presenting his findings upon conclusion of the fall semester.

“It seems like a lot of work to get a few numbers, but I learned a lot about economic impact,” Kaplan said. “I didn’t realize when you buy something how far that money really goes, how the company takes that, spends it elsewhere, and it creates a snowball effect.”

Kaplan considered his 16-week research project to be just the tip of the iceberg. He hoped his results would prompt IWU Athletics to conduct a full-scale economic impact survey based on expenditure and revenue data from all 22 teams, in order to better grasp the extent to which the department is contributing to Bloomington-Normal’s economy.

Assistant Athletic Director Tony Bankston ’91, along with other IWU Athletics administrators, took interest in Kaplan’s work. Bankston, who attended Kaplan’s research presentation, was impressed by his ability to merge a passion for sports from the field to the classroom. “I think we always talk about how our mission in the Athletics Department is to mesh the academic and the athletic experience, to make it as seamless as possible, to provide the student the opportunity to be as successful as possible on both ends of the spectrum,” Bankston said. “It’s neat when you see a project like this, that literally brings those two worlds together.”

Congratulations, Ryan!

Read this article in the IWU Campus Weekly here.

Vianey Salazar ’18 is working with fellow alum, Stephen R. White ’85, on a new play entitled Now and Then by Sean Grennan at the Peninsula Players Theater in Fish Creek, Wisconsin. Stephen is working as Lighting Designer and Vianey the Master Electrician. Now and Then opened June 12 and runs until July 1, 2018.

You can find more information about the production here.

Congratulations, Vianey!

Zoe Bouras ’18 has been awarded the 2018 Technos International Prize, an annual award recognizing a student who has excelled academically and has contributed to broadening international awareness and understanding. The award is presented through the Tanaka Ikueikai Educational Trust in Japan and was created to improve international relations.

A double major in international studies and political science, Bouras has extensive experiences interning and studying abroad. A European immigrant herself from Sunderland, England, Bouras said her interest in global awareness stemmed from her experience as a high school freshman, where she spent the year as a Rotary exchange student in Arequipa, Peru, and later returned to partake in an ESL Internship at Dunalastair Colegio Europeo. Since then, she has traveled to 25 countries, developing her ESL skills and broadening her global perspective through the opportunities offered at Illinois Wesleyan.

Selected as a 2016 IWU Freeman Asia Intern, Bouras spent eight weeks at the Institute of East and West Studies at Yonsei University in Seoul, South Korea, where she further developed her ESL and marketing skills and conducted research on refugee flows from Pyeongchang, South Korea. Following this experience, Bouras studied politics, philosophy and economics as a junior at the University of Oxford through the IWU Pembroke program, an experience which “greatly enriched” her international studies education. In addition to these opportunities, Bouras, who is half Greek, spent a summer in Greece learning the language.

Bouras’ experiences abroad influenced her political science senior seminar project which involved researching anti-elite sentiment in individuals across 21 European nations. A member of Pi Sigma Alpha (PSA), the national political science honor society, Bouras shared her findings on this phenomena at the PSA National Research Conference at George Washington University in Washington D.C. in February.

Bouras will continue applying her international experience as she pursues her master’s degree in Latin American Studies at Oxford University in the fall.

Congratulations, Zoe!

Read the full article here.

The American Marketing Association (AMA) presented Jonathan Slupski ’18 with the Outstanding Marketing Student Award at the 57th annual Saint Louis AMA Student Marketing Conference on Feb. 16. This award recognizes one undergraduate student per school for his or her academic excellence and contributions to the collegiate marketing community.

“It was a privilege to represent IWU at the AMA Conference in St. Louis, and winning the Outstanding Marketing Student Award was a tremendous honor,” Slupski said. “I really have to thank Professor Fred Hoyt and the business department for giving me the opportunity to lead the AMA this year.”

Slupski, a business administration major and economics minor, has used his position as president of the IWU chapter of the AMA to organize several extracurricular events centered around the marketing industry. He has co-hosted several speakers and overseen workshops on topics such as data analytics and social media, all in a successful initiative to generate demand for the field, and ultimately, transform marketing from a business major concentration into one of IWU’s newest majors.

“With the development of the new marketing major, our organization is going to be very important moving forward, and we hope to keep growing until we’re the premier business organization on campus,” Slupski said.

In addition to serving as president of the school’s AMA chapter, Slupski has also served on the executive board of Alpha Kappa Psi and has interned with the Chicago Sport & Social Club.

“I’m truly blessed to have gone to a school that gives students so many opportunities to make the most of their college experience,” Slupski said. “Through all of my time at IWU, I have been able to find what I’m passionate about, and I hope to carry that passion into my career.”

Congratulations, Jonathan!

Jonathan Slupski ’18 and Associate Professor of Business Administration Fred Hoyt.

Find this article on the IWU webpage here.

Lily Chang ’18 spoke at TEDx IWU about her unique experience of being an international student three times.

Congratulations, Lily, and thank you for all that you do for IWU!

Crystal Ocampo Fernandez ’18 spoke for TEDxIWU where she discussed being a Latina, being first generation college student, and how she found success studying abroad.

How well do you know Illinois Wesleyan University?
IWU Crossword ANSWER KEY
ACROSS
4. Eric
5. Stevenson
7. Powell
8. Sapientia
10. State
12. Hedding
13. Black
15. Aflame
DOWN
1. Japan
2. Illinois
3. Memorial
6. Tommy
9. Titan
11. Female
14. Park

Charged with designing an academic textbook cover, Ania Bui ’18 found inspiration beneath a soaring net hoisted in the air and illuminated by vibrant lights at the 2016 Adobe MAX Conference in San Diego, California.

Ania Bui ’18 holds Undergraduate Research and the Academic Librarian: Case Studies and Best Practices for which she designed the cover.

Read the full article on IWU’s webpage here.

Congratulations, Ania!

Biology major Brock Taylor ’18 of Mattoon, Illinois, has been named a 2017 Student Laureate by The Lincoln Academy of Illinois.The Lincoln Academy’s Student Laureate Awards are presented for excellence in curricular and extracurricular activities to seniors from each of the state’s four-year, degree-granting colleges and universities, and one student from the community colleges in Illinois.

Illinois Wesleyan Professor of Biology William Jaeckle joined 2017 Student Laureate Brock Taylor ’18 at the Lincoln Academy Student Laureate Convocation.

Read the full article on IWU’s webpage here.

Congratulations, Brock!

A $500 grant earned by Illinois Wesleyan University student Savanna Steck ’18 will enable YWCA McLean County to serve healthier food to more than 330 children throughout the school year.

Melissa Breeden (L), senior director of YWCA Young Wonders, and Savanna Steck ’18 (R) collaborated on a $500 grant proposal which will enable the YWCA to purchase an industrial sink and faucet.

Find the entire article about Savanna’s work with the YWCA on IWU’s webpage here.

Congratulations, Savanna!