Inside This Issue:

Winter Notes from the Director of NSOPR . . . . . . 1-2

UIS News . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-3

Going Beyond The LibraryShelves . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

The Career Connections Expois Coming Up: Parents andFamily – Here’s How You CanHelp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Residence Life – Housing Renewal Process for Fall 2017 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-6

Legal Studies Notes . . . . . . 6

Shakespeare Garden Unveiling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Health and Fitness — WinterHealth Tips: Taking Care ofYour Mental Health DuringThe Holiday Season . . . . . . . 8

Student Meal Plans . . . . . . . 9

New Year, New Money . . . . 9

Coaching Your StudentThrough a Financial SpringCheck-up To Do List . . . . 9-10

UIS Institutional ScholarshipsApplication Deadline February 15 . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Winter Sports Update . . . . 11

Rec ‘n Roll . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Services Available for Students with Disabilities . 13

Prairie Stars Family Association Corner . . . . . . 13

Family Weekend Notes 13-14

Important Date andNumbers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Winter Notes from the Director of NewStudent Orientation & Parent Relations

Happy 2017 Prairie Stars Family!

After such a busy semester, it was nice to enjoy a short break andspend time with family and friends, relax, reflect on the year, andconsider how fortunate we have been. But now it is back to work,and the Office of New Student Orientation and Parent Relations isgearing up for the spring semester this week with orientationprogramming for the new students who are entering UIS thisspring semester. Most of you have another week with your studentbefore sending them back to campus, so make the most of yourtime together!

With the New Year comes a new semester for students. Aftergrades were posted for the fall semester your student might befeeling anywhere from elated with their success, to overwhelmedwith how to bring up their grades. Where ever they are on thefeelings spectrum, now is a good time to encourage your studentto set academic goals and evaluate their approach to theirclasswork for the upcoming semester.

If your student had a successful semester first take some time torecognize their achievement – maybe celebrating a personal bestor enjoying the success after all that hard work and extra effortpaid off in passing that dreaded economics class. Ask them whatwere some of the things that they did that helped contribute tothat success and how they can keep doing that in the springsemester.

If your students is feeling down because they did not meetexpectations, let them know they can discuss the challenges withyou and maybe you can all brainstorm on ways to address thechallenges. Maybe they need to set aside specific times forstudying each day. It might mean going to the Learning Hub earlyon for assistance with writing papers, setting up meetings with atutor for a class, or working with a peer mentor in the

Center for Academic Success on academic success strategies like organizing work, managing time, or study tips.

For any student, looking ahead to next semester’scourses and thinking about an academic success strategy for each

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UIS NewsBy Michelle Green, Director of Marketing, University of Illinois at Springfield

UIS students Trick or Treat for canned goodsand collect more than 14,000 pounds of food

A long time tradition at UIS is for students to dressup and Trick or Treat for Canned Goods in thesurrounding neighborhoods. This Halloween wasno different. Hundreds of students helped tocollect a record 14,085 pounds of food for theCentral Illinois Foodbank. The total breaks aprevious record of 11,620 pounds of food collectedin 2014.

A total of 18 teams, consisting of 181 students,went door-to-door in several neighborhoodscollecting the canned goods. The food items werereturned and weighed on campus. Prizes wereawarded to the teams that collected the mostfood. The Central Illinois Foodbank distributes over9 million pounds of food annually to over 150 foodpantries, soup kitchens, residential programs, andafter-school programs in a 21 county region.

Students in the Illinois Innocence Projecthelp win release of wrongfully convictedDecatur man imprisoned for 18 years

A Decatur man walked free from the MaconCounty Courthouse in November thanks to theefforts of the Illinois Innocence Project (IIP) atthe University of Illinois Springfield. Newlydiscovered DNA evidence proved that CharlesPalmer did not commit the 1998 murder of WilliamHelmbacher. The case was overturned after DNAevidence, which was never tested by police, wastested by the Illinois Innocence Project. In bothcases, the DNA was not a match to Palmer.

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class is beneficial. Consider this, not everyone who graduates high school goes

on to college. So in a way, college is the academic version of the

Olympics. Each student is an academic athletewho has a variety of coaches and trainersavailable to them to help them enhance theirperformance. So having to seek assistance is nota bad thing, it doesn’t diminish you or make youless than someone else. College students areoften embarrassed to ask for assistance becausethey don’t want to look dumb. But an Olympicathlete seeks assistance for a competitiveadvantage, our students need to seek out theiracademic coaches with that same mindset.

In my 20 years of working with college students,I have seen very successful students run intoroadblocks as the skills they brought with themfrom high school become insufficient for the

increasing workload and growing complexity eachsemester can bring. Having conversations withyour student about what courses look potentiallychallenging and making a plan with strategiesthey are going to use for the next semester canhelp your student problem solve, plan ahead, andadvocate for themselves this spring.

I hope you and your family members stay warmand enjoy the rest of winter break. We lookforward to seeing your student in a couple ofdays!

Shine on Prairie Stars! Shine on!

Lisawww.uis.edu/newstudentorientation/

Follow NSOPR on Facebookwww.facebook.com/uisnewstudentorientation/

The Innocence Project has achieved severalstunning successes in recent years and offersstudents in majors such as legal studies, criminaljustice, and public policy with exceptional hands-on experiences as they prepare for law school andother professional pursuits.

Student Union is 40 percent complete

The steel construction is nearly complete, theconcrete floors are being poured, and the roof andoutside walls are ready to protect constructioncrews as they work this winter. “Construction isright on schedule,” said Chancellor Koch. “There’sa lot of work yet to be done, but there’s a lotthat’s been accomplished.” Koch andadministrators and several students toured thefacility in October.

UIS broke ground on the new $21.7 millionstudent union building on May 4, 2016. The first-ever student union will serve as a hub for studentlife and foster a greater sense of community onthe growing campus. It’s scheduled to open inJanuary 2018.

UIS named national Bicycle FriendlyUniversity

The University of Illinois Springfield has beenawarded the Bronze Bicycle Friendly Universityaward by the League of American Bicyclists,joining more than 160 visionary colleges anduniversities across the country with thisdistinction.

The Bicycle Friendly University program recognizesinstitutions of higher education for promoting andproviding a more bikeable campus for students,staff and visitors.

Over the past year, the UIS Bicycle AdvisoryCommittee has developed relationships with theSpringfield community to improve bicyclingresources for students, faculty and staff. UISencourages bicycling as an easy option fortransportation and provides incentives such as thefree STAR Bike Share program for students. TheCommittee has sponsored organized rides forstudents and staff, and has participated in healthand safety fairs on campus.

“The UIS Bicycle Advisory Committee is workingwith the Springfield Bicycle Club and other localpartners to make Springfield more bicycle-friendly,too” said Committee Chair, Megan Styles, assistantprofessor of Environmental Studies. “This willallow us to provide our students with better accessto bicycles, better bicycle-related programming,and better infrastructure.”

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Going Beyond The Library Shelves

By Sarah Sagmoen, Director of Learning Commons and User Services

As you are getting ready to send you student backto UIS, we wanted to remind you of all of the waysthat Brookens Library can help your student finishout this academic year successfully. Yes, we havebooks and other resources, but there is so muchmore. Including some things, that might surpriseyou.

• Librarians: The most beneficial resource foryour student is a librarian. Librarians are hereto help your student navigate the researchprocess and give them the tools they need tobe a successful college level researcher. If yourstudent is struggling with research, werecommend pointing them to our Intro toResearch guide. On that page they will not onlyfind helpful information about conductingresearch successfully, but they can getadditional help by going to the research guidefor their subject area as well as contact theirlibrarian

• Study Spaces: Finding “your” study spot can bea rite of passage in college. So if you’re student

hasn’t found their spot yet, ask them if they’vetried the library. We offer either quiet spaces tostudy alone, or collaborative spaces to meetwith a study group and a variety of seatingfrom desks, to couches. With all of thoseoptions, finding “their” spot will be easy atBrookens.

• Stress Relief: When you think of the library,you probably think of books and quiet studying.At Brookens, we believe that being successfulmeans that you need to take study breaks too.To help them clear their minds and decompresswe offer a variety of resources from Legotables, a kinetic sand box, a popular fictioneBook app, and popular movies.

So when your student calls and is upset becausethey wanted a better grade on their researchassignment, their roommate is too loud for them tostudy, or they just need to take a break from thestress of classes we hope you’ll ask if they’vevisited the library.

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Encourage your student to attend the 2017Career Connections Expo to learn about careersof interest and to see what a career fair is like.With 100+ recruiters from various industriesattending, this is a great opportunity to learnmore about different careers, as well as networkfor job and internship opportunities.

Suggest to your student that he/she begindeveloping or updating their resume. The UISCareer Development Center offers resumereviews with career staff during Career Suitewalk-in/call-in hours during the spring semester(Tuesday & Friday 1 - 4 p.m.; Wednesday &Thursday 11 a.m. - 1 p.m.). This is a great wayfor your student to receive feedback on theirresume and learn what employers expect to see.

Encourage your student to begin using theirCareerConnect account. Each registered UIS

student has an account that they can log into toupdate their profile, upload a resume, utilizeonline systems including OptimalResume andGoing Global, and search for and apply to jobsand internships on and off campus. New UISstudents beginning in the spring 2017 semesterwill have access to CareerConnect beginning Jan.1, 2017.

Remind your student to register in CareerConnectand attend events and seminars to prepare forthe Career Connections Expo. Career fair preptopics include how to dress professionally,develop an elevator pitch and network, researchemployers, plus much more!

Visit the UIS Career Development Center websitefor additional details on the Career ConnectionsExpo and supportive career resources andservices.

The Career Connections Expo is Coming UP.

Parents and Family – Here’s How You Can Help

By Angela Evans, Career Counselor,

UIS Career Development Center

The Department of Residence Life (DRL) isalready looking forward to the spring 2017semester! It is our job to assure your student offeeling like they are an important part of a safeand supportive community in their home-away-from home. We certainly want your student tohave the best opportunity to continue residingon-campus during the upcoming 2017-2018Academic Year!

We’d like to remind you that current residents willhave first choice at reserving their preferredspace and roommates during the upcomingreapplication process. Online applications will

soon be available to current students who want tolive on campus for the 2017-2018 Academic Year.Please keep in mind that UIS requires that all firstyear and second year/returning sophomorestudents live on campus, as research hasconsistently shown that those who do so developthe necessary skills and avail themselves ofneeded support resources that maximize theiracademic potential and persist to Graduation.

Your student will need to keep these dates in mind if they want priority consideration to live on-campus, choose

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Residence Life – Housing Renewal Process for Fall 2017 Housing

By Haley Houser, Central Office Administrator

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their roommates, and select a Living Learning Community for the 2017-2018 Academic

Year:

The 2017-2018 housing application and contractwill go live February 1, 2017 at 4 p.m.All specialty housing applications (Living LearningCommunity, Graduate, Family and/or Themedhousing) are due February 22, 2017. The above dates are important for all returningstudents so that they can also participate as partof our room selection process.

Find upcoming dates/important deadlines at thewww.uis.edu/residencelife/about/importantdates.Be sure to check out upcoming dates related toSpring Break Registration, cancellation dates andspring 2017 check-out!

For more information about rates, housingamenities, and the Department of Residence Life,please visit our website, or like us on Facebook. Ifyou ever have any questions, we are only a quickemail reslife@uis.edu or call away(217.206.6190).

It was an eventful semester for Legal Studiesstudents and faculty. It began with the LegalStudies Department’s annual welcome weekpicnic, where students and faculty were able tomeet each other and students had theopportunity to learn about extracurricularactivities such as Mock Trial, the IllinoisInnocence Project, and Model United Nations.

Master’s student Mike Schlosser, who is alsoDirector of the Police Training Institute inChampaign, Illinois, worked with Dr. Gwen Jordanand the staff of the Illinois Innocence Project toteach police cadets about wrongful convictions.

Master’s student Joye Williams, a veteran of theUnited States Navy who received her B.A. inLegal studies in 2004 at UIS, was the recipient oftwo scholarships from UIS: a UIS Meritscholarship and the Rose Marie and Robert C.Roach Scholarship.

The Legal Studies Department welcomed Dr.Eugene McCarthy to the faculty from theUniversity of California, Berkeley, where hereceived his Ph.D. in legal rhetoric. Dr. McCarthyearned a J.D. from the UCLA School of Law andalso holds an M.A. in English literature from thePennsylvania State University and a B.A. fromRutgers College majoring in philosophy andEnglish.

Dr. Anette Sikka presented her paper, ‘Being”Illegal: The Legal Regulation of Race and theOccupation of Space at the Law & Society AnnualConference in New Orleans and presented herpaper, Law as Magician: The Shapeshifting ofManifest Destiny through the Regulation of Raceand Space at Kent University’s Critical LegalStudies Conference.

Dr. Riaz Tejani’s first book, Marketing Justice (anethnography of for-profit legal education) willappear from Stanford University Press this spring.He has also been invited to author a new Law andSociety book for University of California Press.Dr. Tejani will present on empirical researchmethods alongside faculty from UC Berkeley andIrvine at the Association of American Law Schoolsconference in January.

In August, Dr. Gwen Jordan convened a wrongfulconvictions policy meeting at UIS hosted by theIllinois Innocence Project. In attendance weremembers from the University of ChicagoExoneration Project, the Northwestern UniversityCenter for Wrongful Conviction, the LoyolaUniversity Life After Innocence program, and theCardozo Law School Innocence Project.

Students wrapped up the semester by meetingLegal Studies faculty for pizza and drinks at theLake Pointe Grill after completing final exams andprojects.

Legal Studies NotesBy Ryan Griffiths, Graduate Assistant, Legal Studies

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Shakespeare Garden UnveilingFrom the Department of English and Modern Languages

On September 29, current students David Hechtand Chrissy Ferree unveiled the Shakespearesculpture bench in our New Shakespeare Gardenin honor of the 400th anniversary of the poet andplaywright’s death. The garden features a life-sizesculpture of Shakespeare upon a bench of

beautifully embellished bronze, various plantspaired with quotes from Shakespeare’s works, anda new fountain. The garden can be found in thePatton Park area of campus just north of BrookensLibrary.

The unveiling included a ceremony at which UISprofessors and administrators gave remarks andread Shakespeare sonnets.

“Shakespeare matters because life matters,” saidDr. Tena Helton of the Department of English andModern Languages at the unveiling. “We continueto study him because we consistently rediscoverourselves through his words, a language full oftripled and quadrupled meanings and multi-layered humanity.”

“This Shakespeare Garden is giving new life toPatton Park—creating an educational resource anda place of enjoyment for students, faculty, staff,and visitors to our campus,” said UIS ChancellorSusan J. Koch. The Shakespeare Garden was madepossible by a gracious donation from theUniversity of Illinois Chester Fund.

Gary Lee Price created the bronze sculpturefeaturing Shakespeare sitting contemplatively onan ornate bench. The sculpture is a great place tosit beside Shakespeare and admire the garden aswell as a great photo opportunity for those thatwant a selfie with Shakespeare. Price has been asculptor for over 35 years and his work can befound across the United States.

The garden also features a variety of flowers andvarious plants accompanied by signs displayingShakespeare quotes. Shakespeare famously usednature and specifically plants and gardens asmetaphors, and many of his most famous scenesappear in gardens. The addition of these plants with their corresponding quotations brings Shakespeare’s works to life here on the UIS campus.

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For many, the holiday season is an exciting time. Itis supposed to be a time of celebrating with friendsand family. It should be a wonderful time of theyear. But for some, that is not the case. There aremany expectations and demands during theholidays-travel, parties, work schedules, shopping,and the pressures to try and catch up with all thefriends and family you haven’t seen. For some, itbrings memories of lost loved ones. It can be anoverwhelming stressful time. While there is anabundance of positive things, it can be hard toregroup and deal with the pressures when holidaystress is at its peak. It can be particularly moredifficult for somebody who is already dealing witha mental health disorder.

Some early signs of depression can includedifficulty getting and staying asleep, difficultymaking simple decisions, loss of appetite, andreduced interest or pleasure in usual activities. Ifyou are having any of these feelings, you shouldknow you’re not alone. Others may think you’rebeing unreasonable, but there are reasons whyyou are feeling this way and strategies to helpovercome them.

Tools to help reduce stress and depression duringthe holidays:• Try to maintain a normal routine, or as close to

it as possible. Eat meals at regular times; getplenty of rest/sleep.

• Acknowledge your feelings. If you have recentlylost someone close to you or you aren’t able tobe with loved ones, realize it’s normal and ok tofeel sadness. It’s ok to take time to cry orexpress your feelings. Don’t feel pressure toforce yourself to be happy just because it’s theholidays.

• Be realistic. The holidays don’t need to beperfect. Families and friends change and grow,as well as traditions. Find new ways to celebrateif you aren’t able to physically get together witheveryone. A simple phone call, email, or videochat can really make a difference.

• Learn to say no. Really, it’s OK. Saying yes

when you should say no can make you feeloverwhelmed. If you aren’t able to participate ineverything, don’t feel bad and cause yourselfadded stress by saying yes to make someoneelse happy.

• Stick to your budget. Money can’t bringhappiness, which is why you should celebratethe things in life you are most grateful for.Holidays should be a time to appreciate timewith friends and family.

• Don’t completely abandon healthy habits.Overindulgence only adds to stress and guilt.Try having a healthy snack before parties toavoid going overboard on sweets or drinks.Continue with any regular exercise regimen.Exercise can reduce stress and aid in sleepingbetter.

• Seek professional help if needed. Even withyour best efforts, you may still find yourselffeeling sad, anxious, unable to sleep, irritable,hopeless, or unable to face routine tasks. Ifthese feelings last for a while, see your doctoror mental health professional.

Holidays can be a magical time, but they can alsobe extremely draining. Don’t let the holidaysbecome something you dread. Learn to recognizeyour holiday stressors, such as financial pressuresor personal demands so you can be prepared andavoid unnecessary emotional stress.

For more information about depression andanxiety:National Institute of Mental HealthAnxiety and Depression Association of AmericaCenter For Disease Control (CDC)

If you or someone you know is thinking aboutsuicide, contact the National Suicide PreventionLifeline at 1-800-273-8255.

UIS offers appointments with our medicalproviders and counselors to discuss any mentalhealth concerns. Please call Health Services at217-206-6676 and the Counseling Center at 217-206-7122.

Health and Fitness — Winter Health Tips:

Taking Care of Your Mental Health During The Holiday SeasonBy Lorie Mick, RN, UIS Health Center

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Student Meal PlansUIS i-Card would like to remind parents thatstudents can come in any time until January 30 tochange their meal plan for the Spring 2017semester. Any money remaining on their fall planwill roll over to spring and be added to the spring

plan. If your student has questions or concernsabout their meal plan, encourage them to comeinto the i-Card office in PAC 124 and we’ll behappy to assist them.

New Year New Money

Coaching Your Student Through aFinancial Spring Check-up To Do List

By Alice Seaton, USFSCO Manager

Get Savvy, a Newsletter from the University ofIllinois Money Management Center is availableonline.

You can register for their free Webinar.

Ready for your student to take more responsibilityand have a greater understanding of theiracademic related financial obligations? Here is ahandy checklist from University Student FinancialServices and Cashier Operations (USFSCO) toguide parents and family members so they cancoach their student through a Spring FinancialCheck-up to make sure they can manage theiracademic fiscal responsibilities this semester.

Spring Bill Due Date. Students will start seeingcharges to their account shortly after the newyear. USFSCO wants to remind parents and familymembers that students and authorized payersshould check the student’s account balance atleast monthly to review any new charges andcheck their balance. Tuition, housing, food planand fees for the spring semester are due onTuesday, February 28, 2017.

Payment Plans. If the student would like to spreadtheir payments for their account balance overseveral months, they should sign up for a paymentplan for the spring semester. The USFSCO websitehas information on payment plan options and

deadlines as well as information on how to sign upfor a plan.

Setting up Authorized Payers. Students can givepermission for a number of individuals to beAuthorized Payers who will then have access toview the student’s account, make onlinepayments, enroll into a payment plan, and receiveFERPA protected account information. The studentcan easily complete this authorization online byentering the name(s) and email address(es) foreach Authorized Payer and assigning a login nameand password.

Scholarship Checks. Scholarship monies come inreal handy when it comes to paring down thattuition bill. Remind students that they shouldmake sure all checks, including 529 Plan paymentsare mailed directly to the UIS Financial Assistance Office following the directions on theirwebpage at https://paymybill.uillinois.edu/ScholarshipPayments.

*Students need to remember to include their UIN and name on the check and

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enclose any supporting documentation from donor.

Check payments (other thanscholarship checks) should be mailed to:

University of Illinois Payment Center Student AR 28393 Network Place Chicago, IL 60673-1283.

Refunds Anyone? Will your student be getting a refund after scholarships and other financial aid are credited to their bill? In order to receive a refund from the University of Illinois, students need to be enrolled into direct deposit. Direct deposit is the electronic transfer of funds into a U.S. checking or savings account.It is the quickest, safest, and most efficient way of transferring funds. The student has to set this up online athttps://paymybill.uillinois.edu/DirectDepositand will need their (or your) bank routing andaccount number. It is quick and easy.

2016 Taxes. Education tax credits may beavailable to you if you are paying education costsfor yourself or a student who is a member of yourimmediate family. 1098-T tax forms will availableon or before January 31st. Students will haveaccess to print their 1098-T tax form after beingnotified via email to their campus email address.Only students have access to the 1098-T taxform; therefore, please check with your studentto see if they downloaded and printed the form sothey (or you) can do their taxes.

Watch FREE videos! A lot of information was presented during Orientation. If your or your student can’t remember it all, you canaccess the free, online video series anytime.These 7-10 minute videos cover a wide range of topics. USFSCO strongly recommends that you and your student watch the series to brush up on USFSCO knowledge. Go tohttps://paymybill.uillinois.edu/Webisodes to startwatching today!

UIS Institutional Scholarships –Application Deadline February 15

By Carolyn Schloemann, Interim Director, Office of Financial Assistance

The 2017-2018 UIS Institutional ScholarshipApplication is available to be completed online.Students can spend only a few moments of theirtime to complete the application online, to turntheir time into money.

Over 169 scholarships are available and funds areawarded based upon a variety of criteria, includingacademic major, personal interests, communityinvolvement and academic performance.

Completing the application will be TIME WELLSPENT. The deadline to apply is 11:59 pm,February 15, 2017. We encourage all students toapply as the scholarship opportunities are updatedcontinually. Continuing student are encouraged toreapply to be eligible for renewable scholarships.

View a complete list of available scholarships.

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Winter Sports UpdateBy David Dalfonso, Assistant Athletic Director for Media and Communication

In the 2016 fall semester, Illinois Springfield sawseven teams compete and many rewrite the recordbooks. The women’s soccer team scored 19 goalson the seasonhelping them seta program recordfor wins in aseason inconsecutiveyears (7), as wellas tie the markfor GLVC wins ina season (4).

On the men’s team, senior striker Zachary Allevihelped lead the team to a 7-9-2, 6-7-1 record thatput them just ahalf game shortof entering theGLVC tournamentfor the first time.Allevi’s nine goalsthis season puthim atop of thePrairie Starrecord books formost goals scored in the Division II era (14) andwas also recognized as a member of the GLVC All-Conference Third-Team, becoming the first men’ssoccer player to accomplish that feat.

Men’s golf had an exciting fall, recording three top-three finishes as a team, including winning theDan Salisbury Memorial Invitational. Individually,Nathan Goecks was most recently named theGLVC Men’s Golfer of the Week for his performancein the final week of the season. At the UIS IslandInvite on October 23-25, Goecks was able to posta score of four-under on the weekend — whichtied a UIS 36-Hole record — as he won the UISIsland Invite in Rio Grande, Puerto Rico by sixstrokes.

The women’s golf team also won the Dan SalisburyMemorial Invitational, picking up their first win ofthe 2016-17 season. Jocelyn Matsen was alsonamed the GLVC Golfer of the Week, after setting

the 36-hole record for the women’s team andwinning her first outright title at the MaryvilleInvite at Annbriar Golf Course in Waterloo, Illinois. Matsen lapped the field for a five-strokevictory as she posted the best score in the field onboth days en route to the lowest 36-hole total inUIS history.

The volleyball team won their final four homeconference matches of the season to finish sixthin the GLVC East division. Alyssa Hasler ended the season second in the conference in total blocks while freshman middle, Alli Splitt, tied forthe highest hitting percentage in the conferenceand led the nation’s freshmen in that samecategory.

Men’s cross country took 20th in the MidwestRegional as the push was led by Eli Cook when hefinished 85th. The women finished strong as wellas they took 26th place in the same tournamentas Krissy Finley had a final time of 22:52.80 thatput her in 83rd in the 221 person race.

The winter sports are already in action as themen’s basketball team, under head coach BillWalker, is entering his third season. The PrairieStars have made the GLVC tournament in theprevious two seasons. The women’s team — underthe direction of second year head coach Mark Kost — is led by Shelbi Patterson who was last year named to the GLVC Third-Team last season.

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Rec ‘n RollBy James Koeppe, Director Campus Recreation

It’s been a busy fall semester for theCampus RecreationDepartment with recordturnouts for multipleevents. The semesterstarted with the inauguralPrairie Star 5K, which washeld on Saturday, August27. The event, which waspart of the UIS WelcomeWeek, had 164 registeredparticipants, of those 97were UIS students. It wasmore than just a 5Kthough, as the eventbrought the campus andcommunity togetherthrough activities such asballoon animals, food,music, drinks andawesome medals that weregiven to the top three male and female winners ineach age group. It was a successful event that willbe repeated again next fall.

If a student was looking formore of a “fun run,” thedepartment also offered aSpirit Run as part of theHomecoming festivities.The run is a 1.3 mile loopthrough campus in whichparticipants are dousedhead-to-toe in a variety ofcolors thrown by UIS

faculty and staff. This fall was the 3rd year for thisevent, which saw 132 students register. This wasquite an increase from 2015, where there were 83registered participants. Not only do the studentsenjoy the short run, or walk, they get to experiencea color party at the conclusion of the race in whichthey get to throw color on each other, making theironce white shirts a rainbow of bright colors.

Campus Recreation also offers several trips throughits Outdoor Adventure program and this year thetrips were 100% booked with students looking toexplore the country while partaking in someadventure. The first group of the semester traveledto rural West Virginia for whitewater rafting. Thestudents camped for two nights using equipmentprovided by the Campus Recreation departmentand rafted down the Lower Gauley River.

The second weekend trip taken by the students wasa canoe and kayak trip to southern Missouri. Thestudents stayed together in a cabin and used CampusRecreation’s canoes and kayaks on both Friday andSaturday. The students were taught the basics ofcanoeing and kayaking along with water safety.

Throughout the semester the department alsooffers day hikes and canoe trips. The hiking trip toStarved Rock State Park filled very quickly, and anadditional van was added which quickly filled tocapacity. Both canoe trips to Sugar Creek in nearbyChatham also filled to capacity.

Next semester, along with more day canoe trips,the department will be taking weekend trips to skiin Minnesota and also to visit the caves inMammoth Cave National Park in Kentucky.

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The Office of Disability Services (ODS) is availableto serve students with a documented disability byproviding academic accommodations for courses.We are happy to talk with you and give youadditional detailed information about the types of

disabilities we serve and the accommodations weprovide to students registered with the ODS. Wecan be reached at 217-206-6666, we look forwardto talking with you!

Services Available for Students with Disabilities

Hope you all had a great fall! Let me introducemyself and my new 2016-2017 Executive Board.

President - Angela KneerVice President - Anandhi RamalimgamSecretary - DeAnna ShaneTreasurer - Ellin Lotspeich

We were elected at the UIS Family weekend inOctober. We will be getting the newly appointedofficers up to date in the next couple months atour regular monthly meetings. While keepingthings rolling in establishing this organization andmoving forward.

We have started getting things in line to establishscholarships for students. Keep an eye out forfundraising opportunities, how you can getinvolved, and donation opportunities.

Don’t forget to visit our Facebook page. If you haven’t

signed up to be a member of PSFA you can do it on-

line.

Hope you all had a great break with your students and

a happy new year!

Angela Kneer

PSFA President

Family Weekend NotesOur Family Weekend continues to grow at UIS.This year we had 37 students and their familiesparticipate. Starting off with the ContinentalBreakfast as part of the student researchBreakfast of Champions presentation and endingwith a wild competition during the UIS Edition ofFamily Feud it was a great way to spend time withfamily. We are still deciding about the date fornext year’s Family Weekend. Students have askedthat we not schedule it the same weekend as

Homecoming so they can spend more time withfamily members. So we are looking at September29-October 1 (which seems so soon after classesstart) or the last week of October (which might bechilly). If you are reading this and have apreference, email before January 31 atlmcgu2@uis.edu.

On page 14, enjoy some pictures from Family Weekend...

Prairie Stars Family Association Corner:Wow, What an Inaugural Year!

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Some Important Links, Numbers & Email Addresses

Career Development Center 217/206-6508 careerservices@uis.edu

Counseling Center 217/206-7122 counseling@uis.edu

Disability Services 217/206-6666 ods@uis.edu

Financial Assistance 217/206-6724 finaid@uis.edu

Health Services 217/206-6676 uishealthservice@uis.edu

Records 217/206-6709 registrar@uis.edu

Residence Life 217/206-6190 reslife@uis.edu

New Student Orientation& Parent Relations 217/206-8181 UISOrientation@uis.edu

USFSCO (Student Billing) 217/206-6727 usfscohelp@uillinois.edu

Important Dates to Remember: Looking Ahead

Academic Calendars are available on the UIS website at www.uis.edu/registration/calendars/

January 16, 2017 Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Campus Closed

January 17 Classes Begin

January 30 Last Day to Change Meal Plans

February 15 UIS Institutional Scholarships Application

Deadline at 11:59 p.m.

February 28 Spring Bill Due Date

March 11 Mid-Point of Semester

March 13-17 Monday-Friday – Spring Recess

April 15 Taxes Due

April 17-22 SpringFest

April 22 Admissions Preview Day

May 6 Last Day of Classes

May 8-13 Finals Week

May 13 Semester Ends/Commencement