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Illinois State University administrators are hoping to open a new College of Engineering.
On Friday, ISU President Larry Dietz and Provost Aondover Tarhule presented the first half of a proposal to launch new engineering programs to the board of trustees.
Dietz said it’s a chance to attract more students during the so-called enrollment crisis as high school graduating class sizes shrink, meaning fewer prospective college attendees. Currently, he said those interested in engineering programs tend to look to out-of-state colleges.
“We re looking for new opportunities for new markets for students, and the engineering program clearly gives us access to new students,” Dietz said. “The other part is that there s a huge demand (and) Illinois universities aren’t meeting it. There s a demand from the companies that hire engineering graduates that much exceeds the supply of the existing engineering programs.”
The heads of colleges and universities in Illinois are asking Gov. JB Pritzker to move higher education faculty and staff up to 1B in the vaccination queue
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A new book studying the connections Abraham Lincoln had to Illinois State University is drawing rave reviews.
Historian Tom Emery and ISU alum Carl Kasten created the 280-page book, “Abraham Lincoln and the Heritage of Illinois State University,” that uncovers the untold stories of Lincoln at ISU.
Lincoln served as counsel to the state’s Board of Education.
“Lincoln wrote the guarantee for the university, which secured funding. In doing so, he really ensured the university would be in Bloomington,” said Emery. “There was competition in other cities, mainly Peoria, to be the home of the university. The fact that Lincoln wrote the guarantee, securing funding, was a critical step in making sure the university would be in Bloomington where it’s been for 164 years.”
The Illinois State University Board of Trustees met virtually on Saturday, Jan. 16, 2021.
The Illinois State University Board of Trustees voted Saturday to approve a $46,000 bonus for outgoing university president Larry Dietz, who announced in November that he will retire June 30.
According to his contract, which was extended in December, Dietz is eligible for an annual performance bonus up to $50,000 on top of his $375,000 base salary. A copy of his performance review, included in the public meeting materials, indicated that Dietz met or exceeded most of his goals for the 2020 fiscal year.
The trustees noted that while Dietz had exceeded goals like the Redbirds Rising capital campaign, “improvement was needed” in fostering inclusivity on campus, and developing and implementing a legislative advocacy plan.