The University of Illinois Springfield will offer 19 accelerated courses over its holiday break.
The courses will be offered in online and blended methods.They will be open to prospective and current students.
UIS will offer accelerated courses in accountancy, biology, communication, computer science, criminal justice and criminology, environmental studies, management information systems, political science, psychology, public administration, sociology and anthropology, and teacher education.
This story aired on WICS Newschannel 20 on October 29, 2020.
Friday, October 30, 2020
Wednesday, October 28, 2020
Inter-Institutional Sharing of Courses Online
Ray Schroeder, University of Illinois Springfield associate vice-chancellor for online learning writes that the COVID-19 pandemic, rapid deployment of remote learning, growth of MOOCs and mounting financial pressure on colleges and universities have combined to open minds on the topic of inter-institutional sharing of courses online.
Colleges and universities have a long history of collaborating in research and in areas of broad purpose, but they have been notoriously cautious about collaborating in the development and delivery of their own courses and curricula. Holding a unique university identity on the academic side has been a revered aspect of institutional pride that stands in the way of large-scale sharing.
UIS now is also a member of the Council of Public Liberal Arts Colleges (COPLAC). It has broken through the barrier to offer classes and portions of classes across institutions. UIS executive director of online professional and engaged learning and research Vickie Cook, who served on the committee arranging the guidelines for collaborations, reports that the association has developed a set of understandings that will enable future sharing.
Colleges and universities have a long history of collaborating in research and in areas of broad purpose, but they have been notoriously cautious about collaborating in the development and delivery of their own courses and curricula. Holding a unique university identity on the academic side has been a revered aspect of institutional pride that stands in the way of large-scale sharing.
UIS now is also a member of the Council of Public Liberal Arts Colleges (COPLAC). It has broken through the barrier to offer classes and portions of classes across institutions. UIS executive director of online professional and engaged learning and research Vickie Cook, who served on the committee arranging the guidelines for collaborations, reports that the association has developed a set of understandings that will enable future sharing.
This article appeared in Inside Higher Ed on October 28, 2020.
UIS club donates feminine hygiene products for local residents in need
Food insecurity is on the rise right now in central Illinois, but the Period Club at the University of Illinois Springfield (UIS) says getting access to products like tampons and pads can be just as challenging.
Kassie Mruk is president of the Period Club, which is just one chapter of a larger international movement.
Founded in 2017, the club has distributed thousands of products across different states and even countries to those who experience menstruation.
Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, however, Mruk said the number of local residents who struggle to purchase these products has grown.
"They don't even have the money for food sometimes, so knowing that they don't have the money for this product — it's not right,” Mruk said, “This shouldn't be a struggle. Period poverty shouldn't be a struggle."
The Period Club has already donated to several Springfield shelters and micropantries, and plans to keep expanding.
This story aired on WICS Newschannel 20 on October 27, 2020.
Kassie Mruk is president of the Period Club, which is just one chapter of a larger international movement.
Founded in 2017, the club has distributed thousands of products across different states and even countries to those who experience menstruation.
Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, however, Mruk said the number of local residents who struggle to purchase these products has grown.
"They don't even have the money for food sometimes, so knowing that they don't have the money for this product — it's not right,” Mruk said, “This shouldn't be a struggle. Period poverty shouldn't be a struggle."
The Period Club has already donated to several Springfield shelters and micropantries, and plans to keep expanding.
This story aired on WICS Newschannel 20 on October 27, 2020.
Monday, October 26, 2020
Cross Country: UIS’ Blake Jones captures GLVC title
Junior Blake Jones of the University of Illinois at Springfield blitzed the field and won the Great Lakes Valley Conference Men’s Cross Country Championship by more than 10 seconds on Saturday.
Jones finished the 8,000-meter run in 24 minutes 41.30 seconds and became the school’s record-holder at the GLVC championship and first-ever to win the individual title in program history.
As a team, UIS took third place with 69 points. Lewis won the conference championship with 51 points and Southern Indiana was second with 57.
Senior Tyler Pasley came in fourth place and freshman Cortland Ross was eighth for UIS.
UIS’ Taryn Christy took third place for the second straight season as the women’s team finished fourth in the season-ending GLVC meet.
This story appeared in The State Journal-Register on October 25, 2020.
Jones finished the 8,000-meter run in 24 minutes 41.30 seconds and became the school’s record-holder at the GLVC championship and first-ever to win the individual title in program history.
As a team, UIS took third place with 69 points. Lewis won the conference championship with 51 points and Southern Indiana was second with 57.
Senior Tyler Pasley came in fourth place and freshman Cortland Ross was eighth for UIS.
UIS’ Taryn Christy took third place for the second straight season as the women’s team finished fourth in the season-ending GLVC meet.
This story appeared in The State Journal-Register on October 25, 2020.
Friday, October 16, 2020
Video series filmed at UIS being used as national training model
A video series filmed at the University of Illinois Springfield’s Child Protection Training Academy is serving as a national simulation training model for preparing child welfare workers and students for working with at-risk children and families.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Center for States, part of the Child Welfare Capacity Building Collaborative and a service of the Children’s Bureau, filmed the academy’s simulation scenarios and conducted interviews at the UIS residential simulation lab and mock courtroom earlier this year.
The videos and other resources on the new “Keeping it Real” website will be used by child welfare agencies throughout the country to prepare child welfare workers and students for difficult interactions with families, as they investigate cases of suspected child abuse.
The Center for States hopes the videos will help agencies learn about the benefits, costs and considerations for implementing similar training programs in their states.
This story appeared in The State Journal-Register on October 16, 2020.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Center for States, part of the Child Welfare Capacity Building Collaborative and a service of the Children’s Bureau, filmed the academy’s simulation scenarios and conducted interviews at the UIS residential simulation lab and mock courtroom earlier this year.
The videos and other resources on the new “Keeping it Real” website will be used by child welfare agencies throughout the country to prepare child welfare workers and students for difficult interactions with families, as they investigate cases of suspected child abuse.
The Center for States hopes the videos will help agencies learn about the benefits, costs and considerations for implementing similar training programs in their states.
This story appeared in The State Journal-Register on October 16, 2020.
Tuesday, October 13, 2020
Cross Country: UIS’ Jones, Christy advance Prairie Stars to GLVC Championships
University of Illinois Springfield junior Blake Jones gradually pulled away and earned first place in 24 minutes 6.30 seconds in the 8,000-meter Great Lakes Valley Conference East Divisional men’s race on the Prairie Stars’ home course on Saturday.
Jones, a Lincoln High School graduate, won comfortably ahead of the rest of the field. Fellow UIS junior Wyatt McIntyre finished in eighth place while freshman teammate Cortland Ross was 11th place.
UIS finished in third place out of five teams to advance to the GLVC Championships on Saturday, Oct. 24 in Elsah, a small community on the Mississippi River in Jersey County.
The Prairie Stars also finished runner-up on the women’s side with a score of 45 behind Southern Indiana’s 41.
UIS junior Taryn Christy led the team in third place while senior Gloria Esarco and freshman Sydney Huffman went fourth and fifth place, respectively.
This story appeared in The State Journal-Register on October 10, 2020.
Jones, a Lincoln High School graduate, won comfortably ahead of the rest of the field. Fellow UIS junior Wyatt McIntyre finished in eighth place while freshman teammate Cortland Ross was 11th place.
UIS finished in third place out of five teams to advance to the GLVC Championships on Saturday, Oct. 24 in Elsah, a small community on the Mississippi River in Jersey County.
The Prairie Stars also finished runner-up on the women’s side with a score of 45 behind Southern Indiana’s 41.
UIS junior Taryn Christy led the team in third place while senior Gloria Esarco and freshman Sydney Huffman went fourth and fifth place, respectively.
This story appeared in The State Journal-Register on October 10, 2020.
Monday, October 12, 2020
UIS releases basketball schedules
The University of Illinois Springfield Prairie Stars released their basketball schedule Thursday.
The Prairie Stars will play 22 games starting on November 27th with a home game against Quincy. The conference-only schedule will split home and road contest with 11 each. UIS will play each conference team at least once. No fans are allowed at the games this season. The regular season will conclude on February 27th with a home contest against Missour S&T.
This story appeared on WICS Newschannel 20 on October 10, 2020.
Basking in cross country glory: UIS’ Gloria Esarco surges on women’s team while Blake Jones leads men’s side
University of Illinois Springfield senior Gloria Esarco never tried cross country until setting foot on campus.
Although she flourished in track and field where she garnered an offer from the Prairie Stars, she could only participate on the high school volleyball team during the fall in Wisconsin.
She has enjoyed every bit of the new opportunity, so much that she will gladly accept an extra year of eligibility from the NCAA due to the COVID-19 pandemic and compete in cross country for a fifth season.
“Personally it’s something I didn’t expect to happen but I take it day by day and I’m excited to have this bonus season in cross country and to be able to get back at it next year and really excel even more,” Esarco said. “In a way, it’s a blessing in disguise and you kind of just have to take it one day at a time.”
Esarco has recently emerged as the Stars’ No. 2 runner on the women’s cross country program and certainly impressed UIS coach Tyler Pence this weekend.
Esarco and Co. finished second place in the 6,000-meter Great Lakes Valley Conference East Divisional women’s race on the UIS course Saturday with a score of 45 behind Southern Indiana’s 41.
The UIS men’s team will also compete in the GLVC meet later this month after taking third place in Saturday’s 8,000-meter competition. Lewis won Saturday’s event with a score of 40, followed by Southern Indiana (47), UIS (68), Indy (71) and Missouri St. Louis (155).
UIS junior and Lincoln High School graduate Blake Jones earned first place in 24 minutes 6.30 seconds and won comfortably ahead of the rest of the field.
“He’s incredibly fit right now,” Pence said of Jones. “He’s one of the top runners in this conference, so he definitely had high expectations coming into the season and I think in two weeks he’ll definitely be a favorite to win the conference championship.”
This story appeared in The State Journal-Register on October 10, 2020.
Although she flourished in track and field where she garnered an offer from the Prairie Stars, she could only participate on the high school volleyball team during the fall in Wisconsin.
She has enjoyed every bit of the new opportunity, so much that she will gladly accept an extra year of eligibility from the NCAA due to the COVID-19 pandemic and compete in cross country for a fifth season.
“Personally it’s something I didn’t expect to happen but I take it day by day and I’m excited to have this bonus season in cross country and to be able to get back at it next year and really excel even more,” Esarco said. “In a way, it’s a blessing in disguise and you kind of just have to take it one day at a time.”
Esarco has recently emerged as the Stars’ No. 2 runner on the women’s cross country program and certainly impressed UIS coach Tyler Pence this weekend.
Esarco and Co. finished second place in the 6,000-meter Great Lakes Valley Conference East Divisional women’s race on the UIS course Saturday with a score of 45 behind Southern Indiana’s 41.
The UIS men’s team will also compete in the GLVC meet later this month after taking third place in Saturday’s 8,000-meter competition. Lewis won Saturday’s event with a score of 40, followed by Southern Indiana (47), UIS (68), Indy (71) and Missouri St. Louis (155).
UIS junior and Lincoln High School graduate Blake Jones earned first place in 24 minutes 6.30 seconds and won comfortably ahead of the rest of the field.
“He’s incredibly fit right now,” Pence said of Jones. “He’s one of the top runners in this conference, so he definitely had high expectations coming into the season and I think in two weeks he’ll definitely be a favorite to win the conference championship.”
This story appeared in The State Journal-Register on October 10, 2020.
Petersburg’s Davis named Illinois Ms. Agriculture USA Queen
Jennifer Davis of Petersburg was recently named the 2021 Illinois Ms. Agriculture USA Queen.
Davis is a senior at the University of Illinois Springfield majoring in environmental studies with a minor in biology.
Davis will be competing at the National Miss Agriculture USA Competition to be held in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio in June 2021.
Miss Agriculture USA is a national nonprofit organization that focuses on promoting positive aspects of agriculture featuring queens of all ages who celebrate and educate about all the diverse aspects of agriculture.
Davis’ agricultural interests include animal science and nutrition, water quality issues, renewable energy, pollinator gardens and biotechnology. Davis also has conducted research on Asian carp.
This story appeared in The State Journal-Register on October 11, 2020.
Davis is a senior at the University of Illinois Springfield majoring in environmental studies with a minor in biology.
Davis will be competing at the National Miss Agriculture USA Competition to be held in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio in June 2021.
Miss Agriculture USA is a national nonprofit organization that focuses on promoting positive aspects of agriculture featuring queens of all ages who celebrate and educate about all the diverse aspects of agriculture.
Davis’ agricultural interests include animal science and nutrition, water quality issues, renewable energy, pollinator gardens and biotechnology. Davis also has conducted research on Asian carp.
This story appeared in The State Journal-Register on October 11, 2020.
Monday, October 5, 2020
Illinois Innocence Project at UIS educates public on International Wrongful Conviction Day
Oct. 2 is International Wrongful Conviction Day, and the Illinois Innocence Project at the University of Illinois Springfield is raising awareness for the causes of wrongful conviction.
The Executive Director of the Illinois Innocence Project at UIS, John Hanlon, said members of the organization created a flag display on the campus quad to make a statement.
"It has a very kind of in your face, symbolic representation," Hanlon said.
The flags are more than pieces of fabric. Hanlon said they represent the lives of people who have been wrongfully imprisoned.
According to Hanlon, the black flags represent the 2,662 people who have been exonerated in the United States since 1989, while the blue flags represent the 336 people who have been exonerated in Illinois.
"The flags represent those people, who are breathing, living and moving, and who had to spend years in a box," Hanlon said.
According to the National Registry of Exonerations, the people these flags represent collectively lost nearly 24,000 years of lives.
"We have more people in prison than any other country in the world," Hanlon said. "That's 2.2 million plus. If 4 percent of those people are innocent, that's a lot of people."
A student employee for the Innocence Project at UIS, Taryn Christy, said there are many causes behind wrongful imprisonment.
"I believe somewhere around 70 percent of wrongful incarcerations include some form of eyewitness misidentifications," Christy said. "False confessions are one of the biggest causes of wrongful incarceration. People always think, I would never confess to something I didn't do, but all kinds of circumstances lead people to falsely confess."
This story aired on WAND on October 2, 2020..
The Executive Director of the Illinois Innocence Project at UIS, John Hanlon, said members of the organization created a flag display on the campus quad to make a statement.
"It has a very kind of in your face, symbolic representation," Hanlon said.
The flags are more than pieces of fabric. Hanlon said they represent the lives of people who have been wrongfully imprisoned.
According to Hanlon, the black flags represent the 2,662 people who have been exonerated in the United States since 1989, while the blue flags represent the 336 people who have been exonerated in Illinois.
"The flags represent those people, who are breathing, living and moving, and who had to spend years in a box," Hanlon said.
According to the National Registry of Exonerations, the people these flags represent collectively lost nearly 24,000 years of lives.
"We have more people in prison than any other country in the world," Hanlon said. "That's 2.2 million plus. If 4 percent of those people are innocent, that's a lot of people."
A student employee for the Innocence Project at UIS, Taryn Christy, said there are many causes behind wrongful imprisonment.
"I believe somewhere around 70 percent of wrongful incarcerations include some form of eyewitness misidentifications," Christy said. "False confessions are one of the biggest causes of wrongful incarceration. People always think, I would never confess to something I didn't do, but all kinds of circumstances lead people to falsely confess."
This story aired on WAND on October 2, 2020..
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