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Jim Spizzo ’74
was recently awarded first place and a cash prize in the architecture category in the 2021 juried exhibit sponsored by the Midwest Center for Photography in Wichita, Kansas, for his photo “Infinity: The Way Out.” Jim has also received honorable mentions by juries for his photography in the annual Minimalist Photography Awards, as well as in other exhibits at the Midwest Center for Photography. In the past few years, Jim’s photos have been selected by juries for inclusion in a dozen exhibits in Chicago; Wichita; Scottsdale, Arizona; and online. He was invited to do a show at the Pharmacy Gallery in Springfield as a guest artist in September.
In Memoriam
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Conrad Damsgaard ’57
was a dedicated, active alumnus who had a vision for raising the profile of the institution. He and his late wife, Patricia Carlson Damsgaard ’53, remained active supporters of the College throughout their lives. Over the years, Conrad Damsgaard served on the Board of Trustees and as president of the Alumni Association Board of Directors. In 1987, he was honored with a distinguished service award “for his devotion to Illinois College as evidenced by thoughtful alumni involvement.” The Damsgaards’ philanthropy made them members of the Julian Monson Sturtevant Society and the Illinois College Society.
As a student, Damsgaard was elected student body president and was an active member and leader in Phi Alpha. He was also a member of Alpha Phi Omega, economics club, the Hilltoppers dramatic organization, student forum, social committee and intersociety board.
He was first sergeant of the Army Reserve unit on campus and served in the Army from 1954 to 1956. He started his career in sales with Shell Oil Company and went on to have a long career in sales and marketing management at Shell, Swank Motion Pictures and Psychological Associates.
The Damsgaards had three daughters, Susan Damsgaard-Brand ’81, Kristine Damsgaard and Beth Damsgaard Rodriguez. Susan and their granddaughter, Rachel Brand ’18, carried on the family’s legacy as IC alumni. He was 88 when he died March 23, 2022.
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Lanie Cooper Kepler ’12, Brady Kepler ’12 and Bailey Cooper ’18
founded the KASE Project. It is a central Illinois non-profit dedicated to supporting the autism community. They installed a playground communication board at Southwind Park in Springfield for children with limited verbal speech to enjoy the park with their peers.
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Megan Zirkelbach '17
graduated from Lindenwood University with a Master of Business Administration.
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Jeremy Briggs '04
started a new position as the controller at Nestle.
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Christina Lappe Beck '04
was chosen from over 600 applications in the state to be awarded the Golden Apple in Teaching award.
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Jason Paproth '03
was hired as an administrator by Racine Unified School District, in Racine Wisconsin, to serve as the eighth grade principal the the Academies of Racine Jerstad-Agerholm.
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Samuel Welbourne '17
started a new position as warehouse manager at Dot Foods in Manchester, Tennessee.
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Scott Stewart '02
started a new position as a senior director of operations at Nathan Wright Landscape Design.
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Tamar Norville Walleser '16
is a solider and family readiness specialist for the Minnesota National Guard.
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Lauren Mense Stutsman '16
started a new position as the assistant director of development at IU Simon Comprehensive Cancer Center.
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Amanda Jillyn Shoemaker '01
started a new position as director of advancement operations for the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.
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Drew Stroud '16
graduated from The University of New Orleans with a Master of Fine Arts in Theatre Performance.
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Emily L. Smith '16
has been awarded team player of the quarter at Dell Technologies.
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Adam R. Ford '00
started a new position as chief technology Officer at Zscaler.
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Matthew Murphy '16
defended his Ph.D. at the University of Illinois with his dissertation in applying variance genome-wide association studies for identifying gene-by-environment interactions and accepted a postdoctoral research fellow position at the University of Arkansas and will serve as the statistical consultant for the Department of Crop, Soil and Environmental Sciences.
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Thomas Betsinger '97
was appointed as the new executive director of the Oswegoland Park Board of Commissioners.
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Dr. Chris Becker '97
was promoted as the assistant superintendent of curriculum and instruction of Highland CUSD No. 5.
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Debra McCormick Drake '92
started a new position as group head of corporate finance at Anglo American in London.
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Daniel Lewis '16
started a new position as director of legislative affairs at the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation.
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Taylor Molandro Koskie '16
started a new position as senior implementation manager at Crafty.
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Russell Miers '89
started a new position as senior project manager at Horace Mann.
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Richard Meidel, Jr. '85
retired from Exxon Mobil after 32 years with the company.