CHICAGO - May 9, 2012. Governor Pat Quinn today surprised Elizabeth Luna, a kindergarten teacher at Murray Language Academy, with a 2012 Golden Apple Award for Excellence in Teaching. The governor presented the award, which is one of the education community's most prestigious, during National Teacher Appreciation Week. As part of his commitment to protect and improve education in Illinois, the governor also emphasized the need for legislative action this spring to stabilize the state's Medicaid and pension systems to ensure adequate funding for education.

"An outstanding teacher can have more influence on a student than almost anyone else," Governor Quinn said. "The best economic tool a state can have is a solid education system. That's why we must work together to address our financial challenges today, so that we can invest in education and the futures of our children tomorrow."

Governor Quinn recently proposed bold plans to restore fiscal stability to Illinois, which would protect funding for education. Governor Quinn recently proposed a plan to fundamentally restructure the Medicaid system and save it from collapse by creating $2.7 billion in savings. The governor's plan cuts waste, fraud and abuse, and raises the price of cigarettes to bring back dollar for dollar federal matching funds and help make people healthier. The governor also recently proposed a bold plan to stabilize the pension system, which is expected to save taxpayers $65 to $85 billion, eliminate the unfunded liability and allow public employees who have faithfully contributed to the system to continue to receive pension benefits. Pension and Medicaid costs currently account for 39 percent of the budget, which will continue to grow and take away resources from education.  If nothing is done this spring, they will account for 50 percent of the budget next year.

Luna began teaching in Chicago Public Schools in 2003 as a substitute, leaving the restaurant industry for a second career in education. After joining Murray Language Academy to teach intermediate grades, she was placed in kindergarten, a move that allowed her to find her calling in early childhood education. Luna is also a teacher of future teachers. She works with The University of Chicago Urban Teacher Education Program (Chicago UTEP) as a mentor teacher. Luna is one of ten teachers to win the award, out of 560 Pre-Kindergarten-3^rd grade teachers nominated this year in Cook, DuPage, Kane, Lake and Will counties.

Golden Apple winners receive an honorarium, a tuition-free semester sabbatical at Northwestern University and become lifetime members of the Golden Apple Academy of Educators, which supports and assists teachers in developing their skills and encourages students to pursue a career in education. John Quinn, the Governor's younger brother and long-time history teacher and boys basketball coach at Fenwick High School in Oak Park, received the Golden Apple award in 1992.

CANTON, MO (05/08/2012)(readMedia)-- Culver-Stockton College continued its tradition of honoring the accomplishments of students during the annual Honors Day Convocation Monday, May 7.

Dozens of students were awarded for overall academic achievement, outstanding performance within their major, academic competition and scholar-athlete rankings. Many of the awards have been established by or in memory of Culver-Stockton alumni/ae. "This long-standing tradition of the college not only unites the student body as they honor their classmates and friends for achievements in the 2011 - 2012 academic year, but also represents the culmination of a year of hard work. I can think of no finer way to end another academic year on 'the Hill' than to pay tribute to members of our student body," commented C-SC President Richard Valentine.

Awards and recipients include :

- The Frank T. Edgar Award in History & Political Science - Kaitlyn Gutheil from Bettendorf, IA.

- The J. David Bursewicz Senior Scholarship Award - Kaitlyn Gutheil from Bettendorf, IA.

- The Koch Divisional Award - Kaitlyn Gutheil from Bettendorf, IA.

- The Mahan Prizes in Creative Writing - One-Act Play - Kaitlyn Gutheil from Bettendorf, IA.

- The Phi Eta Sigma Book Award - Kaitlyn Gutheil from Bettendorf, IA.

- The Stuart Hoyle Purvines English Award - Kaitlyn Gutheil from Bettendorf, IA.

Members of the class of 2012 will receive their diplomas during the Commencement Ceremony to be held Saturday, May 12 at 9:30 a.m. on the campus of Culver-Stockton College.

SIOUX CENTER, IA (05/07/2012)(readMedia)-- Nolan Hagge of Princeton, Iowa, was among 321 Dordt College students awarded diplomas at the 2012 commencement ceremony held Friday, May 4, in the B.J. Haan Auditorium.

Hagge graduated with a Bachelor of Science - Engineering degree in engineering.

Among this year's graduates, 298 earned Baccalaureate degrees, 14 Associate of Arts degrees, and nine Master of Education degrees. The Baccalaureate degrees presented included Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Science in Engineering, Bachelor of Science in Nursing, and Bachelor of Social Work degrees.

Outgoing college president Dr. Carl E. Zylstra gave the commencement address, "To The Hilt." Zylstra has been president of Dordt College since 1996, during which time the college has seen significant expansion in its facilities, endowment, and academic programs.

Dordt College in Sioux Center, Iowa, is a comprehensive Christian college rooted in the Reformed tradition. U.S. News & World Report, Forbes.com, Washington Monthly, and Princeton Review all list Dordt on their best colleges lists. Dordt is home to approximately 1,400 students. To learn more about Dordt College, visit www.dordt.edu.

ROCK ISLAND, IL (05/07/2012)(readMedia)-- More than 75 Augustana students from all academic areas shared their advanced research projects on Saturday, May 5, at the Celebration of Learning. This on-campus research symposium annually gives students an opportunity to show off their academic accomplishments to their families and the Augustana community.

Among the students involved:

Alannah Golden, a junior from Davenport, Iowa, majoring in elementary education. The research was titled Expanding the Boundaries of Teacher Candidates in General Education: An Immersion Experience. Elementary education and communication sciences and disorders majors worked together to gather research for appropriate classroom accommodations when teaching exceptional children. Research was gathered during an immersion experience at The Florida School for the Deaf and Blind. Students researched literacy, technology, and a variety of accommodations as they worked with students with special needs within the school. The two majors worked together in order to effectively research ways to better meet the needs of exceptional children.

Manisha Kumar, a junior from Davenport, Iowa, majoring in biology and pre-medicine. The research was titled Characterizing the Cold-Conditioning Response in a Vertebrate Ectotherm. Ectothermic animals rely on seasonal increases in cold hardiness to survive a thermally variable environment, but a more rapid and supplementary subzero chilling may elicit a better response to a subsequent extreme chilling. In the present study, winter-acclimated Chrysemys picta (painted turtle) hatchlings were put in groups that were cold-conditioned to -3, -7, and -10.5°C. These turtles were later chilled to a more extreme temperature (-12.7°C) and monitored for recovery to determine the magnitude of the cold-conditioning response. To determine the effect of the cold-conditioning, levels of glucose, lactate, and urea were assessed in blood plasma, brain, and liver. Results showed that cold-conditioned turtles fared better, offering higher survival rates than those in the control condition. Turtles cold-conditioned to -3.5°C, however, had both the highest concentration of brain glucose and the highest survival rate. Concentration of brain glucose may be an important factor in determining survival of turtles exposed to cold.

Melissa McGreer, a senior from Illinois City, Ill., majoring in biology. The research was titled Mapping Infection Prevention Factors in Hospital Settings: A Clinical SI for the BA/BSN Dual Degree Program. Augustana pre-nursing students have the option of completing a dual degree BA/BSN including a clinical Senior Inquiry experience coordinated by the Trinity College of Nursing & Health Sciences in Rock Island, IL. After junior year as Augustana biology majors, these "nurse-scientists" take a summer nursing skills course at TCON&HS, followed by a 100+ hour clinical experience that allows them to explore a question bridging biology and nursing research. During summer 2011, I shadowed different departments at two hospitals in the Quad Cities. After a week or two learning from hospital staff, I proposed the idea that the precautions taken do vary from floor to floor in each hospital. I then created maps showing the interaction of these factors, sometimes referred to as a "web of causation" in epidemiology studies. Such maps can be used as guides for staff education to help healthcare workers see the gaps in their own practices.

Crystina Mayfield, a senior from Coal Valley, Ill., majoring in French, africana studies, and classics. The research was titled Creole Language in the Works of Patrick Chamoiseau. While Patrick Chamoiseau writes primarily in French, he uses a certain amount of Martinican creole language in his works to enhance the effect of his writing style. What exactly are the effects of the inclusion of creole language in a text when many readers will not be able to understand these phrases? What are the effects of including translations of the creole versus leaving it to stand on its own? What are the difficulties a creole writer faces when needing to use French to document a society which is firmly rooted in creole? These and other questions are the basis of this inquiry.

Celebration participants presented their research through a poster display or an oral presentation. Many students expounded on the results of their Senior Inquiry, a multiple-term research project required for most academic programs. Other students shared honors capstone projects or student-faculty research findings. Because of the advanced level of research involved, most of the presenters are upperclass students.

Anne Earel and Stefanie Bluemle, Augustana reference librarians and the event's co-directors, said the Celebration of Learning provided an outlet for students to showcase their accomplishments.

Presentations topics varied greatly and included anthropology, biology, physics, geography, gender studies, theater and more.