Author Archives: Ann Aubry

Students Join Global Medical Brigade to Honduras

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – Illinois Wesleyan University students will be bringing much-needed medical care to Central America this summer with the campus chapter of the Global Medical Brigade.

“This trip is more than helping out people in need. It’s about creating sustainable solutions for health care,” said Devon Boydstun, a sophomore from Galesburg, Ill., who founded the Illinois Wesleyan chapter of the Brigade, a student-led international relief organization that brings medical care to impoverished nations. The group of 25 students will journey to Honduras in June.

Boydstun said he decided to found the organization in 2008, during his first-year on campus. “I was looking for a program that would combine medical experience with helping others,” said Boydstun. “The Global Brigade programs really help students get up and running by arranging travel plans and holding weekly phone discussions about expectations and issues students might face abroad.” He started the group with five students.

That number has now grown to nearly 30, most of which will accompany Boydstun on the journey. Student members enlisted the help of medical doctors who will travel with them to Honduras. Boydstun will know one of the doctors well – it is his father. “The five doctors who are coming with us are all friends or family members, which makes it easier on us,” he said. “When we spoke to the doctors, many let us know this is something they always wanted to do, but were not sure how. I feel as though we are facilitating a way for physicians to give aid of which they were not aware.”

Folse Named School of Nursing Director

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – Illinois Wesleyan University’s Associate Professor of Nursing Victoria Folse has been named the director of the School of Nursing. Folse, a 1986 Illinois Wesleyan graduate, will assume the position August 1 from Caroline F. Rupert Chair of Nursing Donna Hartweg, who will retire in December.

“Dr. Folse brings to her new position a deep understanding of and a passion for Illinois Wesleyan as an alumna and a solid record as a teacher, scholar and faculty leader,” said Illinois Wesleyan Provost Beth Cunningham.

Earning her bachelor’s degree in nursing from Illinois Wesleyan, Folse received her master’s degree from the University of Illinois at Chicago in 1989, and her doctorate from Saint Louis University in 2002. She came to Illinois Wesleyan in 2002, after teaching at Bradley University and coordinating programs for OSF Saint Francis Medical Center, both in Peoria.

Last year, Folse was one of 15 people across the state who received the State of Illinois Nurse Educator Fellowship from the Illinois Center for Nursing (ICN). It was the third consecutive year a member of the Illinois Wesleyan nursing faculty has been awarded the fellowship.

WGN’s Steve Cochran Tells Business Leaders to Learn from Today’s Youth

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – Humorous radio personality Steve Cochran entertained and informed the audience at the annual IWU Associates Luncheon on Thursday, May 7 at Illinois Wesleyan University’s Shirk Center. Cochran, known for his drive-time show on WGN Radio, spoke of the lessons that could be learned from what he called “a lack of vision” in the media.

“I don’t know if you have heard, but there is this thing called the Internet. I hear it’s really catching on,” joked Cochran, who attributed the current struggles in the newspaper industry to owners who refused to take the new online medium seriously as it emerged in the 1990s. “That was back when the Internet was something fun and cute. People in the newspaper business missed the memo that the Internet was going to be here to stay. And it cost them.”

Cochran addressed more than 300 members of the IWU Associates at the luncheon. Formed in 1953, the Associates is a group of business and professional leaders interested in the advancement and support of private higher education. The Associates invest in the University, provide internships and job opportunities for Illinois Wesleyan students, and financial support for students from McLean County.

He urged those in attendance at the luncheon to take advantage of what their young interns could provide. “The new generation will help you be better with what they know best,” he said. “Take the time – so they understand what they need to do with you. And let them show you what they can do,” Cochran said.

Alumna Honored with State Press Association Award

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – Illinois Wesleyan University alumna Lana (Weiss) Brown will be honored by the Illinois Woman’s Press Association (IWPA) with the 2009 Communicator of Achievement Award. She will be presented with the award on Saturday, May 16 at the Union League Club of Chicago by fellow alumna and incoming IWPA President Marianne Wolf-Astrauskas.

“This award recognizes not just one year, but an entire body of work for the career of a communicator,” said Wolf-Astrauskas, a 1976 alumna who won the award in 2008. “Being able to present this award to Lana is doubly exciting because not only is she an incredible communicator, but she is a fellow IWU alum.”

In August, Brown will represent Illinois as its nominee for the National Communicator of Achievement Award from the National Federation of Press Women at the conference in San Antonio, Texas. Brown currently serves as the IWPA first vice president and program chair.

A graduate of the class of 1970, Brown is the owner of Lana Brown Communications, a speaking and writing consulting firm, which has assisted such companies as AT&T, Kraft, the National Education Association and the Museum of Broadcast Communications.

Provost’s Trip Builds Bridges with India

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – Illinois Wesleyan University Provost Beth Cunningham was chosen to travel this semester to India as part of a special program of the Council for International Exchange of Scholars (CIES), which is known for the Fulbright Program.

Cunningham’s special program, known as the India Higher Education Administrators Seminar, sent 10 administrators to establish international connections with universities in India.

“The colleges and universities we visited really wanted to build collaborations,” said Cunningham, who spent two weeks in India this March. “This trip was to help us think about ways we could work together in the future as institutions of higher education.”

According to Cunningham’s studies, only about 11 percent of the eligible Indian population go on to higher education, a stark difference to the estimated 56 percent in developed nations. “The goal of India’s government is to raise that level to 20 percent within the next few years,” said Cunningham. “One challenge to that is the lack of faculty and trained administrators, which is what makes these trips so important.”

Graduates Urged To Go Beyond Greed

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – Illinois Wesleyan University graduates and their families gathered to celebrate the 159th Commencement ceremonies on Sunday, May 3 on the Robert S. Eckley Quadrangle.

President Richard F. Wilson congratulated the 516 graduating seniors of the 2008-2009 school year, saying this day marks a new beginning. “Today, we honor you and wish you well, wherever your journey may take you,” said President Wilson. “We know what you have accomplished here and what you are capable of accomplishing as you move forward with your lives.”

Board of Trustees President George A. Vinyard ’71 welcomed the graduates into the family of Illinois Wesleyan alumni, and 2009 Student Senate Professor of the Year Sarah Riehl offered her own congratulations.

“The class of 2009 is filled with stories of success, and to them we say bravo,” said Riehl, a visiting assistant professor of business administration at Illinois Wesleyan. “We want to thank you for sharing your talents.”

> Continued

> See the Commencement Photo Album

> Watch the Ceremony on Video

> Read Commencement speeches

Miller Wins The Ames Library Artistic and Scholarly Research Strategies Award

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – Rachel Miller, a senior Hispanic studies and Greek and Roman studies double major from Fox River Grove, Ill., is the first annual recipient of The Ames Library Artistic and Scholarly Research Strategies Award.

The $500 award, funded through donations to The Ames Library, recognizes students for their outstanding strategies of acquiring information in creating scholarly, artistic or creative projects. To be considered for the award, students must submit an application along with a 500-700 word essay, a digital copy of the project, a letter of support from the faculty member or instructor who assigned the project and signed consent to have the project electronically archived in the Digital Commons. Eligible projects are those completed within the current academic year, regardless of when preparation began.

Miller completed her research, titled “Las bibliotecas pœblicas y la comunidad Latina (Public libraries and the Latino community),” for “Spanish for Social Justice,” a class taught by Professor of Hispanic Studies Carolyn Nadeau. Miller’s research analyzes the library resource needs of the growing Hispanic population in our community.

Professor’s Play Chosen in Regional Competition

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – A play written by Illinois Wesleyan University Professor of Greek and Roman Studies Nancy Sultan was one of three selected for “New Plays from the Heartland,” a regional, one-act play competition sponsored by Heartland Theatre Company in Normal.

“I guess you could say that my lifelong love of language and spectacle stimulated my scholarly interest in Greek drama and music,” said Sultan, who has been acting in plays since she was 8 years old. Her latest play, “No Goodbyes” will be performed May 15-16 at the Heartland Theatre (One Normal Plaza, Normal). The play follows the theme of the competition, “The Patience of Patients: One Act Plays in a Private Hospital Room.” Sultan’s piece “No Goodbyes,” deals with one friend asking permission from another to die.

Playwrights from across seven states were invited to submit one-act plays for the competition. Submissions from Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan, Missouri and Wisconsin were judged by directors, critics, playwrights and theater educators. These judges sent their top eight entrees to Ken Weitzman, a nationally known playwright, who chose the final three plays for a staged reading. The three qualifying playwrights will also attend a workshop with Weitzman in May.

Students Explore World Through International Internships

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – From French patisseries to Italian art galleries and Eastern European news media outlets, Illinois Wesleyan University students have gained a wide variety of career experiences and opportunities from international internships.

Senior international studies major Lauren Nelson, who held an internship last year with Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, an organization that provides uncensored news to countries with regulated media, in Prague, Czech Republic says she gained valuable experience. Nelson’s position involved a wide range of responsibilities from contacting foreign political officials to writing news overviews for broadcast. Although stationed in Czech-speaking Prague, as the Russian information services intern, Nelson had an opportunity to practice her Russian language skills in the office as well as learn some of the Czech language outside of the office.

“The internship allowed me to prepare for future international career opportunities by practicing my linguistic and professional skills in a culturally diverse setting,” said Nelson, who will pursue her master’s degree in Russian, East European and Eurasian studies next year at Stanford University.

Language skills are not the only benefits students reap from international internships. Junior international business major Katie Feriozzi, who worked as an art gallery intern in Milan, Italy last fall and who will return to Italy this summer for an internship with the Peggy Guggenheim Collection in Venice, appreciated the opportunity to connect with professionals in the art world.

“I know that I want to pursue a career in arts business and to live and work in Italy. These internships will provide me with great networking in the field,” said Feriozzi.

International internships are available either as part of a study abroad program or separate from organized programs.

Theatre Students Exchange Feedback With Lyricist

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – It was a chance theater students do not have when they perform Shakespeare – to hear what the playwright thinks of their performance, and to offer suggestions of their own.

On Saturday, April 25, successful composer, lyricist and librettist Lawrence Rush attended the Illinois Wesleyan University performance of Winter in the Fall, his musical drama. The next day, Rush spoke with students of the Music Theatre 483 class, who performed in the show under the direction of their instructor, Assistant Professor of the Theatre Arts Scott Susong.

“You did an incredible job. It was thrilling to sit in the audience and watch how you interpreted the show,” said Rush, speaking to students in the E. Melba Johnson Kirkpatrick Laboratory Theatre. “You are helping to bring the show to a whole new place.”

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