ALUMNI AWARDS

First Person Singular: Reeb Reflects on
his Rwandan Experiences

To help him get adjusted to life in Rwanda, LAS alumni Emmett Reeb was introduced to a host family of sorts. Below he describes his experiences with them.

“On Tuesday and Thursday evenings, I go to [my host family’s] place and we review some of the more difficult concepts of my daily language lessons. Sometimes we review my lessons over some fresh bananas, passion fruit and/or avocados picked from their trees. Their instruction is fun, but my favorite thing to do at their place is to play with their son....this kid is hilarious, well mannered, AND he is super smart; he is only four years old, BUT he has a very extensive vocabulary in Kinyarwanda, French AND English...well, extensive vocabulary for a four year old...I am impressed. Anyway, he likes to teach me Kinyarwanda too and is proving to be a very good instructor.

“Sundays with the family are the most fun. After mass on Sunday, I play volleyball with them and their friends. The league plays at a boarding school down the street from their house; playing at the school is great for many reasons. Not only do I get some much needed physical exercise, but I also get to exercise my conversational Kinyarwanda. The students from the school come out and watch us play...they get a big kick out of watching the 'Muzungu' (white man) play volleyball...”

Read more about Emmett Reeb in the June edition of e-AtLAS or visit his blog, Reeb in Rwanda.

Elections and Appointments
Awards
at UIC
beyond UIC
Grants

Elections and Appointments

In February 2009, alumnus Emmett Reeb, BA ‘04, MA ‘05 in anthropology, was accepted into the Peace Corps as a member of the first round of volunteers to be sent to Rwanda in 15 years. As a Community Health and Organizational Developer, Reeb has been stationed in Rwanda to assist local health centers and community-based organizations in planning, coordinating, and delivering HIV/AIDS services, which he has learned to dovetail creatively with the English lessons he now also finds himself giving to the members of his community. To share his experiences, he runs the blog Reeb in Rwanda.

Alumna Barbara Anne Schaal, PhD, was recently appointed by President Barack Obama to the National Science Advisory Council. The 1969 biological sciences graduate was also granted an honorary liberal arts and sciences degree during the 2009 commencement ceremony. Her research focuses mainly
on plant biology.

Turning a Childhood Love for Plants into an
International Conversation on Conservation

LAS alumna Barbara Schaal is a leading evolutionary biologist. Currently the Mary-Dell Chilton Distinguished Professor at Washington University, she is recognized for her work on the genetics of plant species, particularly for her studies that use DNA sequences to understand evolutionary processes such as gene flow, geographical differentiation and the domestication of crop species. Her recent work examines the domestication and cultivation of genetically modified crops, especially corn and rice, as well as issues related to invasive plant species and the potential use of both types of plants in acts of bioterrorism. She is engaged in conserving natural processes and educating the general public on genetically modified foods, global warming and energy. In April 2009, Schaal was appointed to President Obama’s Presidents Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST).

Her youthful fascination with plants began with family camping trips spent picking and studying plants and plant populations. Born in Berlin, Germany, Schaal grew up in Chicago, graduated from LAS with a degree in biology, and earned her doctorate from Yale University in 1974. She joined the faculty of Washington University in 1980, after appointments at the University of Houston and Ohio State University. Schaal has been president of the Botanical Society of America and president of the Society for the Study of Evolution. In 2005, Schaal became the first woman elected to the vice presidency of the National Academy of Sciences.

In May of 2009, alumna Mary Todd, ‘96 PhD, American history, was named Founding Dean of the Honors College at Marshall University.

Awards

At UIC

Three LAS Alumni will be honored at this year’s Alumni Five Dinner and Awards Ceremony hosted by the University of Illinois Alumni Association on Friday, October 23, 2009:

2009 University of Illinois Alumni Achievement Award

Jean E. Bogner, MS ’73 LAS
President, Landfills +, Inc.
Research Professor, UIC

An internationally recognized expert on landfill gas generation, recovery, utilization and emissions, Jean E. Bogner was a member of the United Nation’s Intergovernment Panel on Climate Change, which shared the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize with former Vice President Al Gore for its efforts to disseminate knowledge on manmade climate change. Her commitment to the environment and helping people understand how they impact the world around them has led to a 30-year career that includes more than 20 years at Argonne National Laboratory. Today, Bogner is president of Landfills +, Inc., which provides specialized landfill gas consulting services. She has served on numerous international committees and works extensively with U.S. and international landfill-gas-recovery programs, including Clean Development Mechanism projects in developing countries.

2009 University of Illinois Distinguished Service Award

David P. Kumamoto ’71 LAS, ’74 DENT, DDS ’76, MS ’78 COM
Dentist, Clinical Assistant Professor, Department of Restorative Dentistry, UIC College of Dentistry

David P. Kumamoto has been a tireless volunteer, investing his time and energy assisting students, alumni, the College of Dentistry, UIC and the University of Illinois Alumni Association. Besides mentoring dental students, he has served as team dentist for several UIC sports, traveling with the teams to many of their games. He has dedicated himself to championing the cause of additional funding for the University, taking numerous trips to Springfield to support funding legislation and meeting with legislators to promote the College of Dentistry. For the College, he helped secure a $1 million gift from the Chicago Dental Society. An active participant in the UIAA, Kumamoto served as the Campus Alumni Advisory Board chair from 2004-06. In addition, he is a longtime member of the UIC Dental Alumni Association Board of Directors.

2009 University of Illinois Alumni Achievement Award

Carlos E. Tortolero ’75 LAS
President, National Museum of Mexican Art

Carlos Tortolero has played a key role in expanding the size and scope of the National Museum of Mexican Art. In 1987, the museum had a $900 budget; today, its budget is $5.4 million and draws more than 160,000 visitors annually. It is now the largest Latino arts institution in the nation and the only one accredited by the American Association of Museums. Under Tortolero’s leadership, NMMA has expanded to include a satellite museum, Yollocalli Youth Arts Reach program and a youth-operated radio station, WRTE-FM 90.5 Radio Arte, which received the 2003 White House “Coming Up Taller Award.” A life-long educator, Tortolero previously served as a teacher, counselor and administrator in the Chicago Public School System. He was selected as one of Chicago magazine’s “Chicagoans of the Year” in 1994. Tortolero was also recently appointed by Governor Pat Quinn to the University of Illinois Board of Trustees.

Deborah Harrington, '73 BS in anthropology, and Rebecca Sive, '75 MA in History, were awarded the inaugural Civic Engagement, Community Service and Community Organizing Award on March 5, 2009, by the gender and women's studies program.

Beyond UIC

Tommaso de Fernex, PhD ’02 in the department of mathematics, statistics and computer science, earned a National Science Foundation Faculty Early Career Development Program Award in 2009. He currently holds the Warnock Chair as an associate professor at the University of Utah.

Nnedi Okorafor, PhD creative writing, 2007, won the the 2008 Wole Soyinka Prize for Literature in Africa for her novel Zahrah the Windseeker. Considered Africa’s Nobel Prize, the Wole Soyinka Prize was established by the Lumina Foundation in 2005 and named for the Nigerian playwright, poet and political activist. The prize also includes a $20,000 cash award. For Okorafor, winning the award was “like a great big embrace from the continent and a proud nod from the ancestors and attentive spirits. Now I can return to my work with that much more confidence in what I’m doing."

Natasha Pavlovic, PhD in the department of mathematics, statistics and computer science, 2002, was awarded a Sloan Research Fellowship in 2008.

In January 2009, Vali Siadat, PhD in mathematics, was awarded the Mathematics Association of America’s Deborah and Franklin Tepper Haimo Award of Distinguished Teaching of Mathematics at a major meeting in Washington D.C. The prize, awarded to no more than three college professors annually, is considered the "gold standard" of national math awards, and has never before been given to a community college professor.

Min Yang, PhD in the department of mathematics, statistics, and computer science, 2002, was awarded an NSF Faculty Early Career Development Program Award in 2008. He is an assistant professor at the University of Missouri.

Grants

In October 2008, alumna Liat Shetret, LAS ’08 political science and psychology, returned to campus to co-lead a workshop entitled, “People Building Peace: Rallying Youth for Intergenerational Change in the Arab-Israeli Conflict.” The project was funded by a $10,000 dollar grant from the Davis Peace Project. "We’d love to continue this and bring it to other campuses. I think it’s really critical that other campuses experience the interfaith power and movement, particularly on this conflict and topic," says Shetret. "It’s a wonderful platform for dialogue."