College of ACES Alumni News

Know an outstanding young alum? Someone who graduated from the College of ACES and excelled in their chosen career? A family who has dedicated time and loyalty to the College of ACES for generations? Now is the chance to recognize them for all their hard work. Nominations are due for these awards by May 15, 2020. 

For more information and nomination materials visit: https://acesalumni.illinois.edu/awards/nominate .

ACES Career Achievement Award

The University of Illinois College of ACES Alumni Association Career Achievement Award was created in 2017 by the College of ACES Alumni Association to recognize graduates from the College of ACES who have had exceptional professional achievement and/or made extraordinary humanitarian contributions.  Distinctive from the Award of Merit, which recognizes an individual’s combined body of work, this award recognizes a more focused, exceptional contribution or achievement.

Eligibility Criteria

• Is a graduate of the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences (ACES) or a predecessor college (College of Agriculture or the School of Human Resources and Family Studies/Home Economics) receiving a bachelors, masters and/or doctorate degree(s) AND
• has contributed significantly to his/her profession, industry, and/or the greater community; OR
• has a record of outstanding personal and professional accomplishments; OR
• has made extraordinary contribution via volunteer or humanitarian efforts resulting in meaningful or life-changing impacts for a significant population.
• Award of Merit recipients are not eligible for this award.

Nomination Procedure 

The College of ACES Alumni Awards committee will review all nominations and make selections.

Individuals selected for recognition will be contacted by the College of ACES Alumni Association and a date will be determined to recognize the individual.

Nomination Document

• All nominations should follow the format of the nomination form to insure all relevant information is included.
• Applications will only be considered for one year.  Applications may be resubmitted for up to three years.  If a nominee is not selected after 3 years, a new application can be submitted after 3 additional years.

Nomination Submission

All nomination materials must be submitted to:

College of ACES Alumni Association
ACES Library, Information and Alumni Center, Suite 115
1101 S. Goodwin Ave.
Urbana, IL  61801

Nominations may be submitted by fax to:  217-333-0354 or email: acesalumni@illinois.edu 

ACES Outstanding Young Alumni

Each year the College of ACES Alumni Association honors up to three outstanding graduates of the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences who have demonstrated outstanding professional achievement, or through outstanding leadership or service have significantly enhanced or improved the lives of others.

Guidelines for Nomination

• Nominees must have received a bachelors, masters or doctorate degree from the University of Illinois College of ACES.
• Nominee must be under the age of 40 on January 1, 2020.
• Nominee must be able to attend ACES College Connection Weekend activities in the Fall 2020 to accept the award.
• Submit the completed nomination form. Complete applications should include all relevant information within the nomination form and letters of support should only support the nomination, they are not scored.
• Provide a biographical sketch (1 page maximum) about the nominee. (included in nomination packet)
• Nomination information is limited to text box area provided in each area. Do not attach extra pages.

Please attach

• Attach a minimum of two letters of reference and a maximum of four, in support of this nomination. One letter of reference should be from a University of Illinois faculty or staff member. Names and addresses must be included on reference letters.
• Attach resume of nominee (no vitas please).
• All nominations are kept on file for three years to be reviewed for the ACES Young Alumni Award, however nominators are encouraged to update forms if they are re-considered after the initial year of application.
• All materials received for a single nominee will constitute that person’s nomination. It is the responsibility of the nominator(s) to insure that all materials have been received by the College of ACES Alumni Association office.

Nomination Process/Timeline
A call for nominations will be made in coordination with ACES College Connection fall events.

Recognition
Selected individuals will be recognized during ACES College Connection if they are able to attend. If the recipient is unavailable to attend, another appropriate time and location for recognition will be determined. The selected individuals will also become Round Barn Society members and will be pinned when receiving their recognition.

Scoring
Scoring will consist of 85% professional accomplishments and 15% service to community.

Nomination Submission

All nomination materials must be submitted to:

College of ACES Alumni Association
ACES Library, Information and Alumni Center, Suite 115
1101 S. Goodwin Ave.
Urbana, IL  61801

Nominations may be submitted by fax to:  217-333-0354 or email: acesalumni@illinois.edu 

ACES Family Spirit Award

The College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences Family Spirit Award recognizes those family members who have demonstrated their support of the College as alumni and/or current students. Selection will be based on, but not limited to a display of sincere dedication to the College of ACES and significant connections to the College and University. Awardees will be honored during the ACES Alumni Weekend activities in Fall 2020.

Guidelines for Nomination

• Nominee should be able to attend ACES Alumni Weekend activities during Fall 2020.
• Complete and submit the nomination form.

Please attach:

• Attach a minimum of two and a maximum of three letters of reference, in support of this nomination. Either the nomination or one letter of reference must be from a University of Illinois faculty or staff member. Name, addresses, and email addresses must be included on reference letters.
• All nominations are kept on file for three years to be reviewed for the ACES Family Spirit Alumni Award.

Nomination Submission

All nomination materials must be submitted to:

College of ACES Alumni Association
ACES Library, Information and Alumni Center, Suite 115
1101 S. Goodwin Ave.
Urbana, IL  61801

Nominations may be submitted by fax to:  217-333-0354 or email: acesalumni@illinois.edu  

Congratulations to James W. “Jimmy” Smith, MS ’84 ACES, PHD ’86 ACES. Smith is director general of the International Livestock Research Institute, where he works tirelessly to promote sustainable farming practices in developing countries overseeing 700 consultants throughout Asia and Africa.

Jimmy is a recipient of the 2019 Madhuri and Jagdish N. Sheth International Alumni Award for Exceptional Achievement!

Read more

The College of ACES Alumni Association will host the ACES Family Academies program on July 09-10, 2020 with check in the evening of July 8, 2020.  Alumni are invited to bring youth ages 8-13 years old to campus for a 2 day educational experience while spending time together on the University of Illinois and College of ACES campus.

Participants will enjoy the college experience living in a residence hall, eating in the dining facilities and participating in educational classes on the College of ACES campus. This program will give you an opportunity to relive and share your college days as well as create new memories with your little Illini.

We hope you will take advantage of this opportunity to return to campus with your children, grandchildren, nieces or nephews to share in this experience!

Registrations taken on a first come, first served basis, until filled. Registration opens in April 2020.

Cost:  $195.00 per person

Questions? Email acesalumni@illinois.edu

In addition to the food and fellowship of the Celebrate Food and Agriculture event, this year’s celebration included the reveal of custom terra cotta animal head medallions.

When the University of Illinois Stock Pavilion was constructed in 1913, it featured 52 terra cotta animal head medallions on the exterior north wall. The designs featured 10 different species viewed as important to the livestock industry (two each of beef cattle, dairy cattle, horses, pigs, and sheep).

During Stock Pavilion renovations in the 1950s, the animal heads were removed and many were damaged. Intact medallions were stored on the South Farms, but many were lost over the decades.

Watch a video about the animal head medallions.

In 2018, five of the pieces were returned to the Department of Animal Sciences. Two other medallions were found in a campus storage room and in a local garden.

During recent efforts to reinvigorate the interior and exterior of the Stock Pavilion, Longshadow Planters of Pomona, Illinois, was contracted to create molds of the remaining pieces to reproduce dry cast limestone medallions. Five of the reproductions were selected for incorporation in the wall on the south exterior of the Stock Pavilion.

The John N. Chester Estate Endowment supported the recreation of the animal head medallions. The recovered original pieces remain on display in the Stock Pavilion.

The search continues for three of the original 10 medallion designs. Help the College of ACES find the Holstein and Jersey cows and Poland China pig. If you have any information about the missing medallions, contact the College of ACES Office of Advancement at 217-333-9355 or acesadvancement@illinois.edu.

Learn More

“I wanted to do this for the kids. Play is a really important part of children’s lives and development.” Gift helps make new playground for the Child Development Laboratory possible. Play on!

The Child Development Laboratory (CDL) at the University of Illinois has been part of the campus and Champaign-Urbana community for more than 77 years, preparing over 4,000 young children for successful futures.

A gift from Nannette “Nann” Armstrong, an alumna of the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences at U of I, is helping to support the CDL in its commitment to provide high-quality early care and education for children, as well as to serve the campus through its teaching, research, and outreach and engagement.

Through Armstrong’s gift, along with additional support from the College of ACES, the U of I Office of the Provost, and the Department of Human Development and Family Studies, a new playground was installed this summer at CDL.

The fully renovated playground was dedicated in a recent ceremony on campus, attended by Armstrong, friends and family, faculty and staff, and officials from the College of ACES and U of I.

Learn More

Do you have an updated email address on file? Do you have an email you prefer to receive correspondence to? Did your email address recently change?

We want to stay connected to you!

All invitations to events and college updates will be sent via email only. Please update your email address to stay connected today!

With the rising cost of postal mail, email communication is a cost-effective way for the ACES Alumni Association to stay connected and provide updates, event announcements, and invitations to you as our alumni. Please feel free to share your email address with us by sending it to acesalumni@illinois.edu 

Were you a member of 4-H?  The University of Illinois Extension, Illinois 4-H, and the Illinois 4-H Foundation invite you to join the newly formed Illinois 4-H Alumni Association. A free life-time membership is available online go.illinois.edu/4Halumni . We hope your 4-H memories bring a smile to your face. We're creating memories daily with today's 4-H members.

Online social networking is a great tool to stay in tought with alumni and friends from the College of ACES! We want to stay connected to you! We post regular updates about activities, alumni profiles, on campus happenings, etc. Stay connected with us!

ACES Alumni Association hosts the following groups online: 

ACES Alumni Facebook - www.facebook.com/acesalum

College of ACES Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/UofICollegeofACES/

Twitter - https://twitter.com/acesalumni

Linked In - go.illinois.edu/ACESAlumniLinkedIn

YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/user/acesalumni

Flicker - https://www.flickr.com/search/?text=illinois%20ACES%20alumni

Instagram - www.instagram.com/acesalumni 

Check out Class Notes online - 

https://acesalumni.illinois.edu/news

Be sure to share any special times in your life with the ACES Alumni Association to keep your fellow alumni updated! Newly married? New job? Promotion? New book? New baby? We hope to hear from you. 

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