Students analyze first semester with Capital Scholars composition projects

Freshmen in the Capital Scholars Honors Program at UIS had a chance to look back over their first semester at both the good and the bad during a project for Capital Scholars course 111, Honors Composition.

To wrap up the class, the students completed bibliographical projects analyzing themselves and the changes they’ve seen in their personal lives since coming to college at UIS. The dozens of projects were then presented and explained to several different Capital Scholars instructors on Wednesday morning in the lobby of the Public Affairs Center.

“I thought it was a really good project because I got to reminisce back to the beginning of the semester and think back on everything and put it all into art,” said Breanna Ligaya, a freshman in biology.

Amy Spies, coordinator of Composition and Academic Support for the Capital Scholars Honor Program, said the goal of the project was to give students the opportunity to critically analyze their learning experiences for the semester.

“It required them to look at each experience with more than just how they felt at that time, but to look back and recognize what they learned and how that experience contributed to who they have become,” she said. “Some changes are good and some are not so good, which they recognized, and they’ve included the bad as well as the good in their presentations.”

Students created everything from poster boards to sculptures to collages. One student even hung notes and pictures on himself with yarn.

“It was a lot more fun than writing a paper; being able to be creative in a regular writing class was really fun,” said freshman Melissa Frost.

And according to the students, the intent of the project was a success.

“It really helped me see me as a person and how I grew,” Ligaya said.

2010-2011 Avery Brundage Scholarships available

University of Illinois students who excel in both academics and athletics are encouraged to enter the 37th annual Avery Brundage Scholarship competition.

Scholarship applications can be submitted online at www.usp.uillinois.edu/brundage. The deadline for submission is February 12, 2010. Paper applications will not be distributed.

Full-time University of Illinois students at the Chicago, Springfield and Urbana campuses, including incoming freshmen, graduate and transfer students, may apply. Grant-in-aid recipients may be eligible for Brundage scholarships, under specific conditions. Academic and athletic competence will be considered over financial need.

Undergraduate and transfer student applications must rank in the top 25 percent of their college, and incoming freshmen must rank in the upper 25 percent of their incoming class. Graduate and professional students must be in good academic standing.

Students also must have demonstrated “special athletic ability” in an amateur sport. However, their participation must have been for personal development, rather than as preparation for professional athletics. Previous Brundage scholarship winners have represented a wide variety of sports from archery and tennis to swimming and wheelchair basketball. Last year, 15 winners were awarded $2,400 each.

The late Avery Brundage, a 1909 U of I graduate, competed in the 1912 Olympics and later was president of the U.S. and International Olympic committees. He established the scholarship in 1974, with a $343,000 endowment to the University of Illinois Foundation. Over the past 36 years, 794 scholarships with a total value of $983,200 have been awarded. Brundage maintained his interest in the University through service as a member of the University of Illinois Foundation, President's Council and Citizen's Committee.

For more information contact Gayle L. Layman, Director University-wide Student Programs at 217-333-2030.

Mims has seen tremendous growth in computer science

By Courtney Westlake

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Dr. Ted Mims first started out his career in computer science working with paper tape, and then punched cards. The next years brought the era of terminals before desktop computers and laptops finally began serving the needs and wants of the general public and causing great impact in the field of computer science.

Mims came to UIS in 1990 and now serves as not only a professor of computer science, but as the chair of the computer science department. Mims' college studies originally focused on math, but after teaching math at the high school level, he eventually made the switch to the field of computer science.

After obtaining a master's and Ph.D. in computer science and teaching at Louisiana State and Nicholls State universities, Mims moved to Springfield to be part of the computer science department here at UIS, in which student enrollment has skyrocketed.

"In 1990, we had approximately 45 graduates and 75 undergraduates," Mims said. "In the spring semester of 2007, we had 350 graduate students and 200 undergraduates. So we've had more than 500 percent growth since 1990."

Mims said he enjoys working with both the faculty and the students within the program.

"I really like the faculty; they're energetic and enthusiastic about teaching," he said. "We have excellent students. When I came here, the majority of our students were adult students in their 30's with fulltime jobs. Now we also have evolved into admitting lower division students who are younger, less than 30 years old."

Three years ago, the computer science online program began bringing in more non-traditional working students who hail from all over the country. Nationwide enrollment in computer science has dropped anywhere from 30 to 60 percent, but in adding an online program, enrollment has increased 50 percent at UIS, Mims said.

"The online program brought students," he said. "Those are some of the brighter students we have; they are working for companies in the aerospace industry and major computer corporations."

As for the future of the field of computer science, Mims anticipates that security will be an area of interest and that online classes will continue to flourish.

"It seems younger students want to take more online classes than classes on campus," he said. "And I think that the programming will remain but language will change. We teach Java now, but it will be some other language in a few years from now."

Several students in UIS' computer science program have been recognized for national awards, and partnerships that have been recently developed are also an asset to the program. In 2007, for example, a partnership was developed with State Farm Insurance to make UIS the 18th university from which State Farm recruits nationally.

"This opportunity allows our students to do internships at State Farm, and several students of ours have been hired for fulltime positions with them," he said. "So that's been a great partnership, and we look to expand those partnerships with other companies."