Two male graduates wearing blue caps and gowns and yellow stoles smile at the camera

Friday, April 12, 2019

Commencement is closing in, and 窪做惇蹋厙 has invited a tremendous speaker to address the graduates. Find out more about Maria Woltjen, the winner of this years Distinguished Research Professor award and more in this weeks edition of Noteworthy at 窪做惇蹋厙!

Around the Commons

Maria Woltjen

Commencement speaker

Activist, lawyer and immigration law scholar Maria Woltjen will be 窪做惇蹋厙s May 2019 Commencement speaker. Woltjen is the founder and Executive Director of The Young Center for Immigrant Childrens Rights at the University of Chicago Law School. The Young Centers primary work is to advocate for the safety and well-being of unaccompanied and separated immigrant children. Woltjens focus is on reforming the immigration systemin which children are treated as adultsinto a justice system that recognizes children as children, with rights and protection needs all their own. Commencement will be streamed live at neiu.edu beginning at 4 p.m. May 6.

Professor of Psychology Ruth (Breckie) Church

Research Professor Award

Professor of Psychology Ruth (Breckie) Church has been honored with the 2019 Bernard J. Brommel Distinguished Research Professor award. The late Bernard J. Brommel, Professor Emeritus, established the award to be given annually to the tenured or tenure-track member of the 窪做惇蹋厙 faculty who best demonstrates excellence in research and scholarship. Churchs research focuses on non-verbal communication, specifically co-speech gesture in teaching contexts. She studies how teachers and students use non-verbal gestures (or talk with their hands) while they are trying to teach various concepts.

Dr. Carmen McCallum (left) confers with 窪做惇蹋厙 Mathematics faculty member Nancy Wrinkle.

STEM preparation

Seventeen 窪做惇蹋厙 faculty and staff members participated in an interactive workshop with visiting experts Dr. Carmen McCallum (Eastern Michigan University) and Dr. Julie Libarkin (Michigan State University) on April 12. The workshop, "From Deficit to Authentic Development: Reimagining Preparation for Prospective STEM students," was co-sponsored by the National Science Foundation-funded project "Agua en Comunidades Experimentales," and the U.S. Department of Education Title III HSI STEM Program "EXITO: Exit on Time in STEM." Participants learned about unconscious bias, anti-deficit frameworks and innovative ways to mentor first-year students in developmental courses who are interested in pursuing STEM fields.

And theres more!

  • 窪做惇蹋厙 and the NEIU Alumni Association are now accepting nominations for the 2019 窪做惇蹋厙 Alumni Awards.
  • Carruthers Center Robin Harris and Education Librarian Michelle Oh presented their poster during the Association of College & Research Libraries Conference on April 11 in Cleveland. Oh also led a roundtable discussion with Library Graduate Assistant John Amundsen and Health Science and Physical Education Associate Professor Jen Banas titled , and a panel with Digital Scholarship Librarian Alyssa Vincent titled
  • Social Sciences Librarian Ed Remus will deliver a talk titled during the Socialism in our Time Conference on April 13 in New York City.
  • Linguistics Professor Richard Hallett and Instructor Jill Hallett gave a presentation titled Errors, Patterns, and Nontargetlike Forms during the Ninth Annual International Education Summit at Harper College in Palatine on April 5.

In the media

Suicide prevention

After a tragic series of suicides within the Chicago Police Department, 窪做惇蹋厙 Police Chief John Escalante felt the need to speak out about his own struggles with depression. As former interim superintendent and 30-year veteran of CPD, Escalante participated in a video encouraging officers to seek help when they feel overwhelmed. In a story about CPDs efforts, Escalante told the about reaching a breaking point after a divorce and finally seeking help. It dawned on me: How did I even get up that day? he told the Tribune. How am I going to get up tomorrow?

Also in the media ...

  • invited Professor Emeritus of Economics Edward Stuart to discuss the economic outlook for Chicago and Illinois.

To do

Jewel Box Series

Neave Piano Trio will perform as part of 窪做惇蹋厙s Jewel Box Series on April 19. Since forming in 2010, Neave Trioviolinist Anna Williams, cellist Mikhail Veselov and pianist Eri Nakamurahas earned enormous praise for its engaging, cutting-edge performances. Neave has performed at many esteemed concert series and at festivals worldwide, including Carnegie Halls Weill Recital Hall.

Coming next week!

#FollowFriday

Stage Center Theatre

has debuted its final play of the season, The Pillowman. Follow along on Facebook for the latest news and photos from the stage!

Do you have a story tip? Let the Office of Public Relations know!
Mike Hines, Director of Strategic Communications, m-hines@neiu.edu, (773) 442-4240