The Black Alumni Voice 2014 Vol 1. Issue 1

THE BLACK ALUMNI VOICE Quarter Electronic Newsletter of the SIU Black Alumni Group ISSUE 1 SUMMER 2014

Richard Gardner, M.D. 1st Vice president

Timothy W. Tyler President

Finola Burrell Secretary C. Lynn White Treasurer

This Issue

Kevin Winstead 2nd Vice President

Meet Your BAG Officers P.1 SIU Leadership Updates P.3 Changing of the Guard P.4 Upcoming Events p.4

Meet Your 2013—2015 BAG Officers A MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT

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reetings Fellow Black Alumni! I am honored to serve you as the President of the SIU Black Alumni Group and as a Life Member of the SIU Alumni Association. My name is Timothy W. Tyler. I was born and raised in Chicago, IL by two loving and supportive parents/role models; Willie and Mary Jean Tyler.

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2013 – 2015 BAG OFFICERS 

Timothy W. Tyler – President, Email: timwtyler@msn.com Phone: 630-710-X-RAY (9729)

I am a Life Member of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc. initiated Spr. 1991 K-Omicron Theta chapter, SIU. Currently serving as the First Vice Tenth District Representative. I enjoy spending time with my children, including a set of twins. Professionally, my career has revolved around health care since 1988. I work as an Executive Consultant/Project Manager for Community Health Systems (the largest private health system in the US) in Radiology, Cardiology and Cardiopulmonary.

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C. Lynn White – Treasurer

As President of BAG, it is my duty to; represent the interest of current BAG alumni, develop and cultivate a productive bond between current students, black faculty and BAG, build a mutual relationship of creditability and accountability with the SIU administration, support the growth of the SIU Alumni Association and as the chief executive officer, be a responsible steward of BAG resources.

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Finola Burrell – Secretary

Richard Gardner – 1st Vice President 

Kevin Winstead – 2nd Vice President

blackalumnigroup@gmail.com

Meet Your 2013—2015 BAG Officers (continued) Richard J. Gardner Sr. M.D., MPH– 1st Vice President A graduate of Hales Franciscan High Class of ‘72 and is married to Myra E. Gardner.

Dr. Gardner Sr. has attained a BA in Biological Sciences from Southern Illinois University Carbondale, an MD degree from Southern Illinois University School of Medicine, and a Masters in Public Health (MPH) degree from University of Illinois School of Public Health.

He began his medical career as a Pediatric Medicine physician at John H. Stroger Jr. Hospital and made the transition from clinical medicine to public medicine, as a public health physician where he spent five years as the HIV/AIDS prevention Administrator for the Illinois Department of Public Health. Dr. Gardner Sr. has been an active member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc., since 1978. He currently serves on the Fraternity’s National Voteless-People-are-a-Hopeless-People committee, is the IL District Coordinator for Project Alpha and works with Xi Lambda Chapter’s Education committee.

Lynn White– Treasurer Originally for Evanston Graduate of SIU College of Business- Marketing and Administrative Sciences 25+ years of marketing experience in Telecommunications and Consumer goods My past history: · Past 2 term BAG President · Involved with BAG since 1982 · Involved with SIU Alumni Association since 1979 · Past member of College of Business Minority Council · Planned and implemented 3 successful BAG reunions Goals & Objectives for the BAG Treasurer 1. To stay on top of ALL reunion expenditures and restrict any non-BAG persons from tampering with BAG funds.

2. To continue what the previous Treasurer has done in providing concise records.

3. To properly assist in overseeing the allocation of scholarship funds to chosen students.

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Kevin Winstead– 2nd Vice President A native of Chicago, Kevin Winstead comes to us from the Doctoral program in American Studies at University of Maryland College Park. He received his B.S. ’09 in Marketing and his M.A. ’11 in Sociology at Southern Illinois University Carbondale. His Doctoral research centers on social movements, religion, and material culture where he is continuing previous work which focused on the development of the Black Catholic Community as a part of the Civil Rights movement between 1968 to 1992, with special attention to the role of the Black Sisters and the Black Clergy. During his time at SIU he served as Coordinator of the Black Affairs Council ’04-’07 and President of the Black Graduate Student Association ’11.

Finola Burrell– Secretary Born and raised in Chicago, Illinois -A.O. Sexton Elementary - Englewood High School -Southern Illinois University -Graduated with BS in Special Education Employment: Chicago Public Schools -Veteran Teacher with 31 years of service currently working with 7th grade Special Needs Students @ Bouchet International Other Employment/Related Duties: Currently on School Leadership Committee -Chicago Teachers Union (School) Delegate Other Information: Member of Progressive Community Church -Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority -Skyway Teachers Bowling League Philosophy: Enjoy life to the fullest and keep God first today, because tomorrow is not promised to anyone!

Contact BAG at: blackalumnigroup@gmail.com

Dr. Randy J. Dunn was selected to become the eighth president of the Southern Illinois University System on February 17, 2014, and he began his official duties at the University on May 1.

Prior to coming to Southern Illinois, Dunn served as president at two other state institutions — Murray State University in Kentucky (2006-2013) and Youngstown State University in Ohio (2013-2014). Before that, Dunn was the state superintendent of education, appointed to that role by the Illinois State Board of Education. He is not a stranger to the SIU System, having held the rank of professor in the Department of Educational Administration and Higher Education at SIUC. Dunn started at the Carbondale campus as an associate professor in 1995 and was named department chair in 2000, before leaving to assume the state superintendency. During his term as chair, he also taught in the joint doctoral in educational leadership at SIU Edwardsville. Dunn began his academic career as an assistant professor in the Department of Leadership at The University of Memphis for two years before taking his faculty post at Southern Illinois University.

His early career in Illinois public education included classroom teaching, service as a principal at two school districts in north central Illinois, and the post of district superintendent for two Illinois school systems.

Dunn received his doctorate in educational administration from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 1991. He graduated from Illinois State University with a master’s in administration and foundations in 1983, and the B.S. in education in 1980.

During his time in higher education, Dunn has served on a number of committees, councils, boards, and task forces, including those for the American Council on Education, American and Illinois Associations of School Administrators, North Central Association, Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, Nonprofit Leadership Alliance, Learning Point Associates, Illinois Board of Higher Education, Illinois Association of School Boards, and other groups. He has done extensive consulting on K-12 education issues nationally and has served as the principal investigator or co-PI on numerous grants totaling nearly $650,000. His scholarly writing included published articles on a range of education management issues in professional journals, as well as book chapters, book reviews and monographs. Additionally, he has evaluated a number of manuscripts for publication in journals and books and grant proposals for funding agencies.

Dunn is married to Dr. Ronda Baker Dunn, originally from Benton, IL, and they reside in rural Carbondale. They enjoy travel, riding in their Jeep, the arts — and of course, Saluki and Cougar athletics. Randy and Ronda are the parents of four adult children. southernillinois.edu/.../biography.htm...

***SAVE THE DATE*** JULY 16-19, 2015

Contact BAG at: blackalumnigroup@gmail.com 3

BAG REUNION CARBONDALE, IL

After a six-month search by a 28-member presidential search committee, SIU Chancellor Rita Cheng was recommended to the Arizona Board of Regents to be Northern Arizona University's next president. Cheng has previously indicated it's an opportunity she won't be able to pass up if the position is officially offered to her. "SIU is a very special place, and I'm confident that it is positioned for future success," Cheng said. "Although I'm exploring the NAU opportunity, I'll always be proud of SIU and honored to have worked with such dedicated faculty, staff, friends and supporters."

Cheng's departure is not a complete surprise to many on campus. "It didn't catch us totally by surprise because she's got one more year left, and we hadn't started to deal with her," Randal Thomas, chairman of the SIU board, said. "But it's rather unexpected, and I wish her well. She'll obviously be a great fit." John Barnard, graduate student in history, said he had heard rumblings that her role as chancellor might be short-lived. "I am not surprised," Barnard said. "I've been on a couple committees, and I've heard several indications she was looking to be on her way out anyway."

Cheng has served as SIU's chancellor since 2010 and enrollment figures have declined by more than 2,000 students in her four years, dipping from 20,037 students in 2010 to 17,974 in 2013. SIU lost 653 students during the previous four-year period. While enrollment has gone down, tuition has gone up, increasing by $37.50 per credit hour($280.50) since 2010. The board voted in April against raising tuition for 2014-15. Freshmen enrollments at SIU have increased -- a fact that didn't escape the notice of Northern Arizona University. Its board pointed out, in a release, that SIU's 2013 freshman class was the largest in 20 years.

"There's a lot of stuff that she has put in place to bring about improvements in enrollment and other things at the university," Acting Carbondale Mayor Don Monty said. "In some respects, you'd like to have her stay longer to keep guiding those, but on the other hand if she's laid a good foundation, everything's there and people just need to follow through, it should still work. "Northern Arizona has 8,000 more students than SIU, but operates with a budget that is $300 million less than SIU's $771 million in expenditures in 2013. Faced with reduced state funding and the declining enrollments, Cheng's four-year tenure as chancellor has been characterized by controversial budget cuts, layoffs and furloughs.

The financially-strained environment has contributed to Cheng having her fair share of detractors at the university, but Monty said the blame for the school's financial and enrollment issues shouldn't necessarily rest with the chancellor. "I hear people grumble about changes she made -- reductions in staff, reorganizations that resulted from having less staff, but you got to be real. Whoever the chancellor was, given the financial situation changes had to be made. Somebody would have got the blame. To put it at the doorstep of the chancellor might not be appropriate. It might be more appropriate to put it where it belongs -- with the state legislature."

-- The Arizona Daily Sun, a sister publication to The Southern, contributed to this article.

***SAVE THE DATE*** JULY 16-19, 2015

BAG REUNION CARBONDALE, IL

Contact BAG at: blackalumnigroup@gmail.com 4

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