Smith to represent Lincoln College in state ceremony honoring student laureates           Send a link to a friend

[October 26, 2007]  SPRINGFIELD -- The Lincoln Academy of Illinois will honor 46 outstanding senior college students during a ceremony at 11 a.m. Saturday at the Old State Capitol State Historic Site in Springfield.

"These students have exhibited a personal commitment to excel, as seen by their remarkable academic accomplishments," said John B. Simon, chancellor of the Lincoln Academy. "But just as important, these students serve as role models to other Illinois students, as well as their own family and friends. With hardworking, dedicated individuals such as these, Illinois and the rest of the nation can look forward to a bright and prosperous future."

Krystal J. Stein, a senior at Southern Illinois University Carbondale, will deliver the keynote address on behalf of the student laureates. The invocation will be delivered by Lincoln Academy Regent Thomas S. Johnson of Rockford and the benediction by the Rev. Walter "Woody" Webb, vice president for student development at Olivet Nazarene University. The Sangamon Woodwind Consort will provide music, and a luncheon at the Illinois executive mansion will follow the ceremony.

The Lincoln Academy Student Laureate awards are presented for excellence in curricular and extracurricular activities. Laureate nominations are submitted by each school and reviewed by the Lincoln Academy. The group includes Lincoln College in Lincoln, which was chartered as Lincoln University. The Illinois Community College Board also recommends one individual who is recognized from among all Illinois junior college students.

The Lincoln Academy, unique among the 50 states, was established 43 years ago to honor Illinois' most distinguished citizens with the state's highest award, the Order of Lincoln, which will be presented at the Lincoln Academy's annual spring convocation, to be held on the campus of Southern Illinois University Carbondale on April 26, 2008.

Student laureates
(School, student, hometown)

• Augustana College -- Kristin E. Sentman, Batavia

• Aurora University -- Kara J. Armstrong, Colfax

• Benedictine University -- Bradley T. Callard, Rolling Meadows

• Blackburn College -- Dominique McGee, Carlinville

• Bradley University -- Jordan M. Ticaric, Lombard

• Concordia University -- Michelle A. Rusnak, St. Louis, Mo.

• DePaul University -- Jorge G. Zavala, Chicago

• Dominican University -- James Troken, Niles

• Eastern Illinois University -- Ingrid N. McCallister, Charleston

• Elmhurst College -- Mathew S. Kelly, Bourbonnais

• Eureka College -- Nicholas C. Easley, Belvidere

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• Governors State University -- Titus L. Payton, Park Forest

• Greenville College -- Paul E. Reese, Newburg, Pa.

• Illinois College -- Joshua K. Slaughterback, Paw Paw

• Illinois State University -- Ashley C. Mayor, Western Springs

• Illinois Wesleyan University -- Marcus Dunlop, Maywood

• Knox College -- Jennifer G. Ewa, Chicago

• Lake Forest College -- David A. Kuriniec, Deerfield

• Lewis University -- Colleen M. MacGruder, Romeoville

• Lincoln College -- Samantha M. Smith, Lincoln

• Loyola University -- Priscilla Koepke, Oakwood Hills

• MacMurray College -- Robyn M. Schroeder, Algonquin

• McKendree College -- Erin K. Conner, Belleville

• Millikin University -- Candace M. McCarty, Portland, Ore.

• Monmouth College -- Kathryn J. Fitzsimmons, Galesburg

• National Lewis University -- Nikia M. Gibson, Naperville

• North Central College -- Ashley E. Crettol, Frankfort

• Northeastern Illinois University -- Gerald Chaney, Evanston

• Northern Illinois University -- Benjamin I. Gross, Naperville

• Northwestern University -- Julian M. Hill, Kankakee

• Olivet Nazarene University -- David A. Wilson, Bourbonnais

• Principia College -- Emily F. Ward, Colorado Springs, Colo.

• Quincy University -- Dema M. Sabbara, Skokie

• Roosevelt University -- Nestor Avila, Des Plaines

• St. Xavier University -- Angelo A. Bonadonna, Berwyn

• Southern Illinois University-Carbondale -- Krystal J. Stein, Nashville

• Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville -- Ross A. Mead, Edwardsville

• Trinity Christian University -- Elizabeth M. VanderSpek, Canada

• Trinity International University -- David G. Zacharias, Markesan, Wis.

• University of Chicago -- Matthew R. Biancalana, Chicago

• University of Illinois at Chicago -- Lisa M. Petty, Woodridge

• University of Illinois at Springfield -- Danielle N. Fox, Springfield

• University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
  -- Sara R. Gibbs, Kell

• University of St. Francis -- Nicholas J. Heberer, Washington

• Western Illinois University -- Julia C. Remes, Arden Hills, Minn.

• John Wood Community College -- Bryan D. Schullian, Quincy

[Text from file received from Lincoln Academy of Illinois]

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