illinois state · 2014-11-05 · illinois state(usps 019606) is published quarterly for members of...

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Life lessons mix with the curriculum for two first-yearteachers.

alumni magazineIllinois State

page 24

E D I TO R I A L A DV I S O RY B OA R DDeb Gentry, Ed.D. ’90; Joy Hutchcraft; Lynn Kennell; Steven Klay ’81,M.S.’83; Todd Kober ’97, M.S. ’99; Jim Moon; Marilee (Zielinski) Rapp’63; Jim Thompson ’80, M.S. ’89; Toni Tucker; Shari Zeck

PUBLISHER, Stephanie Epp

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, Susan Marquardt Blystone ’84, M.S. ’03

ALUMNI EDITOR, Annette States Levitt ’96, M.S. ’02

DIREC TOR, University Marketing and Communications, Bob Aaron

CLASS NOTES EDITOR, Leisa Barbour, M.S. ’06

COPY EDITORS, Bob Aaron, Susan Marquardt Blystone ’84, M.S. ’03,

Elaine Graybill

LE AD DESIGNER, Dave Jorgensen, M.S. ’03

DESIGNERS, Laura DiMascio, Teresa Henry, Michael Mahle

PHOTOGRAPHER, Jon Muzzarelli

PRODUC TION ASSISTANT, Ingrid Johnson

PRODUC TION COORDINATOR, Mary (Mulhall) Cowdery ’80

WRITERS, Bob Aaron, Kate Arthur, Elaine Graybill, Jennie King, Tom Nugent

Illinois State (USPS 019606) is published quarterly for members of the Illinois State University Alumni Association at Bone Student Center 146, 100 North University Street, Normal, Illinois 61790-3100. Periodicals postage paid at Normal, Illinois, and at additional mailing offices.

Magazine editorial offices are located at Bone Student Center 146, 100 North University Street, Normal, Illinois 61790-3100; telephone (309)438-2586; facsimile (309) 438-8057; e-mail [email protected];Web site www.IllinoisState.edu/alumni. Postmaster: Send addresschanges to Illinois State, Illinois State University, Campus Box 8000, Normal, IL 61790-8000.

Voluntary subscriptions of $25 per year to help defray the mounting expenses associated with publishing Illinois State are greatly appreciated.Checks payable to the Illinois State Foundation can be sent to Alumni Relations, Campus Box 3100, Normal, IL 61790-3100. Call Alumni Relations at (309) 438-2586 with any questions.

Material may be reprinted with prior approval, provided no commercial endorsement is implied and credit is given to the author, to Illinois State University, and to Illinois State.

Web site: www.IllinoisState.edu

An equal opportunity/affirmative action university encouraging diversity

A L U M N I A S S O C I AT I O N B OA R D O F D I R EC TO R SDon Shafer ’76, PresidentGreg Ayers ’90Derek Beckman ’97Richard Clemmons ’72Linda Meints Cooper, M.S.N. ’99Bob Freitag ’84Bill Johnston ’43Dan Kelley ’70Ann Kenyeri ’93Emily Miller Kimmey ’99, M.S. ’01Tom Lamont ’69Lynda Lane ’66Mary Ann Louderback ’74, M.S. ’80, Ph.D. ’84Rob McLear ’06Lois (Rademacher) Mills ’62, M.S. ’69Kathy Coyle Murdoch ’86Bob Navarro ’91, M.S. ’93, Ph.D. ’02Marilee (Zielinski) Rapp ’63Joe Rives, M.S. ’90, Ph.D. ’94Gary Schnurrpusch ’69Kristen Emmert Shaner ’86Terrence Sykes ’93Gary Tiffany ’74Jana Whitman ’90Janessa Williams ’89Mike Willis ’82Jerry Wright ’62Carl Kasten ’66, Board of Trustees Alumni Liaison

A L U M N I R E L AT I O N SStephanie Epp, Executive DirectorWalt Cody, Associate Director, Chicago OfficeAngie Coughlin, Assistant DirectorSheila Hawk ’06, Program CoordinatorShanay Huerta ’03, M.S. ’05, Assistant DirectorAnnette States Levitt ’96, M.S. ’02, Assistant DirectorJamie (Kelly) Sennett ’99, Assistant Director

alumni magazineVolume 7, Number 4, Spring 2007

Illinois State

WordThe First

The University’ssesquicentennial year is officially under way. This milestone will bemarked by special events scheduled through next February. It is my hopethat alumni from across the country will join in the celebration.

From the time planning began months ago, it became clear to me thatthis landmark anniversary is the opportunity for much more than festivegatherings. The year also provides the perfect platform for reflection.

I find myself increasingly contemplating the magnificent change that has occurred since Illinois State Normal University welcomed the first class of 43 students in 1857. Imagine the effort required of past administrators, faculty, and staff for enrollment to reach today’s total ofmore than 20,000.

Whereas Old Main was initially the only university facility, IllinoisState now has 143 buildings valued at $1.1 billion spread across approxi-mately 970 acres. And while the curriculum began with teacher educationcourses, students now choose from more than 160 fields of study in 34 academic departments that are found within six colleges.

Change is evident even with traditions that go back to the University’sfounding. Commencement, for example, has gone from a single ceremonyon the Quad to multiple events for individual colleges. The first commencement in 1860 had a mere 10 participants compared to the near-ly 5,000 degrees that will be conferred this month.

The path graduates take when leaving the University is yet anotherindicator of how different the world is from 150 years ago. Illinois State’searliest graduates left campus for one-room schoolhouses in need of teachers. Today alumni compete for their place in a high-tech workforcethat demands an expertise and confidence never before required of entry-level employees.

I know from talking to our young alums how intimidating it can be forthem to make the leap from student to professional. And yet I also knowfrom countless testimonies that our graduates overcome their qualms toexcel, not only on that first job but within their chosen field.

Their success is a direct result of the strong academic foundation and personal confidence each acquired while at the University. The commitment to provide both to students goes back to the institution’sfounding and is a core value that still defines Illinois State, despite 150years of change.

Al BowmanPresident, Illinois State University

From lectures to lesson plans

The transition to the workplace is always a challenge, but especially

for College of Education alumni who go from student to teacher. As

2006 graduates Amanda Hanson and Pete Ower can attest after their

first year of teaching, moving to the head of the classroom can be

exciting and frightening. Cover: Connecting with students is just

one thrill Hanson experiences as a fourth-grade teacher.

Contents2 U N I V E R S I T Y N E W S

9 I T ’ S A S M A L L W O R L D Individuals journey across the globe to attend Illinois State,

arriving to a warm campus welcome. They connect quickly with

other students from around the world through International

House, which is celebrating 35 years.

1 2 A T T H E C E N T E R O F C H A N G EGeorge Pruitt ’68, M.S. ’70, was in the small cohort of African

American students who attended the University in the 1960s.

Pruitt was instrumental in quelling campus unrest, proving his

leadership skills long before becoming president of Thomas

Edison State College.

2 0 C A B E R N E T A N D A C O R V E T T EThe career of physics grad Mike Canney ’84 resembles a great

race that he has won. After selling a successful business he now

chases two more challenges: running a vineyard and racing his

car in the amateur and professional circuits.

2 4 N O T - S O - N O R M A L U N I V E R S I T YTake a look back on how Illinois State (Normal) University came

to exist. The events surrounding the creation of the first public

university in Illinois are best described as a power struggle. Dis-

tinguished Professor of History Emeritus John Freed provides

insight into what really happened 150 years ago.

2 9 A L U M N I A W A R D S

3 0 S E S Q U I C E N T E N N I A L C A L E N D A R

3 2 A L U M N I S E R V I C E S

3 6 C L A S S N O T E S

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”A determination to elevate Athletics to unprecedented heights is evident at Illinois State, as the Universi-ty is in the midst of “Redbird Renaissance.” Sparked by Athletics Director Sheahon Zenger, RedbirdRenaissance is a vision to create and maintain the best facilities and scholarship opportunities possible forstudent-athletes.

Zenger’s plan calls for investing approximately $39 million. The dollars will enhance several facilities,including Redbird Arena, which opened in 1989 but is not yet completed. A Percy Family Illinois State

Athletics Hall of Fame is still planned, as wellThe Legends Room, locker room enhance-ments, training facility renovations, creationof a team meeting room, and renovation ofthe north entrance and ticket area. The workis estimated to cost $3.25 million.

Hancock Stadium is also included in Redbird Renaissance. Built in 1961, the stadi-um will have new seating on the east andsouth sides, first-class concession areas, andan upgraded concourse area with improvedrestrooms. Student seating will be expanded

and improved, with luxury donor suites added. The pressbox will also be renovated during work that is expected tocost $25 million.

Another $3.4 million is earmarked for Redbird Field,which is home to the University’s baseball team. Field boxes, bleacher seating, grass seating, and picnic areas willbe added, as well as an open concourse and a new pressarea. Improvements planned for the field include enhanceddugouts and bullpens.

The softball complex will be updated, as well as tennisfacilities. Twelve outdoor courts will be constructed

on Gregory Street. The golf program will also be enriched with construction of a Golf Learning and Training Center.

Financial support for student-athletes is yet another key element of the plan. Increasing endowmentfunding by $1 million is a priority for Zenger, who is confident Redbird Renaissance will become a realitywith increased donor support.

“Over many years fans, alumni, and friends have come to expect the best from Illinois State,” Zengersaid. “The Redbird Renaissance vision will accelerate all of our expectations for the future.”

To learn how you can get involved, contact Athletics at (309) 438-3803.

2 ILLINOIS STATE SPRING / 2007

UniversityNews

Artist rendering of Phase 1 of the renovated Hancock Stadium

‘‘Redbird Renaissance shows our commitment to athletic excellence.

PROVOST ANNOUNCES PLAN

TO JOIN FACULTY RANKS

Vice President and Provost John Presleyhas announced his decision to leave theadministrative post and take a facultyposition in the College of Education,beginning January 1.

“This decision is purely personal andsimply reflects my desire to spend moretime on research and writing projects thatare very important to me,” Presley said. Asearch for his replacement is underway.

Presley received his Ph.D. in modernBritish literature. He earned a master’s inEnglish language and literature fromSouthern Illinois University after complet-ing a bachelor’s degree in English fromArkansas State University.

As provost he led the University injoining The American Democracy Project.The project unites students, faculty, staff,and administrators in promoting civicengagement through organized activities.The Faculty Excellence Initiative wasanother of his many endeavors as provost.

GRANT SUPPORTS STUDY

OF SCHOOL CLOSINGS

A $500,000 U.S. Department of Agricul-ture grant received by the University’sStevenson Center for Community andEconomic Development and the Centerfor the Study of Educational Policy will beused to help communities understandand plan for the impact of school closures.

More than 1,500 Illinois schools haveclosed in the past 35 years. Often theschools are in rural areas, leading to an economic downturn for the affectedcommunities. Research indicates that acommunity’s identity, population, andeconomy are tied to the presence of aschool.

The study will look at what trendspredict rural school closure; what impactclosures have on local economies, educa-tional systems and population trends; andwhat circumstances from a school closureor consolidation lead to local populationgrowth, economic gains and educationalbenefits. How schools act as economicengines within their communities, andhow decisions are made to close schoolswill also be examined.

Researchers include Stevenson Cen-ter Director Frank Beck, Norm Durflinger

from the Center for the Study of Educa-tion Policy, Sherrilyn Billger from theDepartment of Economics, and JosephPacha from the Department of Educa-tional Administration and Foundations.

MENNONITE’S ACCELERATED

DEGREE SEQUENCE BEGINS

The first class of 10 students enrolled inMennonite College of Nursing’s (MCN)accelerated degree sequence began theirstudies in the one-year program with thespring semester.

The accelerated degree sequenceallows students to complete the final twoyears of the Bachelor of Science in nurs-ing degree in one year. The sequence pro-vides underemployed workers, or those

workers looking for a meaningful careerchange, the opportunity to receive nurs-ing education and enter a critical needemployment area in Central Illinois.

The accelerated sequence uses thesame curriculum as the traditional two-year degree, but schedules are com-pressed and students attend classesthroughout the entire year. Members ofthe first class already hold bachelor’sdegrees in other academic areas andhave completed all the prerequisitecourses. Class size is expected to doublein 2008.

Illinois State received a $496,000grant from the U.S. Department of Laborin 2006 to reeducate dislocated or under-employed workers. Through Extended

3ILLINOIS STATE SPRING / 2007

For the third consecutive year, Illinois State has been ranked by Kiplinger’s Personal

Finance magazine as one of 100 best values in public colleges in the country. The

University was listed 74th in the February 2007 edition, up nine spots from last year’s

ranking.

“To make this prestigious list once made me

very proud of Illinois State’s outstanding faculty,

staff, and student body,” President Al Bowman

said. “But to make it three straight times really

says something special about this university.

Offering quality and value is not easy during a

challenging economic period, but working

together as a community we have made it

happen.”

Kiplinger’s list focuses on schools that are

noteworthy for their “top-flight academics and

affordable costs.” Rankings are based on data

provided by more than 500 public four-year

colleges, as well as the magazine’s indepen-

dent research.

Measures examined include freshman class ACT scores, admission rates, student-

faculty ratios, the percentage of faculty with the highest degree in their field, how much

each school spends on instruction for each student, how much each school spends on its

library facilities, and four- and six-year graduation rates.

Each school is also ranked on a combination of quality and cost components.

Kiplinger’s places greater overall weight on quality, which accounts for about two-thirds

of the final score.

Kiplinger’s ranks Illinois Stateamong nation’s best

University, Mennonite received a portionof that grant to assist with the initial start-up of the accelerated bachelor of sciencenursing sequence.

LINCOLN EXHIBIT COMING TO MILNER

Milner Library is one of a select group ofacademic and public libraries across thenation chosen to host the traveling exhibitForever Free: Abraham Lincoln’s Journey toEmancipation. It will be at Milner fromAugust 23 to October 5 in conjunctionwith the University’s 150th celebration.

The large-panel exhibit reexaminesLincoln’s efforts toward the abolition ofslavery during the Civil War. The panelscontain reproductions of rare historicaldocuments, as well as period photographsand illustrative material, such as engrav-

ings, lithographs, and political cartoons. Sections focus on young Lincoln’s

America, the dividing nation, the CivilWar, the Emancipation Proclamation,the role of black soldiers, and the finalmonths of the Civil War and of Lincoln’slife.

The traveling exhibit is organized byThe Huntington Library and the GilderLehrman Institute of American Historyin cooperation with the AmericanLibrary Association. It is funded by amajor grant from the National Endow-ment for the Humanities.

CPA EXAM PERFORMANCE

RANKS NATIONALLY

The Department of Accounting contin-ues to receive national attention for thesuccess of its students sitting for the CPAexamination. It has been listed as one of

the top 25 accounting programs in thenation for student performance on the2005 CPA exam.

Illinois State has been ranked 18thin the nation with respect to the pass ratefor students with advanced accountingdegrees, and is one of only two Illinoisschools listed in the top 25 in the nationby the National Association of the StateBoards of Accountancy (NASBA). Theassociation released results for the 2005CPA exam earlier this winter.

The Department of Accounting hasa long-standing reputation of graduatesperforming well above the national aver-age on the CPA exam. In May of 2002 thedepartment was recognized for achievingthe second highest pass rate in thenation. In May of 2003 its pass rate wasmore than 66 percent at a time when thenational average was below 18 percent.

COMPOSER LENDS TALENT TO

UNIVERSITY’S 150TH CELEBRATION

One of America’s most important com-posers for band, David Maslanka, wascommissioned to create two pieces forthe University’s Wind Symphony. Themusic was performed during events atthe start of the University’s sesquicen-tennial celebration in February.

Maslanka’s Procession of the Acade-mics was played during the FoundersDay Convocation. The second piece, ACarl Sandberg Reader, premiered duringa President’s Concert. President Emeri-tus David Strand narrated the piece,which is based on poems of Carl Sand-berg and 19th-century folksongs.

Maslanka is no stranger to the bandprogram at Illinois State. The Wind Sym-phony has performed many Maslankacompositions, several of which havebeen composed for the University group.The Wind Symphony has performedMaslanka’s work on four Albany Recordsreleases.

UNIVERSITY RANKED NATIONALLY

FOR FACULTY PRODUCTIVITY

A new national ranking for scholarly productivity lists Illinois State 14thamong small research universities. Otherschools in the same category includeDePaul University, Rutgers University,and the College of William and Mary.


UniversityNews

The University’s Physics Department solar car team is preparing for a track race later this

month in Topeka, Kansas. The car, named Mercury I, is being updated with a new motor,

motor controller, and battery system for the Topeka race. That event will be a test for

the car’s electrical system, and a training exercise for team members who have not

previously raced.

The solar car team consists of three faculty members and 15 students. The team

finished the 2,500-mile North Ameri-

can Solar Car Challenge in 2005. That

was the first year the University

entered the event, which is the

longest solar car race in the world.

Physics Professor and team

member Daniel Holland said the

team is working toward the 2008

North American Solar Challenge next

summer. Sponsorships are an impor-

tant part of the preparation, as Hol-

land noted that the team needs to

replace the solar array to make Mer-

cury I competitive for the race.

Replacement costs could range from $20,000 to $100,000, depending on the level of

the upgrade.

Individuals interested in the project can learn more on the Web at

www.solarcar.ilstu.edu, or contact Holland by e-mail at [email protected].

Solar car teamcontinues racing

Mercury I will be upgraded before the 2008 North

American Solar Challenge.


The inaugural Faculty ScholarlyProductivity Index, produced by Acade-mic Analytics, rates faculty scholarlyoutput at nearly 7,300 doctoral pro-grams around the country. Faculty areevaluated based on the number ofbooks, journal articles and journal cita-tions, awards, grants, and honors.

“Illinois State faculty earned thisrecognition through their dedication toresearch and scholarship, the backboneof strong graduate programs,” ProvostJohn Presley said. “Our senior facultyare mentors to both graduate studentsand new professors. The recognition willfurther our efforts to recruit the best andbrightest faculty, ones who desire towork at an institution that values bothteaching and scholarship.”

BONE STUDENT CENTER PLAN

INCLUDES STARBUCKS

Efforts to revitalize Bone Student Centerare moving forward with approval of a$1.25 million plan endorsed by theBoard of Trustees in February. The fund-ing will improve programs and physicalfeatures of the building, which willbecome home to a Starbucks Store. Star-bucks will be located on the main floor,along with a seating area.

INTERNATIONAL AUTHOR NAMED

DISTINGUISHED PROFESSOR

Contemporary author and English Pro-fessor Curtis White has been named a Distinguished Professor. The appoint-ment, which is the highest honor facultycan achieve, was celebrated at FoundersDay in February and will take effect inAugust.

White is an internationally recog-nized voice in contemporary and innov-ative fiction. He has authored sevenbooks of fiction, three nonfiction books,and more than four dozen publishedessays and short stories. With essays inHarper’s magazine and his book TheMiddle Mind: Why Americans Don’t Thinkfor Themselves, White has also emergedas a public intellectual and social critic.

Academic and popular audiencesalike are captivated by White, whosework garners acclaim in scholarly jour-nals such as the International Fiction

Review. Publications as varied as the NewYork Times, the Boston Globe, the Wash-ington Post, and Rolling Stone have praisedhis work.

White has also achieved distinctionas a mentor to younger writers, and hisextensive work in the small press pub-lishing industry demonstrates an impres-sive commitment to the promotion of newand experimental writing.

A dedicated and challenging teacher,he has provided outstanding servicethroughout his nearly 30 years at IllinoisState through his commitment to generaleducation classes, his years as chair of theAcademic Senate, and his current posi-tion as chair of the Illinois Board of High-er Education Faculty Advisory Council.

AlumniANNUAL ALUMNI SURVEY UNDERWAY

Members of the graduating classes of2002 and 2006 received a letter lastmonth from President Al Bowman invit-ing them to participate in an annualalumni survey. Personalized instructionsfor completing the survey were includedin the mailing.

Please take a moment to completethis survey, as information received willbe used to improve the educational expe-rience at Illinois State. Participants will beeligible to win two roundtrip airline tick-ets. Contact the University AssessmentOffice at (309) 438-7021 for additionalinformation, or send an e-mail [email protected].

SCHOLARSHIPS AVAILABLE

TO LEGACY STUDENTS

The University’s Student Alumni Counciloffers three $1,000 scholarships to sonsand daughters of Illinois State graduates.The nonrenewable scholarships aremade possible by a donation from thefamily of Marion H. Dean ’27, and con-tinuous contributions from the StudentAlumni Council.

The scholarships help ease thestrain of college expenses, reward anaccomplished student, and recognizelegacy families for continuing the IllinoisState tradition. Recipients are chosenbased on scholastic achievement, leader-ship ability, service to community,parental influence in the decision toenroll at Illinois State, and demonstratedpotential as a future alumni leader.

The application deadline for the2007-2008 academic year scholarships is October 15. Applications are availableonline at www.alumni.ilstu.edu/about_us/scholarships or can be requested bycalling (309) 438-2586 or (800) 366-4478. For more information send an e-mail message to Alumni Relations Assis-tant Director Shanay Huerta ’03, M.S.’05, at [email protected].

ANNUAL ALUMNI ASSOCIATION

MEETING ANNOUNCED

All alumni are invited to attend theAlumni Association annual meeting at 10a.m. on September 15, in the Bone Stu-dent Center Old Main Room. Agendaitems include the election of members tothe Alumni Association Board of Direc-tors and board officers.

Alumni with active membership sta-tus in the Alumni Association are eligibleto vote at the annual meeting. To beactive alumni must have made a gift tothe University through the Illinois StateUniversity Foundation in the current orpreceding fiscal year. For more informa-tion, contact Alumni Relations at (309)438-2589 or (800) 366-4478, or e-mailExecutive Director Stephanie Epp [email protected].

Distinguished Professor Curtis White


UniversityNews

The celebration of Illinois State’s 150th year officially began on Feb-

ruary 15, which was Founders Day. Members of the campus com-

munity were joined by alumni and friends of the University for

events that began with a morning bell-ringing ceremony. Plans to

ring the Old Main Bell on the Quad were changed due to inclement

weather. The individuals chosen as participants gathered in the Bone Student Center Brown

Ballroom, where a bell from the McLean County Historical Society was on stage, ready to toll

150 times. The day also included speeches, a luncheon, receptions, and a special alumni

awards presentation. A Founders Day Con-

vocation was the main event. Faculty and

staff were honored during the convocation,

as was keynote speaker David McCullough,

who was awarded an honorary Doctorate

in Literature.

February 15 was a day full of memorable moments,

beginning with a bell-ringing ceremony. Reggie Red-

bird, below, represented Athletics as one of 150 chosen

to literally ring in the University’s sesquicentennial cele-

bration. Historian, author, and Pulitzer Prize recipient

David McCullough, right, spoke on “Leadership and the

History You Don’t Know” at the Founders Day Convoca-

tion. Provost John Presley, top, took to the convocation

podium to introduce faculty award recipients. Staff

members were also recognized, with President Al Bow-

man, middle, congratulating each one honored. Bow-

man addressed the audience, bottom, which gathered in

Braden Auditorium to be part of a truly special day in

Illinois State’s history.

Sesquicentennial kick-off

STUDENT AFFAIRS HOSTS

LEADERSHIP ALUMNI EVENT

The Division of Student Affairs and itsvice president, Steve Adams ’69, will hosta Legacy of Leadership event for studentleader alumni and friends from 5:30-8p.m. on June 21 at Lake Point Tower inChicago. All alumni who were involved instudent government, peer counseling, theAssociation of Residence Halls, Greek life,the Daily Vidette, Preview, or other areasof Student Affairs are invited. Details anda list of attendees are available online atwww.studentaffairs.ilstu. edu/Alumni, orby calling (309) 438-5451. Due to build-ing security, reservations are required andmust be made by June 7.

REUNION PLANNING

GUIDE AVAILABLE

Alumni Relations staff have compiled areunion planning guide to assist alumniwho are interested in coordinating areunion. Whether the intent is to gettogether with former classmates or clubmembers, this guide will make reunionplanning simpler. Hard copies of theguide are available at the Alumni Relations Office on campus, or go towww.alumni.ilstu.edu/reunion on theWeb. For more information, contactAlumni Relations Assistant DirectorShanay Huerta ’03, M.S. ’05, [email protected].

AthleticsTWO REDBIRDS NAMED

TO CENTENNIAL TEAM

Illinois State football players Mike Prior’85 and Clarence Collins have beennamed to the Missouri Valley Conference(MVC) All-Centennial Football Team. Thehonorary team commemorates the MVC’scentury anniversary.

Prior was a defensive back for theRedbirds. The three-time Division I-AAall-American holds Illinois State’s careerrecord for interceptions with 23. Heplayed 13 years in the National FootballLeague and won a Super Bowl ring withthe Green Bay Packers. Collins was a wide

receiver while attending Illinois State.He ranks third on the University’s careerreception list with 147, and third inreceiving yardage with 2,498.

The MVC is the second oldest Divi-

sion I conference in the nation. It spon-sored football from 1907 to 1985, withIllinois State’s football team part of theconference from 1981 to 1985.


Legendary Redbird basketball player Doug Collins ’73 was uniquely honored in Feb-

ruary with the naming of the Redbird Arena floor the “Doug Collins Court.” The

announcement was made during a Redbird game against Bradley at the arena,

where Collins’s retired uniform hangs from the rafters.

The recipient of the University’s first full basketball scholarship, Collins played

under the direction of head coach Will Robinson.

Collins lettered from 1971 to 1973. As a junior, he

ranked third nationally in scoring with 32.6 points

per game.

That same year Collins earned a spot on the

United States basketball team that competed at

the 1972 Olympic Games. His spectacular steal

and free throws with three seconds left appeared

to secure a victory for the United

States in the gold medal game,

but a bizarre finish stripped the

Americans of a victory in one of

the most controversial basketball

games of all time.

He set the school standard

for career points with 2,240. The

only consensus all-America selec-

tion in Redbird basketball history,

Collins appeared on the front

cover of Sports Illustrated after

being selected by the Philadel-

phia 76ers as the first overall pick

in the 1973 NBA draft.

Collins starred in the NBA

for eight seasons, all with the

76ers. A leg injury ended his playing career in 1979. He coached eight years in the

NBA, including for the Chicago Bulls, Washington Wizards, and Detroit Pistons. He

is also an acclaimed commentator, earning numerous Emmy nominations for his

work as a national broadcaster.

“In the 150-year history of Illinois State University, Doug Collins exemplifies

all the best of Redbird athletics,” Athletics Director Sheahon Zenger said. “His

accomplishments as a student, an athlete, an Olympian, a professional, a coach,

and as a broadcaster have brought notoriety of the highest level to Illinois State

University for the last 37 years.”

Redbird arena floor named for Doug Collins

Doug Collins ’73 thanked the campus and community

after Doug Collins Court was unveiled in February.

Participants in the ceremony included, from left, Board of

Trustees Chair Carl Kasten ’66; President Al Bowman;

Collins; his wife, Kathy (Stieger) ’73; their daughter Kelly

Romanczwk and her husband, Paul; and son Chris Collins

with his wife, Kim, and their children, Ryan and Kate.

FORMER COACH INDUCTED TO

NATIONAL HALL OF FAME

Retired Illinois State track and fieldcoach John Coughlan has been votedinto the United States Track and Fieldand Cross Country Coaches AssociationHall of Fame. It is the third hall of famefor Coughlan, who was named MissouriValley Conference (MVC) Coach of theYear 25 times.

Coughlan, who is also a member ofthe Illinois State Athletics and DrakeRelays halls of fame, left the University in2000 with more Valley championshipsthan any other conference coach in anysport.

The Redbirds dominated the MVCin the 1980s, winning eight consecutiveconference titles while sweeping thecross-country, indoor track and outdoortrack championships. Coughlan coached40 student-athletes who were namedNCAA All-Americans.

DevelopmentSCHOLARSHIP ENDOWED

THROUGH STUDENT EFFORTS

Students working to endow a scholar-ship honoring a slain peer have succeed-ed by raising more than $22,000. Themoney has been donated to the OlamideE. Adeyooye Scholarship fund throughthe Illinois State University StudentFoundation.

Adeyooye was killed in 2005. Fund-raising efforts began that same year andgrew to include a Play for Olamide Bean-bags Tournament and a benefit concert.The first scholarship will be awarded thisyear during the University’s 150th cele-bration.

“I am proud of the efforts of the Stu-dent Foundation for establishing thisscholarship, and the generosity of thedonors who have endowed it,” PresidentAl Bowman said. “Olamide Adeyooye’sdeath was a tragic time in our universi-ty’s history, however, this scholarship

will help to carry on the memory of ayoung woman who was a dedicated stu-dent and a caring friend.”

GRADUATES DONATE THROUGH

COMMENCEMENT CHALLENGE

Members of the University’s Class of2007 were given a unique opportunity toshow their support for Illinois State atthis year’s commencement ceremonies. ASpirit Tassel Challenge asked membersof the graduating class to donate a mini-mum of $20.07 to the University’s Foun-dation, with all dollars designated forstudent-to-student scholarships.

Graduates who made a donationwere given a commemorative tassel towear during the commencement cere-monies. They were also recognized byPresident Al Bowman in his commence-ment address.

Alumni can also be part of this newgiving program by matching a studentgift. Get involved by calling the IllinoisState University Student Foundation at(309) 438-4483, or by sending an e-mailto [email protected].


Editor’s Note: Letters on issues discussed in Illinois State orrelating to university news or policies are welcome. All lettersshould be limited to 250 words or less and are subject to editing. Send e-mail to [email protected]; fax to (309) 438-8411; or mail to Illinois State, Illinois State University, Campus Box 3420, Normal, IL 61790-3420.

To the Editor, “Spread the Red.” My husband, Gary ’88, and I wonderedwhat that means when we returned to campus fromMaine in December. I needed to do dissertation researchand was apprehensive, as much has changed on campus.

My first stop was Milner Library, where I was unableto log on to the computer system. Bruce Stoffel told me Iwould have to renew my password. My first thought wasthat I would be sent all over campus, as I had experiencedmany times in the past. Bruce made a phone call andexplained I would have to go to the Tech Center. Before Ileft, he asked for the list of articles I needed. Tech Centerstaff guided me through the process. Upon my return toMilner, Bruce had found the articles. I was amazed andthankful.

My next stop was to meet with my academic advisor,Dianne Ashby. As an undergrad in the 1960s I hadworked in Hovey Hall, so it was nice to revisit this build-ing. Beth Turner greeted me cheerfully. Dianne was out ofthe office, but her assistant, Dave Bentlin, gladly arrangedan appointment.

I wanted to meet Jim Jacobs, who had assisted me inregistering via e-mail. I did not know where his office was,so I asked another person in Hovey. This kind personlooked up his office. I found Jim, introduced myself, and thanked him for being so helpful.

I now know what “Spread the Red” means. It ismuch more than an athletic program marketing tool. It is an entire staff spreading a helping hand, a positive attitude, and a total atmosphere of excellent customer service. I am a proud alumna of Illinois State Universityand will continue to “Spread the Red” in every way.

Thanks Illinois State, for making my visit a wonderful experience.

Judy Moses Speers ’70, M.S. ’95

Letters

UniversityNews

“Are you the Gerard Lim from I-House at ISU?”“Are you the Poh Sim Kang from I-House at ISU?”

This exchange on another continent was oneof those coincidences that make the expression“it’s a small world” ring true. The conversationalso stands as proof of how Illinois State Universi-ty’s International House connects people acrossthe globe over a lifetime.

The chance meeting of two former I-House stu-dents half way around the world from the IllinoisState campus is just one of the many stories thatMarilyn Boyd loved to tell—and one of the many shecollected over the last 25 years.

“I’ve got a gazillion of them,” said Boyd, whoserved as coordinator of I-House activities from1982 until her death in January.

The conversation Boyd recounted in aninterview last fall started something like that,except probably in Chinese, a few years ago in aspeech pathology clinic in Singapore. Lim ’84lived at I-House as a Chinese international stu-dent while completing a degree in economics.Now a Singapore resident, he had gone to the

clinic searching for the best diagnostic and treat-ment services he could find for his daughter,who has Down syndrome.

Kang ’84, M.S. ’86, came to the Universityfrom Malaysia. Also an I-House resident, she wasknown to her classmates as “Sim.” She obtainedtwo degrees in speech pathology and audiology.They became the foundation for the professionalspeech pathology practice she established in Sin-gapore, where she now also lives.

The way Lim’s story came to Boyd’s atten-tion is more evidence of how long-lasting I-House bonds can be. He shared the encounter

connectionGlobal Campus I-House builds international legacy

BY JENNIE R. KING

Illinois State University’s

international connections extend

to 97 countires (in purple), and include

students studying abroad, international

students on campus, and participants

in Illinois State’s Management and

Development international program.

Marilyn Boyd was instru-

mental in helping foreign

students build lasting

friendships through I-House

events. At a picnic several

years ago Boyd interacted

with, from left, Edward

Kene ’00 from Kenya, Hum-

berto Miranda from Pana-

ma, and Mathis Klauss ’01

from Germany.

with Boyd over coffee while in Bloomington-Normal to visit the family that hosted him dur-ing his collegiate years.

I-House origins go back 35 years or more, ifyou count the early activities that led to its offi-cial status as a program residence hall under theOffice of Residential Life. One of several programsadministered through the Office of International

Studies and Programs(OISP), the history of I-House is intertwinedwith the growth ofinternational educa-tion at Illinois Stateand throughout theUnited States.

International stu-dents were few and farbetween on campusduring the 1950s.

From 1956 to 1967 there were between one and 34each year, according to OISP Associate DirectorSarah Jome. Lela Winegarner from the EnglishDepartment served as their advisor. Winegarner’syears of service are still recognized with a gradu-ate student scholarship fund named in her honor.

In 1967 the number of international studentsattending doubled, reflecting nationwide trends.There were about 70 international students oncampus then, Jome said, and advising was handledthrough the counseling center. The first interna-tional student orientation was held the followingyear, with 123 international students on board.

By the time the 1970-1971 academic yearrolled around, the number had jumped to 210. I-House was created that year in Van Buren House,within Watterson Towers. “It was brand-new atthe time,” Boyd said.

The following year it was moved to Fell Hall.There were 250 residents—half of them Ameri-cans, half international students. That same yearthe Office of International Studies was estab-lished, with the late Ted Sands as director. Itsmain function was to administer study-abroad

programs for U.S. students. The world has been shrinking dramatically

since those days, and the growth of internationalstudies could well be both cause and effect. TodayOISP serves hundreds of students. As of spring2006, Illinois State counted 97 countries on its listof active connections. In 2005-2006 there were 419degree-seeking international students enrolled.Another 374 students who were not pursuing adegree enrolled in courses such as managementdevelopment, American studies, the English Lan-guage Institute, and various exchange programs.

I-House puts all those numbers, all that his-tory, and all those countries in a person-to-personcontext. After 10 years in Fell Hall and 15 more inWalker Hall, I-House relocated to Atkin-Colby in1996. It now occupies three floors of the resi-dence halls.

“It’s an out-of-the-classroom learning experi-ence,” Boyd said of I-House. “The internationalstudents learn things from Americans and vice-versa.” Three or four international resident assis-tants help students plan a variety of programs thatreach out to campus and the community at large.

The annual International Fair, one of I-House’sbest-known programs, has become a local town-and-gown tradition. It attracts “virtual travelers”and exhibitors to campus every February for aweekend of cultural mini-tours.

Fair-goers stroll from booth to booth in BoneStudent Center, taking in the displays, samplingcuisine, and chatting with international studentsand their American friends. Traditional nationalcostumes, music and arts are all part of the scene,


International students are

able to build a strong

camaraderie at Illinois

State through programs

such as I-House. They con-

nect socially at the annual

I-House soccer picnic, top,

and just for conversation,

as seen in this 1972 photo.

One of the most popular

activities is the annual

International Fair, below.

which includes live entertainment. Danceperformances and martial arts demonstra-tions add to the festivities.

Gala Night, another annual I-House event, isheld every fall, usually in October. It’s an oppor-tunity for international students to share their tal-ent and their heritage through live performances.

There are a lot of other lessons being taughtunder the I-House roof. Boyd noted how muchstudents participating in I-House activities learnabout planning, budgeting, leadership, and team-work. She stressed the importance of student ini-tiative in developing and executing I-Houseevents. “Every single idea for a program that takesplace at international house has been started by astudent,” she said.

International tensions and controversialissues are always at the forefront of I-House con-cern. A prime example is Global Review, a weeklyforum organized by the Global Review StudentAssociation under the auspices of I-House. It fea-tures speakers, panel presentations, and audienceparticipation in discussions of current interna-tional and global issues.

Notable guests and faculty serve as speakerswho explore topics that range from the need topromote civil dialogue between Israelis and Pales-tinians to the challenge of teaching science in theface of opposition to the theory of evolution.

One of I-House’s longest-running programs,Global Review was introduced in 1979 by TayeWoldesmiate ’82, M.S. ’84, who was an interna-tional assistant there at the time. He enlisted thehelp of Joel Verner and Jamal Nasser. Then a newfaculty member, Nasser now chairs the Politicsand Government Department. Woldesmiate is aninstructional assistant professor in the samedepartment.

Readers familiar with Woldesmiate’s storywill know how he returned to campus to addressthe first Global Review seminar of the 2002-2003academic year. It was a momentous occasion,Boyd noted, as he had just been released fromprison in his native Ethiopia where he had been

held for six years forpolitical reasons.

“Every I-House per-son from France toJapan got involved”when the news of hisincarceration surfaced in1999, Boyd said. “We juststarted calling everyone.”Lots of letters and lots of

phone calls followed, and Amnesty Internationaltook up the cause.

“It was one of those marvelous full circles, ofthings coming through,” Boyd said. “Not only hisfriends from I-House, but new students too” weretouched by the events.

Such moments convinced Boyd that it’s thefriendships, the personal encounters, that teachus the most about other countries and other cul-tures. And she considered herself a student alongwith the I-House family.

“The only way we can promote understand-ing is to get to know each other. Once you get toknow people, you begin to see how generaliza-tions and stereotypes just don’t fit,” Boyd said.“I’ve probably learned more than any post-gradu-ate degree could have taught me.”

11ILLINOIS STATE SPRING/ 2007

In Memory

Alumni joined members of the campus

community in mourning the loss of Marilyn

Boyd early in the spring semester. Boyd,

who had been ill, died on January 22 at the

age of 65.

Her contributions extend far beyond directing I-House, which is the only

international learning/living environment center based at a public universi-

ty in Illinois. She was also involved in numerous community outreach

activities to promote global awareness, including her work as president of

the Sunset Rotary Club in Normal.

A scholarship to benefit international students is anticipated in Boyd’s

memory. For more information, contact Executive Director of Develop-

ment Joy Hutchcraft at (309) 438-8041, or by e-mail at [email protected].

I-House students and

alums rallied in support of

Taye Woldesmiate ’82,

M.S. ’84, shown at left on

an Amnesty International

poster.


A tug-of-war was going on for America’s soul. Activists of all political stripes werespilling out onto America’s streets in the 1960s and early 1970s, battling over civil rights and protesting the Vietnam War. Universities were a major battleground for this raucous debate. Protests—violent and nonviolent—populatedcampus quads from coast-to-coast.

Illinois State University was part of this mosaic of protest. George Pruitt, abiology major and chemistry minor from Chicago, was at the epicenter of the traumatic events that rocked the University. Pruitt ’68, M.S. ’70, recalls that he wasamong the fewer than 200 black students who attended Illinois State at a timewhen the campus enrolled about 17,000 students.

Looking back on those turbulent years, Pruitt said: “ Substantial change tookplace at Illinois State. And Illinois State was the only public university in the statewhere significant violence didn’t take place.”

Over the next three decades, Pruitt’s journey took him from student protester to president of Thomas Edison State College.

Pruitt arrived in Normal after five semesters at the University of Illinois-Urbana/Champaign. He quickly teamed with other African Americans on campus, including Charles Morris, a mathematics professor; Harry Shaw ’59, M.S.’65, a development officer; and James Tate, the University’s only African Americangraduate student and a graduate of the Chicago high school Pruitt had attended.

This trio and others had the goal of prodding the University into “payingmore attention to underserved people of color,” Pruitt recalled, adding that they

BY BOB A ARON

Laur

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ria

Burk

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Alumnus George Pruitt was campus leader in turbulent times

PROTESTERcollege president

FROM

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were looking for “something dramatic to get the attention ofthe University.”

That attention-getter was a 60- to 90-minute takeover ofthe president’s office by about 50 students.

President Samuel Braden appointed two negotiators todeal with the situation, including Kenneth A. (Buzz) Shaw’61, L.H.D. ’87, a presidential assistant and later chief execu-tive of Southern Illinois University, the University of Wiscon-sin System, and Syracuse University. Out of this experience, alifelong friendship matured between Pruitt and Shaw. JoiningPruitt on the negotiation team were three other students: Al Perkins ’70, Ronald Montgomery ’74, and Deborah Lindsey.

Pruitt and Tate—a “good cop/bad cop” tandem, respec-tively—managed the talks on behalf of the student protesters.“A catalyst was needed to drag the University out of the1950s,” Pruitt said. The job was made easier, he explained,because “on the other side of the table we were talking topeople of goodwill, people we could trust”—people likeBraden and Shaw, who he describes as men of “vision andcourage.”

“I felt that we were partners, not adversaries,” Pruittsaid.

Pruitt served as the first president of Illinois State’sBlack Student Association (BSA) at a time when the University took important steps to recruit more black students, faculty, and staff. Academic policies were reviewedto make them more multicultural, Pruitt said, with the goalof “making Illinois State a more hospitable place” for adiverse population.


“The first class we recruited brought 150 black students—smart and assertive students—to Illinois State. Wewere looking for strong and self-confident people,” Pruittsaid. “We were happy with this first group of students—a group that doubled the University’s African American student population.”

While Pruitt recalls that “exciting and wonderful things”were happening on campus at the time, he also remembersthe atmosphere as “overtly hostile” and “threatening” toAfrican American students.

“There were racial epithets,” he said. “I was the onlyblack student in class and other students would avert theireyes from me. There wasn’t a place for me to get a haircut,and I was threatened because of my political activity.”

However, these incidents were tempered by others. “I had a white roommate and he was a wonderful guy.”

After a flirtation with taking a job with the phone com-pany following graduation, Pruitt opted to remain at IllinoisState to work on the University’s landmark High PotentialStudent Program. He also completed a master’s degree incounselor education.

At age 22, he was an assistant to a dean and an assistantto the director of the High Potential Student Program, which

Vidette articles from the University’s archives convey the angst that

existed on campus as civil rights issues embroiled the nation decades ago.

President Samuel Braden was confronted more than once by student

protesters, including George Pruitt ’68, M.S. ’70. Pruitt, above, has been

a college president himself for the past 25 years. (Photo courtesy of Thomas

Edison State College.)


was prospering. It successfully drew minority students toIllinois State and became a model for such programs.

But turbulent times were still ahead as the nation struggled with issues of equality. Pruitt remembers whenMartin Luther King Jr. was assassinated in 1968. “I felt like Ihad been kicked in the stomach. Students set a small fire inthe science building—Felmley Hall. There was little damage.It was a mindless, stupid act,” he said.

Another vivid memory involves the flagpole on theQuad, which became a center of protest in 1969 after twoBlack Panther Party (BPP) members were killed in Chicagoby law enforcement officers. BSA members lowered the U.S. flag to half-mast to honor the slain BPP leaders, but subsequently it was raised. BSA also made several demandsof the University, including naming a major building for ablack leader.

On February 24, 1970, Braden said he would submit tothe Board of Regents the recommendation to rename theUnion for the late Malcolm X—but with his disapproval,believing the Black Muslim leader’s message was divisive.The board agreed and voted unanimously against the idea inMarch.

Several months later in May of 1970 there were othertussles over lowering the flag following the deaths of four

students at Kent State University, who were shot by OhioNational Guard troops during an anti-war protest.

During the first flagpole incident, Pruitt explained, theUniversity was told by the Illinois governor’s office that onlythe governor or president could order the U.S. flag lowered.Now in the aftermath of Kent State, the University was toldby the governor’s office that it was a local option.

Pruitt discussed with Braden the inherent unfairness ofthis double standard when it came to lowering the flag forthe slain BPP leaders and the protesters at Kent State. Afternegotiations Braden agreed that all university flags shouldfly at half-mast for six consecutive days—one day for eachstudent killed at Kent State and two days for the BPP leaders.The flag also would be flown at half-staff on May 19, the datecivil-rights leader Malcolm X was born.

Hardhats from various construction sites converged onthe University on May 19, shoving aside campus police, toraise the flag. When Braden ordered the flag lowered, a hard-hat group again raised the flag, prompting the arrest of thegroup’s leader.

“When I was coming from my house to my office in theStudent Union,” Pruitt recalled, “I saw a group of whites—hardhats—beating a security guard and raising the flag.”

This incident prompted Braden to call the state police.The flag was lowered to half-mast and the flagpole was cor-doned off, making it a restricted area subject to trespassinglaws to thwart any effort by the hardhats to raise the flag.

Pruitt had done news media interviews about the flagpole confrontation. “At nine o’clock one night there wasa knock at my door,” he remembered. “It was the police

One of Pruitt’s most vivid student

memories is the protest at the flagpole

in 1969, far left, which was captured

by a newspaper photographer from

the Bloomington Pantagraph. The

fight over the flag drew a crowd to

the Quad, and resulted in more

Vidette headlines.


notifying me that a threat had been made against me. Theytook me to the police station for protection.”

Those days prepared Pruitt for his future as much as anyclassroom curriculum. He went on to earn a doctorate in educational administration from Union Institute, but has never been forgotten on the Illinois State campus. Hereceived an honorary doctorate from the University in 1994. Pruitt is an inductee in the College of Education and the College of Arts and Sciences hall of fame as well. Hehas also received a Distinguished Alumni Award and anAlumni Achievement Award from Illinois State.

Pruitt left Illinois State to become dean of students atMaryland’s Towson State University, where former IllinoisState administrator James L. Fisher ’56, M.S. ’57, was president. Two years later Pruitt became vice president forstudent affairs at Baltimore’s Morgan State University. Healso held executive posts at Tennessee State University andthe Council for Adult and Experiential Learning (CAEL).

Since 1982 Pruitt has been president of Thomas EdisonState College (TESC), a unique institution located in Trenton,New Jersey, that focuses on adult students. The institutionserves 13,000 students. TESC’s students come from all 50states and 84 nations. Students aren’t admitted unless theyare age 21 or older. TESC has graduated 30,000 studentssince it was founded in 1972.

Students can pursue their degrees in several ways: guided courses delivered via videotape, audiotape, and texts;e-PackR courses which are structured to allow students towork at their own pace; and online courses. Students alsocan take tests to demonstrate prior college-level knowledge

or earn credits for college-level learning attained throughwork, the military, or other experiences. TESC also acceptstransfer credits from other accredited campuses.

Pruitt has many observations about the contemporarycollege presidency after leading a college for a quarter-century.

“Serving as a college president is a challenging position,”he said. “Responsibility and accountability have never beenbalanced with the authority of the office. College presidentshave management responsibilities akin to corporate chiefexecutive officers. But presidents have the added challengeof persuading government to craft the resources campusesneed to make their vision reality.

“The environment surrounding the college presidencyis becoming more complex. It’s becoming more partisan andmore adversarial,” he said. Complicating these trends are fiscal hurdles, as the cost of higher education continues toescalate.

Despite these growing challenges, Pruitt sees muchexcitement on the higher education scene. “Colleges anduniversities have a more diverse client base than 30 yearsago,” he said. “There’s room for all of us. And institutionshave an attitude that emphasizes quality and intellectualintegrity.”

Pruitt, shown in his office, has acquired many accolades for his work as a

higher education administrator and civic leader. As president of Thomas

Edison State College, he works with multiple constituencies. One key group

is faculty, above, who appreciated Pruitt’s update on budget issues. (Above

photo courtesy of Thomas Edison State College.)

Cat

heri

neSt

roud

May means commencement at Illinois State. Among thosewho will cross the stage this spring are hundreds of graduatesready to become the next generation of teachers. The Uni-versity enrolls approximately 5,500 students in 37 teacherprograms annually, which explains why the campus is rec-ognized nationally as the second largest producer of teachersin the nation. Nearly one of every seven teachers in Illinoispublic school classrooms holds a degree from Illinois State.

Amanda Hanson ’06 and Pete Ower ’06 are among recentgraduates to leave campus and head to the front of their ownclassroom. Both went from student to teacher immediately,and are now completing their first year on the job.

Hanson chose a somewhat rural environment, locatingin Quincy and working as a fourth-grade teacher to 18 stu-

dents at Baldwin Intermediate School. Home to fourththrough sixth grades, the school enrolls approximately 1,300.

Ower got his start in a more urban setting as a scienceteacher to 125 seventh-grade students at Wilmette JuniorHigh School. The suburban Chicago school has approximate-ly 800 students enrolled in the seventh and eighth grades.

Their schools are different, teaching assignments notanything alike, and students worlds apart in development.And yet these two graduates share something in commonwith every other Illinois State alumnus who chose to teach.They had to go from learning about teaching to applyingtheir years of study as the one in charge of the classroom.The transition was filled with anxiety, excitement, and theunexpected, as revealed by their reflections of a year neitherwill ever forget.


Gladly learning and teaching Memoirs of two first-year teachers

I walked into my emptyclassroom last summer witha head full of ideas, a heartbursting with excitement…and a stomach filled withbutterflies.

Yes, this is the momentfor which I had been prepar-ing during four years at Illi-

nois State. I felt fully prepared by my education totake on this classroom of 4th-graders. Yet there isalways that feeling of uncertainty when taking ona new career.

How different will it be from student teach-ing? How will I like this age group? Who will be inmy classroom? Will some of the parents realize Iam young enough to be their daughter?

On the morning of the first day of school, Itook a moment to reflect in my journal: “The stu-dents will be here any minute. I take a picturebecause my room may never look the same again!I’m on mug number two of coffee. The studentswill be released to the rooms in one minute and Iwill switch roles from student to teacher; fromlearning to teaching; from insecurity to confi-dence. I’m excited.”

Little did I know, as I sat at my desk and jour-naled during those last minutes before the stu-dents entered the room for the first time, just howmuch I would learn. The students are learningmath and reading; I am learning all about myselfand about the nature of children.

Throughout the first semester, I continued tojournal my thoughts, feelings and experiences. “Ifelt drained at the end of the first day and felt likeI had been talking for 4 straight hours,” I wrote.

“Sigh! This word best describes my feelingsafter the students leave Friday at 3:15. A Par-ent/Teacher Association assembly, fund raisers,and notes; P.E. Friday folders, math problemsolvers, a student moving away after one week, astudent’s grandfather passing away, newsletterwriting, a note from home about a student’sADHD problems: these are just a few of the things

which worked together to make this a crazy firstFriday!”

As time goes on, things don’t seem to get anyless busy or hectic. The meetings abound, eachquarter seems to go faster than the previous one,and the addition of three new students (includingone who speaks no English) brings new chal-lenges. Just getting used to how the school func-tions and the curriculum takes time.

It’s invigorating to create lesson plans and to think up hands-on, engaging ideas for class-room activities, but it’s also so time consuming!Many hours are spent in the classroom preparingthe upcoming lessons. It’s all worth it, however,when the students’ faces light up with under-standing after comprehending a new concept forthe first time.

Teaching is exhausting, but so rewarding.Each day when the students leave, they give me ahug, a high-five, or a handshake. There’s nothing


Immersed in the real worldBY AMANDA HANSON ’06

better than the enthusiastic squeeze of fourth-graders who otherwise would have been “toomature” to express their feelings this way. One ofmy favorite memories of the year was when Ibaked gingerbread houses for the students to dec-orate around Christmas. The smiles on the stu-dents’ faces were worth all the extra effort.

The students constantly keep me laughing—sometimes because they select some of the mosthumorous things to say; sometimes because youhave to either laugh or cry!

I will admit, there are days when I ask myself,“Why?” Why didn’t I choose a plush desk job in a corner office with a view?

The answer came with abundant clarity oneafternoon. A female student in my classroom was

in tears at the end of the day. For whatever reason,she was terribly upset about the events of theafternoon and, from her point of view, the worldhad a very bleak outlook.

After the other students left, I was able to talkwith, go through her problems, and come up witha solution to resolve the situation. It was amaz-ing. Her face went from tear-streaked to upbeat,her demeanor from devastated to relieved andhopeful.

After she walked out of the room, I was sotouched that I went right over to my desk. This, ifany, was a moment to journal. I realized that thiswas why I had wanted to become a teacher. I hadjust had the chance to make a difference in a littleperson’s world.

That feeling, and other similarly indescrib-able moments along the way, will get me throughthe inevitable hard times and will keep me goingalong my new career path as a teacher.

“Just sign this line,” saidAlice Reardon, humanresources director for Wil-mette Public Schools. I care-fully signed my name to myfirst teaching contract onthat July day. I succeeded. I found my first job.

Before I knew it, sum-mer was ending and the first day of school wasquickly approaching. The few days before schoolstarted were hectic. I was setting up my room, cre-ating seating charts, reading Individualized Edu-cation Plans, talking with my mentor about thecurriculum, going to professional developmentsessions, trying to plan my first few lessons…I never expected it to be this chaotic.

As a graduate of Illinois State’s ProfessionalDevelopment School, I had already experienced asa student what it is like at the beginning of aschool year. I met my mentor teacher beforeschool started and helped her prepare the room. Ilearned about the curriculum, and I introducedmyself to students during the back-to-schoolevent. But it felt different knowing that this was allon my own.

To say I was nervous on that first day is anunderstatement. I had my lesson plans spreadacross my desk, my seating charts ready to go, andknew what I would say to the students as theywalked into the room.

The morning bell rang and all the studentscame down the hallway to their new classrooms.There was clearly a sense of excitement, curiosity,and fear among the new students. This was theirfirst time in a junior high, and they did not knowwhat to expect. Neither did I.

As I met them, my nerves began to settle. Italmost felt natural talking with the students, help-ing them find their lockers, and collecting theirrequired paperwork. Something felt good aboutall of this. It was the feeling that I am finally ateacher and this really was my first day.

As the year progressed, I became comfortableteaching all of my 125 students, teaching with aparaprofessional in my room, and teaching a cur-


From angst to accoladesBY PETE OWER ’06

“I realized that this was why I had wanted to

become a teacher. I had just had the chance to

make a difference in a little person’s world.”

riculum that I was still learning myself. There wasone thing, I soon found out, that I would not becomfortable with: my first observation.

I scheduled the required meetings. During ourpre-observation meeting, I told my principal that Iwould like him to observe how I pace my lessonsand how I manage the classroom. During the dayof my observation, my lesson ended 10 minutesearly and my students were overly rambunctious.I felt I had lost my job in that one class period.

“What happened?” I asked myself. Only twicedid my lessons not go the full length of class, andrarely did my students act like this. When we metfor our post-observation meeting, the only wordthat my principal was able to say was “concern.”He was concerned that my lesson planning wasnot what it should be, and that my classroommanagement was below average.

He offered some advice. I met with otherteachers on what I could do to improve my lessonsand my classroom management. I created a newset of rules and consequences with the students ineach of my classes. I met with my mentor and mygrade level Differentiation Support Teacher tohelp create lessons that were well developed andsure to last the entire period. This all showed dur-ing my next observations. My principal had onlyone word to summarize my progress—“proud.”

I had survived my observations, yet there wasanother group of people I always had watchingme: the parents. I could expect at least 10 e-mailsa day from parents, one or two meetings a month,

and parents coming in before and after school todiscuss student progress or problems.

One parent became overly concerned whenhis daughter’s grade dropped from an A+ to an A-, while another sought my input on how to helpher son raise his grade above a C. Yet another par-ent wanted to know why we spent so much timeon certain subjects, hoping I would alter the dis-trict’s curriculum. Many offered to help in theclassroom, volunteer in the cafeteria, and providegeneral assistance.

Now that my first year of teaching is almostcomplete, I can say that my education from Illi-nois State definitely set me on the right foot. I canalso confirm that the job is full of the unexpected.I find that a lot of what I am learning as a teacherhappens every day in the classroom. I can’t helpbut wonder if every year will be this chaotic,enlightening, and fun.


This article showcases stories from two of our finest recent

teacher education graduates. You’ve read about their expe-

riences, now tell us about yours!

In this sesquicentennial year, the College of Education

invites education alumni to share their thoughts and experi-

ences on the topic of “it starts with education.” Submissions

will be included in a project called My Life, My Teaching.

The My Life, My Teaching project will be a collection of

stories from education alumni for dissemination on the col-

lege’s Web site, as well as during special events throughout

the year. Whether you have been in the classroom for 20

years, 20 days, or never, we want to hear from you.

• Express your thoughts on the topic of “it starts with

education.”

• Tell how you knew you were meant to be an educator.

• Reflect on a time when you knew you had made a

difference in someone’s life.

• Share an important lesson you learned from an educa-

tion course, from a faculty member, or from a mentor.

Visit the College of Education Web site at IllinoisState.

edu/education for additional information and to make

your submission. Submissions will be accepted on an

ongoing basis.

Join the College of Education in celebrating 150 years of

teacher education at Illinois State University by participating

in the My Life, My Teaching project. It truly does start with

education.

It Starts with Education at Illinois State


born entrepreneur, Mike Canney ’84enjoys solving problems. From his earlyphysics courses at Illinois State Universi-

ty to building a defense contracting companyfighting the war on terror, he learned to choosebattles wisely and never quit no matter how greatthe odds.

Looking back to his early days at Illinois Stateas a typical student working his way through college, Canney’s luck was going from bad toworse. A bureaucratic error delayed his financialaid. He was fired from his part-time factory jobafter witnessing an industrial accident that killedhis work partner. Living in a dilapidated building,he came home one day to see a big red sign on thefront door: “By order of the fire marshal, the build-ing has been condemned.” It was winter and theheat had been turned off.

Rather than focus on his bleak situation, Can-ney, an optimist, saw possibilities. Since the land-

lord had stopped collecting rent, Canney couldlive rent free for the next six months until he graduated. He still had electricity and water, evenif the water did freeze in the toilet on the coldestdays. Canney began exhibiting an entrepreneurialacumen that would later prove very helpful.

Veritas,Vinum,

VelocitasTrust, wine,

speed is business

and life motto of physics

grad Mike Canney ’84

Canney has started seven different business-es and sold four. The first businesses were mon-eymaking enterprises from woodworking topainting houses when he was an Illinois State stu-dent. His most successful company was Intelli-gence Data Systems (IDS), a defense contractingfirm in Northern Virginia. IDS focused on deliv-ering supercomputers to intelligence agencies. InApril 2005 the sale of IDS for $42.5 million pro-vided him with financial independence so hecould focus on his other interests of auto racing,wine making, and charitable causes.

To understand what motivates Canney it isimportant to go back to his beginnings growingup in Florida. His employment history beganwith a dishwashing job at 13. “I noticed the cooksdidn’t have to do dishes,” he said, “so I learnedhow to cook and got promoted to short-ordercook. Cooking was a very good job to have overthe years. It’s a great way to meet people, and you

get to eat your mistakes!” Another one of Canney’s interesting jobs after high school wasworking a bridge tender in Ft. Lauderdale: a job perfect for studying while going to a commu-nity college.

A

“Having the courage to take the chance is the important part.”

Canney realized the importance of getting acollege education and decided on Illinois StateUniversity. Being outside of the curve, Canneydeclared physics as his major because “it was the hardest subject I could think of. Also, I recall Dr. [Juergen] Schroeer, my first Illinois

State physics professor, describing physics as thescience of how things worked, and I found thatintriguing.”

While he earned A’s in most subjects, hereceived B’s and C’s in physics and math. “It wasfrustrating to work so hard, and still not receive

A’s, but to me, a B or Cin physics is muchmore important thandropping back to aneasy subject,” Canneysaid. “I believe it istenacity and the abilityto face challenges thatis most important, and

I want to encourage and support that desire inothers.” This belief led Canney to endow a schol-arship for Illinois State physics majors whodemonstrate financial need, motivation, andentrepreneurial spirit—high grades in physicscourses are not a requirement.


Canney’s sale of his com-

pany in 2005 gave him

the freedom to pursue his

wine-making and car-rac-

ing businesses. Pictured

is Canney driving his

Corvette race car leading

the pack at Virginia Inter-

national Raceway in

August 2006.

It took seven years to complete his degree,often having to work full time to cover his expens-es. After graduation Canney returned to Floridato accept his first technical job with an electron-ics firm. His next job was with a defense contrac-tor doing underwater acoustics focusing on anti-

submarine warfare for the Navy. He met andmarried Diane and they moved to New Orleans,where Canney earned his M.B.A. in finance fromTulane University while continuing to work forhis company. “I felt having the M.B.A. would giveme the additional skills needed to run my ownbusiness,” he said.

After receiving his M.B.A. in 1992, he andDiane moved to Northern Virginia to work in theintelligence field. Canney joined a companyinvolved with military spy satellites. In 1995 heand two coworkers started a defense contractingbusiness. Two years later they sold the companyand Canney used his share to start IDS.

Canney had to perform every job in the com-pany: hiring employees, doing payroll and taxes,technical work, and business development. Short-ly thereafter IDS became very successful due tomany good people and project opportunitiescoming together at the same time. His employees’median age was 35 and all had high-level securityclearances, creating a group of extremely talent-ed, responsible, and ethical people.

The tragic events of September 11th changedthe defense industry. CIA Director George Tenetchallenged contractors to deliver solutions tohelp America fight terrorism, saying “Be bold,take risks, and do it now.” IDS’s response wasproviding massively parallel systems that operat-ed at the speed of thought, processing literally billions of records in seconds, helping analystsfind hidden links in data to more effectively fightthe war on terror.

Contracts doubled or tripled every year andsoon IDS had offices in Melbourne, Florida; SanDiego; St. Louis; Colorado Springs, Colorado;

“As a child growing up in South Florida I was always competitive

in running, off-road dirt bikes, and who could hit a baseball the

farthest. The spirit of competition was what I really enjoyed.”

to Sunset Hills Vineyard and Mike Canney Motor-sports as his next two businesses.

Canney grows five grape varieties, producing15,000 bottles of wine a year. “Growing grapes isone of hardest things I have done. It takes threeyears from planting to the first harvest, thenanother year before the wine is ready for sale. Two years ago we hired a vintner and vineyardmanager.”

Canney has enjoyed competition since child-hood, whether it was dirt-bike racing, running, ortrying to hit a baseball thefarthest. His auto racinginterest led him to give finan-cial support to the solar-pow-ered car built by Illinois Statephysics students and facultythat competed in and fin-ished the 2005 North Ameri-can Solar Challenge race.Canney has progressed fromracing modified street cars ona racetrack to being a profes-sional driver of a 200-plusmph carbon fiber/titaniumCorvette. He has raced inSports Car Club of Americaand finished fifth in the 2006Trans-Am series. Most recent-ly he competed in a Porsche911 endurance race at Daytona, during the Rolex 24hours at Daytona.

“I like the constant chal-lenges of auto racing. It is aninformation overload, contin-ually trying to get the mostperformance out of the carand yourself, and there arelots of other similarly capabledrivers trying to do the samething,” he said. “The excite-ment level is very high!”

Canney is always learn-ing and planning the nextstep. After he described his seven businesses andthe demands and hard work of reaching thispoint, he smiled and said: “I have a great idea fora new company.”

and London. IDS received much recognition forits phenomenal growth, and it was Virginia’sfastest growing technology company for fiveyears. By 2005 IDS had more than $150 millionin contracts and about 150 employees. Canneyalways felt that his people were the key to his success, and he shared the financial success of his company with his employees through stock options.

With Canney as CEO, IDS successfully outbid larger companies like Lockheed Martin,Boeing, General Dynamics, and others. After Inc.magazine named it the 88th fastest-growing company in America, offers to buy the companypoured in. Canney sold his company. As a resultof the sale, some of his employees became millionaires.

“Despite numerous awards, my favoriteaward was one I actually didn’t receive,” Canneysaid, referring to the time IDS employees nomi-nated him to Fortune Small Business magazine asbest boss of the year. Canney was among the lastfinalists in the United States when the sale of IDSdisqualified him because it was no longer a smallbusiness. In his mind just being nominated by hisemployees was the greatest award.

While he and Diane were putting in longhours, they still managed to design and build acustom home in the hills of Virginia just east ofthe Blue Ridge Mountains. They planted a vine-yard and built a winery on their acreage. Freed upby the IDS sale, he is giving most of his attention


In 1997 Canney started Intelligence Data Systems, Inc. (IDS), a defense

contracting firm that he later sold for $42.5 million.

Mike Canney’s seven businesses:

• Mike Canney Carpentry (during college

years; made dorm shelves and other

furniture for Illinois State students)

• Mike Canney Painting (during college

years; painted houses and hotel rooms;

had 17 employees, some of whom he

recruited from the Physics Club)

• ASPEX, Inc (defense contractor) (1995)

• Intelligence Data Systems, Inc (IDS)

(defense contractor) (1997)

• Sunset Hills Vineyard, LLC ( vineyard

and winery) (1999)

• Mike Canney Motorsports, LLC

(auto racing) (2001)

• Vintage Technical Services of

Loudon,LLC (commercial software

development) (2003)

On February 18, 1857, Illinois Governor William

H. Bissell signed “an act for the establishmentand maintenance of a Normal University” plus agoverning board for this, the state’s first publicuniversity.

That measure had two curious features thatreveal the original vision of what the Universitywould be—a vision that became obscured throughpolitical twists and turns. The first curious featurewas the designation of the new institution as auniversity. The word “university” was employedloosely then, but even in the 1850s it was prepos-terous to use the term for a school that preparedas teachers men and women who had at best aneighth-grade education. In fact, Charles E. Hovey,the University’s first principal (the title waschanged to president in 1866), was asked at an

1859 convention why his normal school had beencalled a university.

The other oddity in the statute was the Gen-eral Assembly’s charge that the Normal Universitynot only prepare teachers in “all branches of studywhich pertain to a common school education,”but also “in…agricultural chemistry, animal andvegetable physiology.” Hovey persuaded a physi-cian to study the natural sciences for two years atYale and Harvard with the nation’s foremost sci-entists and then return to the University to imple-ment that. Did the legislators really imagine thatchildren would conduct scientific experiments incrudely furnished one-room country schools?

The answer is that the legislators and otherfounders never intended the new university to besimply a normal school, but foresaw the normalschool as merely one department in Illinois’ state


THIS FEATUREIS PART OF A YEARLONG

HISTORICAL SERIESCELEBRATING

ILLINOIS STATE’S HERITAGE

The founders’ vision

met politics…and politics won in the smoke-filled rooms of Springfield

A color-tinted etching

shows the Illinois State

Capitol in Springfield in

the 1850s.

Imag

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brah

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ncol

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BY JOHN B. FREEDDISTINGUISHED PROFESSOR OF HISTORY EMERITUS

university and in the nation’s first land grantschool. John H. Burnham, class of 1861, the firstdirector of the Illinois State Historical Society,wrote in 1882: “The intention was to gatheraround the new institution the different colleges—classical, agricultural, industrial, law, medical,and the other departments of a university—until,in the end, the State should have here a grand uni-versity….” These unfulfilled aspirations explain itsdesignation as a university and the board’s spon-sorship of John Wesley Powell’s expeditions to theRockies and the Grand Canyon. These actionsmake sense only if one realizes that the NormalUniversity was from 1857 to 1867, as historianJurgen Herbst said, “for all intents and purposesthe state university of Illinois.”

It is important to understand why the origi-nal intentions of the founders were not realizedand why the early history of the University wassubsequently rewritten to stress the school’steacher preparatory mission.

The University was founded to meet thestate’s urgent need for teachers. After a 30-yearbattle, Illinois had been in 1855 the last Free Stateto create a system of free public instruction,reserved exclusively, it should be noted, for whitechildren. The passage of the School Law of 1855caused an explosive growth in schools anddemand for teachers.

Educational reformers believed normalschools were the appropriate institutions to trainteachers. Their inspiration was Prussia, whereseminaries prepared the sons of peasants as ele-mentary school teachers in rural areas. The term“normal school” was derived from a literal trans-lation of a French professor’s report describingthose seminaries as école normale.

If Illinois has the dubious distinction of beingthe last Free State to provide its citizens with freeschooling, it was equally slow in offering them theopportunity for a public higher education. By1850 all of Illinois’ neighbors and sister states inthe Old Northwest had founded state universities.

Jonathan Baldwin Turner, a Congrega-tional minister and professor at Illinois College,who had been forced to resign in 1848 because ofhis commitment to abolitionism and his abandon-ment of Calvinist orthodoxy, focused the state’sattention on higher education. In an 1851 address,Turner attacked the system of private seminariesand colleges that served only the professional

classes and called for the establishment of anindustrial university that would teach agricultureand the mechanical arts for the benefit of the pro-ductive segments of society. The real importanceof Turner’s proposal is that it initiated a discussionabout the nature of public education in Illinois. An1852 convention of supporters in Chicago decidedto form an Industrial League to lobby the legisla-ture and raise support for Turner’s plan. The nameof Jesse Fell headed the list of members of theMcLean County chapter of the Industrial League.

Two points about Turner’s proposal are ofparticular relevance. In response to criticism,Turner added “a department for normal schoolteaching, to thoroughly qualify teachers for coun-ty and district schools,” to his proposed industrialuniversity.

The second issue was Turner’s proposal forfunding the industrial university. Turner suggest-ed in 1852 that Congress grant public lands toeach state to endow an industrial university. Thispart of Turner’s plan introduced the germ of theconcept of the later land grant universities.


• William H. Bissell—Illinois governorwho signed the February 18, 1857,act establishing Illinois State Nor-mal University (ISNU) and its gov-erning board.

• Charles E. Hovey—The University’sfirst president, at the time called“principal.”

• John H. Burnham —Graduate fromclass of 1861 and first director ofthe Illinois State Historical Society.

• Jurgen Herbst—Historian whowrote about ISNU.

• Jonathan Baldwin Turner—Ministerand professor who initiated thediscussion resulting in the Univer-sity’s founding.

• Jesse Fell—Citizen whose influenceresulted in locating the new uni-versity in what is now Normal;friend of Abraham Lincoln.

• Abraham Lincoln—President of theUnited States; crony of the Repub-lican founders of ISNU; attorneyfor the governing board.

• Cyrenius B. Denio—Republicanstate representative in the 1850s.

• William H. Powell—Illinois’ firstelected superintendent of publicinstruction.

• Edwin W. Bakewell—McLeanCounty farmer who donated 40 of the 100 acres a group of indi-viduals in the 1850s gave for an agricultural school at ISNU.

• Judge David Davis—Bloomingtonjudge, later a Supreme Court Jus-tice, involved with Bakewell andothers in donation of 100 acres foran agricultural school; friend ofAbraham Lincoln.

• Charles Harper—ISNU professorwho wrote the history of the Uni-versity for its 75th anniversary.

• Helen Marshall—ISNU professorwho wrote the centennial historyof ISNU.

Key players in order of their appearance in the adjoining article

The Industrial League petitioned the GeneralAssembly in January 1853, accordingly, to requestthat Congress grant each state public land worthno less than $500,000 for this purpose. The result-ing bill passed unanimously in both chambers.Congress did nothing about Illinois’ request until10 months after the establishment of the NormalUniversity. President Abraham Lincoln finallysigned the bill in 1862, after secession hadremoved Southern opposition.

Since Congress had failed to act, the onlyfinancial resources Illinois had at its disposal inthe 1850s to finance public higher education wasthe interest the state paid on the proceeds it hadreceived and borrowed from the sale of publicland that had been granted by the Federal govern-ment to found secondary schools and a university.The interest amounted to less than $10,000 andwas insufficient even in the 1850s to operate auniversity.

The dilemma the proponents of public highereducation faced was what to do until Congressacted. In January 1855 a bill to incorporate “TheTrustees of the Illinois University” was introducedin the General Assembly. This institution was “toimpart instruction...commencing with thosedepartments now most needed by the citizens ofthe state,” namely, normal school, agricultural,and mechanical departments. The bill earmarkedthe secondary school fund for teacher preparationand assigned the university fund to agriculturaland mechanical studies. The subcommittee of theSenate to whom the bill was referred thought the

need for teachers was much more pressing thanagricultural and industrial education. The billfailed, perhaps because the Industrial League andthe Illinois State Teachers Association could notagree on the allocation of the funds, but the Gen-eral Assembly did pass the School Act, making theneed for a teacher preparatory institution moreurgent than ever.

At a teachers’ meeting in 1856, a letter fromTurner was read that reiterated his contention thata single institution, containing both a normalschool and an agricultural department, would bestronger than a free-standing normal school; buthe was ready to defer to the teachers’ wishes sothat they and the Industrial League would nolonger be operating at cross purposes. Turner wasnow prepared to assign both funds to the pro-posed normal school. He ended the letter: “It ishigh time, my friends, that you had your normalschool whether we ever get an agricultural depart-ment to it or not.” The League threw its supportbehind the teachers, and the General Assemblypassed the act establishing the Normal Universitytwo months later, albeit by a margin of only onevote in the House.

The histories of Illinois State and the Uni-versity of Illinois treat Turner’s words as aturning point because the Normal Universityremained a normal school and because Turn-er’s plan was later realized at Urbana. Evidenceindicates establishment of the Normal Universitywas a stopgap measure to secure properly trainedteachers until Congress finally acted. It is possibleto reconstruct the legislators’ and founders’ inten-tions from various sources, as follows.

• Turner was probably the source of the legislativecharge that the new university teach agriculturalchemistry, because his alma mater, Yale, hadestablished a professorship in “agriculturalchemistry and animal and vegetable physiolo-gy,” the very words that appear in the 1857 Act.Turner was the first president of the Illinois Nat-ural History Society. He called for research on


1850All Illinois’sister stateshave stateuniversities.

1851Jonathan BaldwinTurner calls for Illinois to establisha public, general-purpose university.

1852Turner suggestsfederal landgrants toendow generaluniversities.

1853The Industrial Leaguepetitions the GeneralAssembly to requesta federal land grantfor this purpose.

1855A bill to charter a public, general-purpose university in Illinois fails.Passage of the School Law in Illinoiscreates a demand for teachers.

1852 The Industrial Leagueforms to lobby forTurner’s plan. JesseFell of McLean Countyis an active member.

Historical timeline

This is the view of the

Illinois State Normal

University campus in

1894, looking south at

what is now the Quad.

insect pests to be carried out by the society inpartnership with the University and implied thatan agricultural department would soon beadded to the University. Hovey, secretary of theNatural History Society, presumably agreed.

• As for the legislators’ intentions, RepublicanCyrenius B. Denio said he was not entirely infavor of the 1857 Act because “something likean Industrial University, on the plan of Prof.Turner, was demanded and should be adopted,”and that establishment of the Normal Universi-ty was the best Illinois could do at the moment.

• William H. Powell, the first elected superinten-dent of public instruction, in his 1858 report tothe General Assembly, expressed the hope thatthe normal school would eventually become auniversity.

• Jesse Fell made similar comments in 1857,summarized by The Pantagraph: “He hoped tosee it developed into a complete University, andto see an agricultural school made a part of thesystem, with a model farm connected with itand located on a part of the beautiful tract ofland donated with the site.” Fell was referring tothe 100 acres at the current site of Hancock Sta-dium that Edwin W. Bakewell, Judge DavidDavis, and others had conferred for that pur-pose in Bloomington’s bid.

• In 1859, Hovey informed a group of fellow prin-cipals: “It [the Normal School in Illinois] islocated on a site of 60 acres, and adjoining it isanother hundred acres given by the citizens ofIllinois, on which we shall build an agriculturaland mechanical department.” Hovey said, “…wedo not contemplate that [the school] shall sim-ply be one department, so that it shall become,instead of a normal school, the University of Illi-nois. We mean that it shall be a university infact as well as in name.” Quite simply, Illinois’normal school was designated a university in1857 because everyone expected it to become,after Congress finally passed the land grant bill,Illinois’ state university.

But if the founders believed that the Universi-ty would soon grow into a general-purpose institu-tion, why had it been called Illinois State NormalUniversity rather than, say, the University of Illi-nois? The name was a political compromise thatsatisfied both Turner’s followers and the teachers.

Even so, the 1857 Act passed by only a singlevote in the House. The minority Republicans pro-vided 26 of the 39 votes needed for passage. Infact, the foundation of Illinois State Normal Uni-versity was the product of the Republican ascen-dancy in Illinois, tied to the group, including JesseFell, that later secured Lincoln’s nomination forthe presidency. Lincoln himself was the board’sattorney.

The political context of the University’sfounding related to the issue of slavery. A parlia-mentary maneuver occurred the day before theHouse passed the 1857 Act. The legislature hadreceived “sundry petitions of free white citizens ofIllinois and of certain colored inhabitants thereof,asking that the colored race have the rights of cit-izenship, of suffrage, &c.” To understand howradical these petitions were, the Supreme Courtwas to rule several weeks later in the infamousDred Scott decision that all persons of Africandescent, slave or free, could never become citizensof the United States. The legislature preferred tokeep such politically charged petitions in commit-tee, but the Republicans moved to reconsider. Themotion failed by a vote of 28 to 42, with theRepublicans casting all the votes in favor. The onlyRepublican who voted against the motion also vot-ed against establishing the University. This helpsexplain why The Jonesboro (Illinois) Gazettedeclared in 1858: “The Normal School at Bloom-ington is most obnoxiously Radical—a negroequality, amalgamation concern.”

Obviously, the founders’ plans to turn theNormal University into the state university of Illi-nois failed. The Civil War intervened, thoughsecession permitted the passage of the Morrill Act,which required each state to establish at least one


1857Illinois Governor William H.Bissell signs the act estab-lishing the state’s first pub-lic university, Illinois StateNormal University (ISNU).

1862After Southernsecession, Lincolnsigns the Morrill Actestablishing landgrant universities.

1856Turner says he is willing to accede tothose who want a Normal Universityrather than a general-purpose schoolfor the sake of moving forward. Twomonths later the General Assemblypasses the Normal University act.

1885ISNU loses out in the bidding, and the GeneralAssembly awards thestate’s land grant university to Urbana.

1859ISNU President CharlesHovey states the schoolwill become, instead ofa normal school, theUniversity of Illinois.

Charles E. Hovey was the

University’s first “principal.”

“land grant” institution to provide instruction inagriculture and the mechanical arts. Fell and oth-ers prepared McLean County’s bid to be the site ofIllinois’ industrial, land grant university, to belocated on the adjacent 100 donated acres.Although McLean County’s bid was much largerthan Champaign County’s, the General Assemblyawarded the Industrial University, as the Univer-sity of Illinois was known until 1885, to Urbana.

We will never know for certain what hap-pened behind closed doors, but a few things areclear. Fell and Turner, who hoped to obtain theindustrial university for Jacksonville, were work-ing at cross purposes. McLean County entered thebidding late, and the problems the county had inhonoring its commitment to fund construction ofOld Main, Illinois State’s first building, may haveleft suspicions about its reliability. But the bottomline was that Champaign County outmaneuveredits rivals in Springfield. Champaign’s representa-tive was chair of the committee through which allbills about the university’s location were routed;and he had at his disposal around $50,000 to pro-mote the county’s case.

The magnitude of Normal’s defeat was notimmediately apparent. Until the 1890s the Uni-versity of Illinois was essentially an engineeringschool. Since there were few high schools, menand especially women who wished to pursue apublic education beyond eighth grade went toNormal. In short, Illinois State Normal Universitywas until the end of the 19th century, as the his-torian Herbst has said, “the people’s university.”

In spite of this evidence, previous historiansof the Normal University, Charles Harper in1935 and Helen Marshall in 1956, both long-time members of the Department of Social Sci-ence, downplayed the founders’ intention to


establish a state university in the histories theywrote in conjunction with the school’s 75th and100th anniversaries.

Harper and Marshall were defending theUniversity’s teacher preparatory mission andwere not inclined to include in their histories anyinformation that called that purpose into ques-tion. At the beginning of the 20th century, theUniversity of Illinois challenged the right of thenormal schools to prepare high school teachers,and Harper’s history was a defense of that right.

Marshall, who testified in 1963 in Spring-field against changing the University’s name toIllinois State University, the symbol of the Uni-versity’s abandonment of its sole teacher prepara-tory mission, was hardly the person to argue thatthe founders had planned to establish a multi-purpose state university in Normal.

Likewise, historians of the University of Illi-nois gained little by drawing greater attention tothe circumstances surrounding the award of theIndustrial University to Champaign County. Bothuniversities profited from historical amnesia.

So as we celebrate the University’s sesqui-centennial, let us reaffirm our commitment to thevision of Jonathan Baldwin Turner, Jesse Fell, andCharles E. Hovey that Normal should develop, asFell put it in 1857, into a “complete University.”The Quad, the crowning glory of Illinois StateUniversity, is the living monument to their aspi-rations because Fell implemented Turner’s callthat the proposed industrial university shouldhave “grounds . . . in which the beautiful art oflandscape-gardening could be appropriatelyapplied and realized…” Educating Illinois is notsimply a 21st century slogan; it has been the mis-sion of Illinois State since February 18, 1857.

For your further readingDistinguished Professor of HistoryEmeritus John B. Freed, author ofthis article, is completing a sesqui-centennial history of the University, Educating Illinois,that he hopes to have completed by Founders Day 2008.In addition, the plenary address Freed presented on February 15 for the Illinois State Historical Society’s 2007 Illinois History Symposium, “The Founding of IllinoisState University: Normal School or State University,” isavailable on the University’s Web site at www.ilstu.edu/home/anniversary/john-freed-plenary-paper.doc.

Old Main was ISNU’s

first permanent building.

Completed in 1860, it was

demolished in 1958.

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