University of Illinois Springfield undeniably has come a long way since its founding 40 years ago. What kind of campus it will be for the next 40, or at least the next few, depends on how well it continues to balance two somewhat competing goals - transforming into a traditional four-year school while capitalizing on technologies preventing it from ever fully becoming one.
A lot also will depend on who replaces retiring UIS Chancellor Richard Ringeisen, who will leave UIS having checked off many items in the school's 2006 strategic plan. The next chancellor isn't expected to be named until next year.
In 2006, the university recast itself as a small public liberal arts university. It was a commitment to teaching over research and intimacy over mimicking larger public colleges - priorities resonating back to its more free-spirited, progressive days as Sangamon State University.
The 40th anniversary of UIS was featured in a October 3, 2010, article on the front page of The State Journal-Register.
