May 21, 2007, Northern Today Abridged

Child advocate Sharon Freagon to retire
from Center for Child Welfare and Education

Sharon Freagon, director of the Center for Child Welfare and Education at Northern Illinois University since its inception in 2000, will retire June 30.

The center, which strives to improve educational outcomes for children in the state’s foster care system, stems from Freagon’s 1994 appointment as chair of an Illinois Department of Children and Family Services task force on education.

Angela Baron-Jeffrey, the center’s assistant director, and Toni Tollerud, a professor in the NIU Department of Counseling, Adult and Higher Education, will succeed Freagon.

NIU President John G. Peters and the director of DCFS will continue to co-chair the center’s advisory board.

“Children in our state’s welfare system need an advocate who is passionate, tireless, committed and strong, and they have had such a person in Sharon Freagon. Her service to these young ones and their caretakers has come directly from her limitless heart,” Peters said. “It’s my firm belief that Sharon has mirrored NIU’s ideals – to help our neighbors, to improve our region, to endorse education for all – and has done so nobly. We all will miss her greatly.”

“It’s not that I’m ready to retire,” said Freagon, who is 65 and has 30 years of service to NIU. “I plan to work with the Arthritis Foundation and for women’s heart health. It’s been a career of helping young people, and now maybe I’ll go on to advocate for the opposite end of the spectrum.”

A national leader

Yet none in the child advocacy field will forget Freagon’s powerful voice and open arms for children in need.

She has met children whose parents have shot them in the face with a BB gun, burned their skin with cigarettes, poured cleaning fluids down their throats or abandoned them in cribs for months without interaction or simple care.

“I’ve always been an advocate for children I view as the most oppressed. Children taken from their biological parents are doubly traumatized are and the most oppressed children I have seen or worked with. I feel it’s an honor to serve them,” Freagon said.

“You see the worst kind of physical abuse that you could ever imagine. When you can help to pull youngsters out of that trauma they’re experiencing, and get some positive expectations for the future, it’s totally rewarding.”

Freagon came to NIU in 1977 from Nashville, Tenn., where she worked as the director of a residential agency that placed children with special needs in group homes or in foster care. Many also had been abused, she said.

Recognized as a national leader in the school inclusion movement for children with disabilities, she continues to consult in that area and has testified in numerous courtroom trials.

Most of her hours as an NIU professor in what is now the Department of Teaching and Learning were devoted to federal and state grants for research and demonstration: She has enjoyed external funding every year of her NIU career. The rest of her time was spent preparing teachers of children with severe intellectual disabilities.

Birth of a center

An early-morning call in July of 1994 changed everything.

Jess McDonald, then the director of DCFS, asked Freagon to chair a new task force. The agency was defending itself in a lawsuit brought by the American Civil Liberties Union – the case remains in court to this day – and had little or no data on the educational outcomes of children under its supervision.

“He wanted a strong advocate to chair that committee,” Freagon said. “I told him I would do it if I could be involved in the implementation. I did not want to write a report and have it sit on the shelf.”

Freagon and Baron-Jeffrey, a graduate student at the time, interviewed foster parents, case workers, administrators and children during a nine-month study. Their final report included 60 recommendations, all of which have been implemented in the years since.

In 1997, an official partnership between NIU and DCFS began as the Educational Access Project.

McDonald soon suggested the creation of the center, an idea eventually approved by the Illinois Board of Higher Education in 2000. By that time, Freagon had dispatched “education advisers” into all regions of the state to handle the school-related problems of children in the system.

Thirteen advisers – six are in Chicago, three in the central part of the state and two each in northern and southern Illinois – work more than 3,000 situations each year referred by foster parents, DCFS case workers and even the children themselves. They also train more than 4,000 people each year in educational matters related to foster children.

NIU’s center is “seen as an unbiased party,” Freagon said, and the advisers have added adoptive parents to their purview.

Other center services include policy development and review as well as the collection and sharing of data.

In June 2006, NIU and its center staff convened and presided over a day-long symposium on trauma in education.

Participants included NIU’s president, the director and staff members from DCFS, staff members of the Illinois State Board of Education, university professors, school superintendents, neurobiologists, clinical psychologists, attorneys and even a judge.

Others represented the Illinois Department of Health and Human Services, the Child Trauma Academy of Houston, the Allendale Association, the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children, Massachusetts Advocates for Children, the MILL of Rockford and the Legal Assistance Foundation of Metropolitan Chicago.

Freagon brought them together from all sides to get on the same page and speak the same language. The group ended the day with a list of agreed-upon research questions and a commitment to develop an information-rich Web site.

“I’m most proud that I, as a part of NIU, have been able to work co closely with a state agency that directly serves children and that we – my staff and I – have been so well-received in the system,” she said, “leading to our contributing to the reforms that DCFS has gone through, making them one of the national leaders in the country.”

Christine Sorensen, dean of the NIU College of Education, attributes much of the success to Freagon’s leadership.

“Her passion and her commitment to serving the children that she serves through her program is just tremendous,” Sorensen said. “She has built a wonderful operation.”

A long road ahead

Yet challenges remain.

Illinois’ current foster care population numbers about 17,000, the smallest group since 1993 and merely a third of its size in 1997. A focus on “permanency” – moving children into adoptions and guardianships – accounts for the sharp reduction in cases.

There are unintended consequences, however. Transferring children out of the system means fewer opportunities for child development services, and high school graduation rates already are dismal.

A large number of children in the system are affected by trauma (mostly neglect, followed by family violence, grief and physical harm), the incidence of which climbs as the children grow older. Sexual abuse accounts for less than 5 percent of the cases.

Several neuroscientists at the symposium noted that trauma causes chemical and physical changes in the brain that lead to what uninformed observers see as “acting out.”

Yet one of Freagon’s joys (and disappointments given the timing of her retirement) is that “the psychiatrists are now starting to see it my way.” Instead of simply trying to diagnose mental illness alongside one-hour-per-week therapy sessions using a medical model, she said, psychiatrists are “looking at how people live” and how “trauma does affect education and lifestyle.”

Teachers also have grown more understanding, she said: More now view troublesome behavior from foster children as a traumatic response and try to react or intervene in a more positive way.

Perhaps most encouraging is the one constant in every story.

“Every youngster wants an education,” Freagon said. “An education is something no one can take away from you.”

Yet “there will always be a need for a center like this as long as there are children who are abused and neglected in our society. If it could stop, and I would love for it to stop, that would be wonderful. But we would need to get rid of poverty. We would need better training of parents. We would need earlier intervention.”

Federal pressure that mandates school achievement isn’t helping, she added.

“I’d love to work myself out of a job, but the reality is I’m not,” Freagon said. “There’s always going to be some child who’s the last car on the train.”

NIU names two successors to lead
Center for Child Welfare and Education

A longtime key associate of Sharon Freagon and a veteran professor of school counseling will serve together as co-directors of Northern Illinois University’s Center for Child Welfare and Education.

The mission of the center is to assist in the education and development of children who have been abused and neglected, and to ensure academic success and social competence for children who are in state custody.

Angela Baron-Jeffrey, assistant director of the center, and Toni Tollerud, a professor in the NIU Department of Counseling, Adult and Higher Education, are set to replace Freagon, who is retiring at the end of June.

They hope to strengthen services to post-secondary and college students, rekindle a relationship with the Chicago Public Schools and work even closer with school counselors, social workers and classrooms teachers.

“It’s critical that we continue to provide the services these kids need and to be responsive to changes in the field. The population we serve needs us,” Baron-Jeffrey said. “I’m grateful for the opportunity to have collaborated with Sharon in establishing the only center of its kind in the nation. What separates us from many other centers that look at child welfare issues is that most others are research. Our main focus is service.”

“I’m very excited about bringing my experience as a licensed professional clinical counselor to work with the issue of trauma and to find ways to alleviate trauma so that these students can be effective learners,” Tollerud said. “When youngsters come to school hungry or frightened or scared or traumatized, they are not good learners because they’re preoccupied. They’re thinking about other issues in their lives.”

New challenges

For Baron-Jeffrey, the promotion continues her work to protect the educational needs of children in the state’s welfare system.

For Tollerud, the new job offers exciting challenges along with opportunities to expand her efforts to improve school counseling services.

Both are perfect choices, Freagon said.

“Angela has tremendous experience with this population, and she knows both systems – education and the DCFS – backward and forward,” Freagon said. “Toni’s counseling work is certainly an asset, and her background in training will benefit our educational advisers.”

Christine Sorensen, dean of the NIU College of Education, agrees.

“Angela has been Sharon’s right-hand person for a long time and is very familiar with the operations of the center. She brings that history. She’s been there from the beginning. She knows the people in Springfield, Chicago and around the state,” Sorensen said. “Toni will bring her own ideas. Toni has passions in the counseling area and in working to reduce violence.”

Staff at NIU’s Center for Child Welfare and Education handle more than 3,000 cases each year and train more 4,000 people annually in educational matters related to foster children in the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services system.

Angela Baron-Jeffrey

Baron-Jeffrey’s involvement with the project indeed starts at the beginning: She was Freagon’s graduate assistant in 1994, the year her boss was asked to chair a new DCFS task force on education.

She helped research and write the recommendations that prompted the state agency to contract with NIU for educational services. It included the formation of the Education Access Project (EAP) and, eventually, the center.

With Freagon’s oversight, Baron-Jeffrey collaborated with the first three education advisers to develop the protocols and practices that provide the foundation and structure for the day-to-day operation of the EAP.

Together, they developed the center into a diverse, competent, experienced and effective team of educational consultants. She also partnered with NIU’s Information Technology Services to develop the center’s database, which feeds information into each ward’s educational passport.

With a recent focus on adoption diminishing the DCFS population from 55,000 to 18,000, Baron-Jeffrey plans to guide a similar shift at the center. She also hopes to extend services to children who have returned to their biological parents.

“I’d also like to strengthen services to youth in college” Baron-Jeffrey said. “There are almost 600 students in the DCFS Youth in College program. There are also a lot of college youth in independent living programs who don’t receive our services. I’d like to expand into those.”

Toni Tollerud

Tollerud, a professor at NIU since 1990, has been involved in the educational and counseling fields for more than 35 years. She served as director of the Illinois School Counselors’ Academy from 1999 to 2004 and is past-president of the Illinois Counseling Association.

In 2005, Tollerud was a member of the committee that developed the Social/Emotional Learning Standards that now are part of the Illinois School Code.

She long has fought for children’s lives and their rights by counseling, authoring legislation and conducting workshops on issues including gender equity, youth and violence and eating disorders.

Her many honors include the 2001 Advocate of the Year Award from the American School Counselor Association, the 2006 Illinois Mental Health Counselors Distinguished Service Award and the 1996 Illinois Counseling Association Counselor of the Year.

Tollerud plans to help schools improve educational outcomes for wards of the state by working with counselors and social workers. The mission is “essential,” she said: Without it, some children in the DCFS system will become discouraged and drop out.

“Students sometimes are misdiagnosed and put into special education when the issue really is trauma,” she said. “Our goal is to continue to offer quality programs for children who are totally marginalized in our society.”

For more information, visit http://www.cedu.niu.edu/ccwe/.

NIU will create new tools for teaching Twain

NIU soon will begin creating new tools for K-12 educators to help them teach students worldwide about one of America’s greatest and most well-known authors.

The digitization unit of University Libraries has won a $155,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities to create lesson plans on the topic of author Mark Twain and his era.

The NIU-developed lesson plans will be added to “Mark Twain’s Mississippi,” an extensive Web site (http://dig.lib.niu.edu/twain/) produced by the library’s digitization unit and focusing on 19th century life along the Mississippi River, the topic of Twain’s most famous works.

The site is devoted to providing scholars, educators and students with primary source material, or materials created and published during the period of study, setting the author’s celebrated works into historical context.

Mark Twain’s Mississippi already features historical information, an author’s biography, video documentaries on Twain and his times, sounds files of 19th century music, numerous accounts of the region from the author’s contemporaries and searchable text of several of his most famous books, including “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.”

It also boasts a unique interactive 19th century map of the Mississippi Valley that can depict the growth of populations and railroad networks over decades and provides users with period photos of the places Twain referenced in his works.

“In the mid-19th century, the Mississippi River region was the country’s West,” said Drew VandeCreek, director of the digitization unit. “By the end of century, it had become the Middle West, but it was still new and exotic. Wealthy Americans and Europeans toured the region by steamboat and chronicled their adventures in letters and publications. We juxtapose these accounts with the mythic place created by Twain.

“The lesson plans further will give educators and students an opportunity to work with sometimes hard-to-find primary-source materials created during Twain’s era,” he added, noting that the Web site blends the new with the old.

The Web site’s sound recordings, for example, were made in the present day from period sheet music, and the interactive map uses cutting-edge geographic information systems technology allowing students to manipulate statistical information, such as census data from the period, in a spatial-map format.

The NEH grant to University Libraries carries a “We the People” designation. The goal of the “We the People” initiative is to encourage and strengthen the teaching, study and understanding of American history and culture. Projects that share the designation have a common goal of advancing knowledge of the principles that define America.

“This grant really speaks to the quality of work that our digitization unit is producing,” said Mary Munroe, interim dean of University Libraries. “It continues to receive recognition nationally.”

The library has won numerous grants to digitize scholarly materials for the Web on topics ranging from Southeast Asia to Abraham Lincoln. Just last month, NIU’s Lincoln/Net (http://lincoln.lib.niu.edu/) was awarded the 2007 Electronic Lincoln Prize, accompanied by a $10,000 cash award, for significant contribution in new media to scholarship about Abraham Lincoln or the Civil War era.

The initial launch of Mark Twain’s Mississippi was supported by a $212,000 grant from the Institute for Museum and Library Services.

NIU’s partners in the Twain project include Chicago’s Newberry Library, Tulane University in New Orleans and the St. Louis Mercantile Library at the University of Missouri-St. Louis. Each institution contributes materials to the Web site.

‘Educating Women’ project to encourage future scholars

A trio of professors dedicated to women’s history is working to ensure their scholarly interests are handed down to future generations.

Lucy Townsend, professor in the NIU College of Education’s Department of Leadership, Educational Psychology and Foundations, and two colleagues from other universities have received a $5,000 grant from the International Society for Educational Biography in support of their “Educating Women Project.”

Plans include a 2008 conference in Chicago, a Web site with virtual mentoring, an electronic refereed journal and travel funds for women scholars from developing nations.

Townsend is joined in the project by Susan Laird from the University of Oklahoma and Susan Franzosa from Fairfield University in Connecticut.

“We all had developed courses on the philosophy and history of women’s education, but in recent years none of us has had enough students to offer the courses,” Townsend said.

“We began thinking about the next generation of scholars and whether women would be able to study the history and philosophy of women’s education if they didn’t have opportunities. We wondered if what was happening at our three universities was also happening at others.”

It’s a vital topic, Townsend said, especially for tomorrow’s teachers and their students.

“Half of the world’s population, and maybe more, are women. But the knowledge about women has historically been very limited. We have a lot to explore, especially in developing nations. Unless we can figure out how to mentor the next generation, that kind of research is not going to be very strong,” she said.

“It’s easy to make generalizations about other people – male or female, rich or poor, black or white – but their experiences may be totally different from ours,” she added. “This research gives you a perspective of the world that’s different from another. If I’m going to be an effective teacher, I don’t want to assume my students experience life as I do or think as I do. I need to accommodate my teaching to their needs.”

Grants from their department chairs – Franzosa, who is the dean of the Graduate School of Education and Allied Professions, has her own budget – allowed the three to meet, plan and ponder further sources of funding.

As the trio’s ideas took shape, Townsend presented them at a conference of the International Society for Education Biography.

Leaders of the ISEB, an academic society that encourages theory and research on the lives of educational philosophers, teachers, educational reformers and students, liked what they heard.

“They offered me $5,000. They thought it was a great project,” Townsend said. “I was just totally amazed.”

The University of Oklahoma, where Laird is a professor, gave the team a grant to support the development and maintenance of a Web site for the Educating Women project.

Next summer’s conference will take place at Jane Addams Hull-House Museum on the campus of the University of Illinois at Chicago.

Papers are invited on current research into the education of women in kindergarten through high school, in higher education and in non-school settings. The conference also will promote publications about women.

Participants in the project also are encouraged to present research at the ISEB’s annual conferences and submit articles for publication in the society’s journal, “Vitae Scholasticae.”

“Surveying current research on a topic is usually how you start a research project. You have to know what other researchers are doing. It’s very informative for young scholars,” Townsend said. “Women in academia tend to publish less than men, and tend to move toward full professorships more slowly. This is a way to provide these young scholars with advice and put them in contact with journals interested in publishing this kind of work.”

For Townsend, who’s currently researching the first 200 women to earn doctoral degrees, the new work reflects her past.

“I can remember the very first time I studied educational history from a gendered perspective. Until that time, I had pretty much explored the world from the male perspective,” she said. “I never really thought that women were excluded from the experiences I was studying, but women couldn’t even get into college until the 1830s.”

Alumni Association honors 2007 award recipients

The NIU Alumni Association annually recognizes the diverse accomplishments and contributions of the university’s most notable graduates.

Recipients are selected based on outstanding professional and personal success, as well as involvement in civic, cultural or charitable activities. The Alumni Association honored 10 recipients this spring at its 2007 awards program at the Barsema Alumni and Visitors Center at a private reception and dinner.

Distinguished Alumni Award
The most prestigious award presented by the NIU Alumni Association, the Distinguished Alumni Award is presented to an alumnus who has achieved outstanding success.

Jeffrey M. Yordon
B.S. Political Science, ’70

Jeffrey M. Yordon has achieved great success in his career since graduating from Northern Illinois University. He is currently the president, CEO, founder and chairman of the board of Sagent Pharmaceuticals, a start-up injectable pharmaceutical company with a unique business model.

He is recognized internationally for his knowledge and leadership in the pharmaceutical industry and has been involved in negotiations with leaders in China and India to launch this organization which may likely be the first privately owned firm in China.

Before leading Sagent Pharmaceuticals, Yordon was the chief operating officer with American Pharmaceuticals. Through this venture, he was awarded numerous industry awards for innovative results and marketing as well as business development skill.

Yordon shares his expertise with students in the College of Business, returning to campus annually as a guest speaker in marketing strategy classes and as a mentor to students. He also serves on the NIU Foundation Board and the NIU Executive Club Board, and has been a panelist at NIU Executive Club meetings.

In addition, the generous monetary gift given recently by Jeffrey and Kimberly Yordon will provide NIU with a new building: the Yordon Academic and Athletic Performance Center. This facility will make a major difference for NIU students and alumni alike and will stand as a testament to the Yordons’ commitment to Northern Illinois University.

F.R. Geigle Service Award
The F. R. Geigle Service Award is presented to an individual who has demonstrated outstanding service and commitment to the best interests of Northern Illinois University.

Donald E. Kieso
NIU Professor Emeritus, College of Business

Donald E. Kieso has a long record of service and commitment to Northern Illinois University.

Through his leadership and dedication, NIU’s accountancy program has been ranked in the top 15 nationally for the past several years. He played a large role in building this premier program in the Department of Accountancy that produces outstanding students, alumni, employees, and business leaders.

Kieso joined the accountancy department in 1963 and was named chair in 1972. He was awarded NIU’s first-ever Excellence in Teaching Award in 1967. He retired from NIU in 1992 as the KPMG Peat Marwick Professor of Accountancy. In 2006, he established the first individually funded professorship in the College of Business, the Kieso Professorship in Accountancy.

A prolific writer and best-selling textbook author, Kieso and his co-authors have written about 20 major textbook titles as well as casebooks, practice sets, study guides and monographs. These books have been translated into a dozen or more languages. “Intermediate Accounting,” the most successful textbook of its kind, is now in its 11th edition.

Kieso was instrumental in getting legislation approved to require continuing education for accountants in Illinois. He has served on Aurora University’s Board of Trustees, as well as the boards of two hospitals.

Outstanding Young Alumni Award
The Outstanding Young Alumni Award is presented to an individual who has exhibited outstanding accomplishments within 10 years of earning an undergraduate degree from NIU.

Vinay Mullick
B.S. Industrial Engineering, ’00

A graduate of NIU’s industrial engineering program, Vinay Mullick is an energetic and enthusiastic supporter of the College of Engineering and Engineering Technology and well-versed on the societal role of engineers.

Leaving a high-paying career as an engineer with Intel, Mullick chose to start a teaching career with inner-city children in Chicago, preparing them for technical careers. He was accepted into the prestigious two-year teacher certification program at Teach For America.

He is involved in establishing pre-engineering curriculum at schools and has established a link between the Chicago Public Schools and NIU’s College of Engineering and Engineering Technology to ensure a pipeline of a diverse student body.

Mullick has served on the Engineering and Technology Alumni Society (ETAS) Board of Directors since 2002. During his tenure, he has spearheaded the overhaul of the ETAS Web site.

Last year, Mullick earned a master of arts in education degree while teaching full time in Chicago and also acting as managing director of Monroestar, Inc., a business development firm that he founded. Monroestar specializes in marketing and branding clients’ images and communication capacity with innovative graphic design methods, website development and interactive multi-media concepts.

Outstanding College Alumni Awards
Outstanding College Alumni Awards are presented to graduates of each of NIU’s seven colleges who exemplify the diverse disciplines of a comprehensive university.

College of Business

Stuart L. Gaines
M.B.A. Business Administration, ’87

A leader in the field of dementia care, Stuart Gaines is recognized for his expertise in all facets of dementia programming and staff development and is an expert at developing profitable comprehensive, state-of-the-art dementia programs for long-term care providers.

In 1989, Gaines co-founded ElderHaus Concepts, Ltd., and led the business to national prominence, serving in a variety of key positions ranging from chief financial officer to chief operating officer. At the time of its sale in 1997, ElderHaus had grown to 29 dementia-specific facilities and was one of the largest providers of dementia services in the nation.

Gaines has many years of experience as administrator of a successful Wisconsin group of assisted-living facilities providing dementia care. This experience, particularly with dementia facility licensing, requirements and regulations, enabled Gaines, by way of his involvement with the Alzheimer’s Association, to be instrumental in forwarding this option in the Illinois legislature and in the establishment of applicable licensing regulations.

College of Education

Gary S. Krahenbuhl
B.S.Ed. Physical Education, ’65
M.S.Ed. Physical Education, ’66

DeKalb native Gary S. Krahenbuhl began his professional career at what was then DeKalb’s North Junior High School where he taught physical education and coached.

He spent his career in higher education, first at Arizona State University where he earned the rank of full professor in 1979, serving first as dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, then as senior vice president charged with coordination of the activities of its three campuses, downtown center, and research park.

Krahenbuhl has held leadership roles in nationally recognized professional organizations and is often called upon to share his expertise on topics such as faculty roles and rewards, the impact of technology on higher education, public support for universities, and faculty development. He recently published the book, “Building the Academic Deanship.”

Through his generosity to NIU, Krahenbuhl has provided financial support to Intercollegiate Athletics, alumni scholarships and the colleges of Education and Liberal Arts and Sciences.

College of Engineering and Engineering Technology

Joseph P. Sener, P.E.
B.S. Technology, ’93

Joseph P. Sener, P.E., served three years in the U.S. Army before becoming a design and project engineer in nuclear power plant design. He later moved into the fluid power industry as director of engineering and quality for two different companies.

Having obtained his Professional Engineer license in 1985, Sener attended night classes to complete his degree at NIU in 1993.

He has served as a member of the Board of Examiners for the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award and was a founding member and lead senior examiner for the State of Illinois’ Lincoln Award for Performance Excellence. He joined the Panel of Judges for the U.S. Department of the Army Communities of Excellence Awards in 2004 and continues to serve in this position.

He recently was elected to the Board of Directors of NIU’s Engineering and Technology Alumni Society, currently serving as vice president.

Sener has a longtime involvement with the Boy Scouts of America and has interests in flying and karate, in which he holds a fifth degree black belt.

College of Health and Human Sciences

Linda J. Deering
B.S. Nursing, ’87
M.S. Nursing, ’92

Linda J. Deering has used her education to make an impact on the world of health care.

As executive vice president, chief operating officer and chief nursing officer at Sherman Health System in Elgin, she is responsible for more than 2,300 employees and leads the hospital and nursing operations, which include the planning and tactics for a new $310 million replacement hospital.

Previously, Deering was the vice president for patient services and chief nursing officer at Delnor Community Hospital in Geneva. Under her leadership, that hospital was awarded Magnet status by the American Nurses Credentialing Center in 2004.

An outgrowth of Deering’s goal of attaining Magnet status was Delnor’s leadership in developing an annual nursing research conference. NIU’s School of Nursing is the academic partner in this community nursing research endeavor.

Deering also has held leadership positions at Provena St. Joseph’s Hospital in Elgin and is a coach for Studergroup, a national consulting firm. An active member in key nursing leadership organizations, she is the author of several professional publications. She serves her community through her involvement with her church and the Girl Scouts of America.

College of Law

Jeffrey M. Lenkov
J.D. Law, ’91

Jeffrey M. Lenkov has gained extensive experience in civil litigation specializing in defending employment lawsuits, labor matters and tort claims.

He handles complex cases in both state and federal courts for prominent national and international clients and has represented professional sports franchises and athletes on litigated and transactional matters. He also has served as lead trial counsel in several class action lawsuits and has litigated copyright, trademark and contract cases.

Lenkov also has negotiated and drafted numerous contracts for entertainment clients. Additionally, he has negotiated directly with guilds and unions on clients’ behalf and regularly serves as supervising counsel to outside counsel.

He is an adjunct professor at a prominent Los Angeles law school and frequently appears as a legal analyst for television. He has served as a judge pro tem in the Los Angeles Superior Court and is a volunteer arbitrator in that court’s Alternative Dispute Resolution Program. He is a recipient of the Wiley M. Manuel Award for pro bono legal services.

In 2005, Lenkov founded the program “Littles in Law” with Big Brothers and Big Sisters, whose goal is to inspire at-risk youth.

College of Liberal Arts and Sciences

Robert Katz
B.A. Communication Studies, ’87

Robert Katz is both an advocate and a friend of NIU who has made his mark in Hollywood.

Last summer, he was instrumental in providing internships to six NIU students on the film project “Slipstream,” written and directed by Sir Anthony Hopkins. The students were given an amazing educational and professional experience, and NIU’s media production program was put on the national stage.

As the executive in charge of production on the film “Crash,” Katz’s career hit a high note when the movie was the Academy Award winner for best film in 2006. He has worked in that same capacity on about 20 high-profile Hollywood films including “Seabiscuit,” “One Hour Photo,” “The Illusionist,” “Prime” and “The Painted Veil.”

Katz has been a frequent visitor to NIU, speaking to video production classes in the Department of Communication and serving as a judge for the Reality Bytes student documentary festival. He cites classes he took with Jeffrey Chown for inspiring his own love of film, as well as a visit to campus from film director and NIU alumnus Robert Zemeckis.

Katz also fondly remembers working with Judy Santacaterina in the NIU Forensics Program.

College of Visual and Performing Arts

Bruce Alexander Niemi
B.F.A. Studio Art-Sculpture, ’81

Bruce Alexander Niemi is a self-employed sculptor who applies the lessons he learned from his father and as a student at Northern Illinois University as he creates his masterpieces.

A second-generation sculptor, Niemi started his education under the tutelage of his father, Frank J. Niemi. From the late 1960s to the early 1970s, Frank Niemi instructed Bruce in the art form.

Niemi has created hundreds of works displayed across the country in collections as diverse as those at the Milwaukee Art Museum, Carlisle Companies, Inc. and NIU. His works have been featured in publications and at his Kenosha, Wis., gallery, Niemi Sculpture Gallery and Garden, which represents more than 30 diverse artists.

As a full-time sculptor, Niemi has brought the spiritual into his work and endeavors to infuse each piece with a part of his soul. He has said that art should always be purchased with the intention of moving the soul, not the ego.

Niemi recently won a commission for the Barsema Alumni and Visitors Center and generously gifted his time and talent to create his work, “Living the Dream,” which stands prominently outside the center.

Kudos

NIU political scientist Larry Arnhart was prominently featured in a May 5 story on the front page of the New York Times.

The article illuminated the debate over whether Darwinian theory undermines conservative notions of religion and morality or actually supports conservative philosophy.

Arnhart makes a convincing case for the latter in his 2005 book, “Darwinian Conservatism,” and in a blog by the same name. Yet, as noted in the Times, three of the Republican Party’s 10 presidential candidates have indicated they do not believe in evolution.

Arnhart is amply quoted by the newspaper and identified as spearheading the new movement among conservatives who believe the scientific theories of Charles Darwin can be applied to human behavior and political thought. Arnhart believes natural selection supports many conservative ideas, including traditional social roles for men and women and free-market capitalism.

The Weekly Standard, a well-known conservative magazine, also recently highlighted Arnhart’s work, and the political scientist was a guest last week on Fair Game, a Public Radio International show hosted by Faith Salie.

At NIU, Arnhart is among the core faculty members who are experts in the field of biopolitics, also known as politics and the life sciences. NIU has the only political science department nationwide that offers biopolitics as a graduate field of study.

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Honors continue to roll in for Distinguished Research Professor Biswa Datta in the NIU Department of Mathematical Sciences.

The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) earlier this year honored Datta for his outstanding contributions to the field of numerical linear algebra related to control theory during an international workshop at the Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur, India. The ceremony was attended by mathematicians, computational scientists and engineers from across the world.

The IEEE, the world’s leading professional association for the advancement of technology, noted the versatility of Datta’s research expertise and his many contributions in areas ranging from theoretical linear algebra to practical control and vibration engineering. He has authored more than 100 interdisciplinary research papers and two popular interdisciplinary books. He also has developed three software packages and toolboxes.

Datta and wife Karabi Datta, who also is a mathematics professor at NIU, were interviewed by reporters for an Indian television channel, and several Indian newspapers published stories on the ceremony and workshop.

An edited book consisting of papers on the invited presentations of the speakers and contributions of other experts will be dedicated to Biswa Datta in acknowledgement of his interdisciplinary contributions. Details can be found in www.nlassc.org.

NIU Recreation Services offers Huskie Pup summer youth camps

Recreation Services is offering eight one-week summer sessions designed especially for youth ages 6 to 12. A variety of activities such as art, crafts, sports, team building, outdoor activities, swimming and special field trips will broaden a child’s experience and enhance lifelong wellness.

More information and registration is available online at http://www.stuaff.niu.edu/rs/pupcamp.shtml or by calling (815) 753-0231.

NIU Art Museum prepares to rent artworks for offices

Selected artworks from the NIU Art Museum’s permanent collection will be available for rental and display in university offices.

Stop by the Altgeld Gallery (first floor, west end) on weekdays between Monday, June 4, and Wednesday, June 13, to select from the artwork on exhibit. A museum staff member will be available for consultation and to offer additional information about the artwork.

As in previous years, works will be assigned by lottery based on your preferred selections. Keep in mind it is helpful to know the number of pieces you will want for your office prior to viewing the exhibition.

As a reminder to current borrowers, works on paper that have been on loan for more than five years will need to be retrieved by the museum for conservation purposes as outlined in policy.

All funds generated from this program are used for the direct care and maintenance of the collection, including matting and framing to make new selections available. Both the initial installation fee and the annual rental fee cover only part of the Art Museum’s actual incurred costs.

For more information or a copy of the “Art to Lend” policy, call (815) 753-1936 or e-mail Pete Olson, the assistant director, at polson@niu.edu.

OSHA course to focus on record keeping

The NIU-National Safety Education Center will offer an OSHA record keeping course Monday, June 4, in the Engineering Building.

The half-day program will include recording requirements of the OSHA 300 log and the OSHA 300A summary log. Other topics include hotlines, data updating, decision trees, first aid vs. medical treatment, OSHA vs. workman’s compensation reporting, audiometric testing, business travel, DART rate, incident rate, example situations, frequently asked questions and analysis for injury reduction.

Register by calling (800) 656-5317 or visit the NIU-National Safety Education Center Web site at http://www.earnyourcard.com.

OSHA course spotlights warehouse, dock safety

The third annual Warehouse Safety Seminar will be held from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday, June 6, in the Engineering Building, Room 101.

The program will feature topics such as warehousing safety, most frequently cited violations, accidents in warehouses, forklift safety, hazard communication, ergonomics of material handling, dock safety, fall protection and safety and health management. 

Register by calling (800) 656-5317 or visit the NIU-National Safety Education Center at http://www.earnyourcard.com. The fee is $225.

First-Year Connections seeks mentors for new students

First-Year Connections is looking for NIU faculty and SPS who are interested in volunteering their time to mentor new students during their transition to NIU.

The Student-Faculty Links mentorship program is a component of Orientation and First-Year Experience. Each Student-Faculty Links mentor is asked to fill out a short survey to match him or her with a new student who expresses similar interests or is in a related academic department.

Mentors and protégées then are notified in early August with each other’s contact information and are invited to an informal reception hosted by the FYC staff on Friday, Aug. 24. All subsequent meetings are to be determined by the mentor and the student.

The program gives NIU faculty and SPS staff a unique opportunity to reach out and make a difference in the lives of new students.

If you are interested in mentoring a new student for fall 2007 or would like to learn more, contact First-Year Connections by phone at (815) 753-0028 or e-mail firstconn@niu.edu.

5-21-07