Dr. Greg Poland ’77 said individuals’ unwillingness to receive the COVID-19 vaccine often boils down to misconception and not understanding the science. Dr. Poland is currently the director of the Mayo Clinic’s Vaccine Research Group.
Read more on IWU Alum Leading Mayo Clinic Vaccine Research On COVID Misconceptions from WGLT Radio
Among 180 recipients of state funding to promote racial healing efforts, IWU used a grant to host a virtual anti-racism and racial justice workshop featuring the performing arts company BrownBody. The event was part of IWU’s Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Celebration.
Read more on IWU, Project Oz, YWCA Seek To Foster Racial Healing from WGLT Radio
Artwork from Bob Ward ’60 was featured in an exhibit, “Art in the Time of Coronavirus,” at the Union Museum of Art and History in Farmerville, Louisiana. Ward is a practicing and exhibiting artist who specializes in acrylic on canvas painting.
Read more on ART provides creative outlet during pandemic from The Farmerville Gazette
Zoe Bouras, a 2018 Illinois Wesleyan graduate who moved to the U.S. from England when she was 10 years old, has returned to Central Illinois to help immigrants, like herself, thrive. Bouras currently serves as the communications and development coordinator for The Immigration Project.
Read more on Global Citizen Bouras ’18 Advocates Locally for Immigrant Rights from Illinois Wesleyan
Scott Shields ’83 is an associate producer of the documentary Finding Courage. Finding Courage tells the story of Yifei Wang, a former Chinese Communist Party journalist living in exile in San Francisco and seeking justice for her family. Already the winner of multiple awards on the film festival circuit, Finding Courage is available for streaming at SwoopFilms.com. A song from the documentary, “Courage is Found,” is also receiving awards consideration.
Listen to the song “Courage is Found” here
Assistant Professor of Theatre Arts Julie Ballard will be among participants in the Chicago Dance History Project’s Interview Marathon on Jan. 31. The seven-hour Interview Marathon represents decades of dance history personified in more than 40 interview subjects.
Read more on Chicago Dance History Project Announces Interview Marathon Schedule from Broadway World
Dr. Robyn (Heins) Zehr ’04 was named Estes Park Health’s chief of staff. In this role she will “serve as a liaison between the providers and the administration at EPH, trying to make sure all needs are met on both ends”.
Read more on Inside People: Dr. Zehr is new EPH Chief of Staff from Estes Park Trail Gazette
R. Forrest Colwell Endowed Chair and Professor of English James Plath explored conspiracy theories in history and literature and discussed his edited volume, Critical Insights: Conspiracies.
Read more and listen to the full podcast on Our Lies: Jenny Offill and James Plath on Conspiracy Theories in History and Literature from Literary Hub
Taylor Williams ’18 graduated a semester early from Southern Illinois University School of Law on Dec. 12, 2020. A Bloomington area native, Williams will return to Bloomington to work at a local law firm. She also received the McLean County Bar Association Scholarship in December, prior to her graduation.
Read more on 2020 Scholarship Recipient Taylor Williams from McLean County Bar Association
B. Charles and Joyce Eichhorn Ames Professor of Physics Gabriel Spalding delivered a talk entitled, “Shaping Light in Time & Space,” for the winter meeting of the American Association of Physics Teachers.
Listen to the full talk here
Assistant Professor of Nursing Amy Funk was selected as a member of the U.S.-Russia Social Expertise Exchange COVID-19 Response Public Health Working Group (PHWG). Four Americans and four Russians were selected for participation in this initiative. The goal of the group is to develop ideas for a bilateral project aimed at addressing health priorities in the U.S. and Russia including: promoting safety and self-care among at-risk populations in both countries, developing innovative solutions for disease detection and case management, and providing health-related services to vulnerable populations
Read more on U.S.-Russia Social Exchange
Madeline Johnson ’24 was chosen to sing the solo in an international collaboration between Glyndebourne Youth Opera (outside of London, England) and Minnesota Opera’s Project Opera.
Read more and watch the full video on Watch: The Place Beyond Tomorrow from Glyndebourne
Josefina Bañales ’14, with Professor and Chair of Sociology and Anthropology Meghan Burke and former IWU professor Kira Hudson Banks, has published “The impact of a diversity intervention on White college students’ colour-blind racial attitudes,” in the journal Whiteness and Education. Bañales is now Assistant Professor in Developmental Psychology and the Learning Research and Development Center at the University of Pittsburgh.
Read the full article on The impact of a diversity intervention on White college students’ colour-blind racial attitudes from Taylor & Francis Online
Former IWU men’s basketball coach and current Lewis University coach Scott Trost was among those included in the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association Hall of Fame’s Class of 2021.
Read more on Ridgeview’s Rodney Kellar leads IBCA Hall of Fame awards from The Pantagraph
As the pandemic forces many small businesses online, IWU students assist the Small Business Development Center of McLean County at Illinois Wesleyan in offering support, particularly with web design and social media strategies.
Read and listen more on Pandemic Pushes Smaller Retailers Online from WGLT Radio
Retired IWU Professor of Economics Mike Seeborg offered insight on the surge in retirements due to COVID-19.
Read and listen more on COVID Drives Retirements, But It’s Not Best Time For Everyone from WGLT Radio
Ryan Jumper ’00, now an associate judge in the Third Judicial Circuit, was featured in a “Where are they now” spotlight, where they discuss his journey from a three sport athlete to a career in law.
Read more on WHERE ARE THEY NOW?: Parents, coaches were role models for Jumper from the Edwardsville Intelligencer
Raven Stubbs ’13 is the new program director for PlayMakers Laboratory, a Chicago nonprofit offering educational programming focused on storytelling, theatre and social-emotional skills.
Read more on Raven Stubbs Named PlayMakers Laboratory’s New Program Director from Broadway World Chicago
Kate Tombaugh ’07 topped 155 other mezzo-sopranos in the Mildred C. Miller International Competition. She was the only finalist representing the Midwest in the event hosted by Pittsburgh Festival Opera.
Read more on Central Illinois Opera Singer Wins International Competition Amid COVID from WGLT Radio
Athletic trainers like Illinois Wesleyan’s Bill Kauth are adjusting to new demands during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Read more on Illinois State, Illinois Wesleyan athletic trainers adjusting to new demands in COVID-19 sports world from The Pantagraph
Volunteers from Illinois Wesleyan and other local universities and colleges assist with translation services for Congolese patients at the local nonprofit Community Health Care Clinic.
Read and listen more on B-N Congolese Patients Face Health Inequity from WGLT Radio
IWU golfers Rob Wuethrich ’21 and Jimmy Morton ’22 honored fallen soldiers as they participated in the Patriot All-America Invitational in Litchfield, Arizona.
Read more on IWU golfer Rob Wuethrich honoring Joshua Rodgers in Patriot All-America Invitational from The Pantagraph
When she’s not playing basketball at Illinois Wesleyan, Emily Kleffman ’24 crochets for charity. For the last three or four years Kleffman has been making baby hats, scarves, and blankets to donate.
Read more on When she’s not playing basketball at Illinois Wesleyan, Tinley Park’s Emily Kleffman crochets for charity: ‘Be the change you want to see.’ from the Chicago Tribune
Booker T. Washington STEM Academy fifth-grade teacher Todd McCannon ’01 used his artistic skills to creatively engage students when instruction went remote, creating chalkboard murals for his Zoom background.
Read more on Top of the Morning, Dec. 19, 2020 from The News-Gazette
Illinois Wesleyan’s production of The Last Days of Judas Iscariot was featured in a series reflecting on the creative, innovative moments in lighting design in 2020.
Read more on 31 Days of Plots: The Last Days of Judas Iscariot from Live Design