One of CI MED’s faithful donors, Dave Downey, has committed to a generous $2 million gift to the college. Half of the gift will fund a professorship in clinical translational research or innovation; the other half will support a student scholarship with preference for a student from Illinois. Downey’s gift honors former Chancellor Phyllis Wise, who played a crucial role in founding CI MED, the world’s first engineering-based college of medicine.

The family of Phil B. Jones, a respected Washington County farmer and community leader, is pleased to announce the creation of the Phil B. Jones Family Scholarship to support local high school students pursuing degrees in agriculture, communications, and related fields at the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.

Gies College of Business has received a $1.2 million gift from alumnus Bill Chase (FIN ’88) to establish a research fund supporting scholarship and dialogue around fiduciary responsibility and ethical decision making in business leadership. The newly established Chase Family Research Fund will provide research grants and sponsor annual forums, with an emphasis on interdisciplinary perspectives and long-term impact.

Director of Athletics Josh Whitman (GIES ’01, LAW ’08) answers the Proust Questionnaire

In February, the USAID-funded Feed the Future Soybean Innovation Lab at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign was told to stop work, bringing an abrupt end to 12 years of progress toward developing a global soybean value chain supporting Sub-Saharan Africa, Asia, Latin America, and Australia. SIL director Pete Goldsmith cobbled together funding from the university to keep the lab afloat until April 15, which was to be its last day.

Gies College of Business has received a $5 million gift from alumnus Nate Reichard, CEO of Reichard Capital. In recognition, the Real Estate Finance Academy will be renamed the “Reichard Real Estate Academy.”

Carol (MSLIS ’73) and her husband, Norm (MS Electrical Engineering ’73) Janoff, based their decision on her experience as a student with limited financial resources. They will make a charitable bequest of $300,000 to support the iSchool at Illinois.

Dr. Claudius Conrad, associate dean for research and innovation at the Carle Illinois College of Medicine, answers the Proust Questionnaire.

The late Ralph A. Smith and Christiana M. Smith are impacting the lives of College of Education undergraduate students through their scholarship fund.

Sara E. James, MS MD PhD DABA-PM, has created the Griffin Hale James Memorial Scholarship Fund to honor her late husband, Griffin, a man whose legacy of quiet support, hard work, and dedication to community was evident in every facet of his life. This scholarship, aimed at helping undergraduate students further their education at Gies College of Business, reflects Griffin’s dedication to higher education and his deep commitment to his community.