Marisol Morales, associate director of the Steans Center, has been appointed by Gov. Patrick Quinn to serve on the Latino Family Commission and on the Commission for the Elimination of Poverty. The Latino Family Commission advises the governor and General Assembly and works directly with state agencies to improve and expand existing policies, services, programs and opportunities for Latino families. The Commission on Poverty Elimination is an independent body in Illinois focused on eliminating poverty in the state based on international human rights standards.

Raman Chada, executive director of the Coleman Entrepreneurship Center, was recognized for his service to entrepreneurs as one of 19 area entrepreneurs who received Entrepreneurial Excellence Awards from The Business Ledger, a business newspaper serving the suburbs of Chicago, during the 10^th annual awards presentation in late September.

School of Music faculty members George Flynn and Gregory Hutter received the 2009/10 ASCAPLUS Award–Concert Music Division. Awards are granted by an independent panel from the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) and are based upon the prestige value of each writer’s catalog of original compositions.

Michael Murray, professor of management, received the Distinguished Member Award in October from the National Society of Collegiate Scholars (NSCS) for his service to the university.  Murray was the keynote speaker at the NSCS Annual Induction, where 350 attendees welcomed 200 new members.

Ray Whittington, dean of the College of Commerce and Kellstadt School of Business, has been elected to the board of directors of the Graduate Management Admission Council. He joins a 16-member board, which includes representatives from academe and industry from around the world.  The board sets strategic goals for the council, which is the association of leading international graduate business schools and owner of the GMAT exam. 

Bruce Newman was hosted by the American Center in the U.S. Embassy in Prague and interviewed by Hospodarske Noviny (the Czech Republic’s Financial Times equivalent.) He also was the keynote speaker at the International Symposium on Political Marketing in Brno, Czech Republic. His keynote was titled “The Obama Phenomenon.”

Thomas M. Pyra, alumnus, advisory board member and adjunct professor, was recently named to Swedish Covenant Hospital’s 20-member board of directors. The board of directors at Swedish Covenant Hospital plays an essential role in establishing an operating framework that promotes and sustains the hospital’s reputation for quality and compassion.

Maria Avgerinou, assistant professor in the School of Education, has been awarded the Research Award of the International Visual Literacy Association.  The award is given only when merited to members of the association who are actively involved in ongoing outstanding research that furthers the cause of visual literacy, who have achieved a substantial record of scholarly publication, and who have significantly advanced knowledge within the field.

Kate Brucher, world music faculty member, co-chaired the symposium “Wind Bands in Cross-Cultural Perspectives” and presented for a panel on competition. The symposium was hosted by the School of History and Anthropology, Queens University, Belfast, Northern Ireland.  Her essay "Viva Rhode Island! Viva Portugal! Performance and Tourism in Portuguese-American Bands" was published in “Community, Culture, and the Makings of Identity.”

The DePaul Jazz Ensemble performed on the Young Lions stage at this year’s Chicago Jazz Festival.  To help promote the Young Lions stage, the ensemble appeared on the WGN-TV midday news show on Sept. 1

Charles Strain, professor of religious studies, has been awarded a Fulbright grant to visit Adamson University in the Philippines for a month of events.

The Chicago Department of Family and Support Services (DFSS) awarded more than $121,000 to DePaul’s School of Education to deliver professional development sessions for 20 teachers or assistant teachers identified by DFSS. Gayle Mindes, professor of early childhood and elementary education, will oversee the project. The sessions, conducted jointly by DFSS and the university, will provide the teachers with course credit to be applied to a bachelor of arts degree in early childhood education.

In recognition of National Literacy Month in September, Maria Pappas, Cook County treasurer, presented Marisa Alicea, dean of the School for New Learning, with an award for her devotion to continuing education and lifelong learning.

Eric Selinger, English professor, was featured on Australia’s ABC nightly news. He spoke about the first international conference for the study of romantic fiction, which took place in Brisbane.

Bob Lattas, adjunct professor in accountancy, was featured on ABC news as a Good Samaritan. After hearing that the Asian Youth Services of Chicago was robbed of nearly $2,000 worth of school uniforms, Lattas donated $3,000 to the organization.