University of Illinois Alumni Association | Welcome, Alumni & Friends!

If you look at my LinkedIn page, you’ll see that I identify as a social entrepreneur, safe housing advocate, and bricklayer.
I was a bricklayer first. My dad owned a small construction business in Plano, Ill., building houses and custom fireplaces. I worked with him during the summers. I picked up broken bricks. I learned to drive a forklift. Around age 15, I graduated to...

(Image by Ryan Olbrysh)
The Bayer corporation is underwriting the revitalization of the Morrow Plots, the oldest experimental agricultural field in North America. Established in 1876, the plots are located in the heart of campus between the Main and South Quads and have been...

Landscape architects are best known for designing parks, gardens, waterfronts, and other public spaces. But we also alter and retrofit landscapes and urban sites to increase public spaces and adapt for climate change.
I’ve done a lot of work with engineers and geologists in Chicago on stormwater and urban flooding problems. Our work has led to major investments in green infrastructure in urban communities. My current research focuses on how to remove the vast seas...

Green Street flooding, 1979 (Image courtesy of the City of Champaign)
Today, Boneyard Creek is one of the most beautiful features of the Illinois campus, but for more than a century, it was a trash-filled eyesore with a drainage problem, and it flooded Campustown any time there was a heavy rain....