Mary Jean Wirth
Wirth wins Jubilee Medal for outstanding research
Professor Mary Jean Wirth has won the 2015 Chromatographic Society Jubilee Medal, presented to her on June 21 in Geneva, Switzerland.
The society’s executive committee said it considered many contenders for the award and focused on Wirth’s work for the award because of her development of a separation technique that has revolutionized protein separations. In the course of her research, Wirth is developing silica-based materials for cancer biomarker discovery.
Wirth, a member of Purdue University’s Department of Chemistry in West Lafayette, Ind., earned a bachelor’s degree in chemistry at NIU and a doctorate of Purdue University.
Bryan Kibler
Kibler named to justice authority
Effingham County State’s Attorney Bryan Kibler has been named to the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority by Gov. Bruce Rauner.
The Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority is a state agency dedicated to improving the administration of justice by bringing together leaders from the justice system and the public to identify key issues facing the Illinois justice system and to propose and evaluate policies, programs and legislation to address these issues.
Kibler will continue his job as state’s attorney. Before his election, Kibler was in private practice with a focus on criminal defense and family law.
The Effingham resident earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from Northern Illinois University and his law degree from Southern Illinois University.
Judge Kauffmann honored for dedication and leadership
Ogle County Associate Judge Kathleen Kauffmann was honored by her coworkers at an appreciation dinner recently for her dedication and leadership to improve the lives of court-involved individuals, their families and the community of Ogle County.
“Collaboration is critical to the ongoing success of community-based programming. For it is the community which benefits when an offender has been held accountable and received assistance and treatment, just as it is the community that suffers if this does not occur,“ Kauffmann said.
Kauffmann graduated from Northern Illinois University School of Law. She was appointed as an associate circuit judge in Ogle County in 2003 and was an assistant state’s attorney in Ogle and Dekalb counties from 1991 through 1997.
In the fall 1997, she began a solo practice in Ogle County concentrating on family law and criminal defense. During her private practice, she was a city prosecutor for Byron and later served as a contract public defender for Ogle County.
She is now primarily assigned to domestic relations, hearing family dissolution and custody cases. She has served on the Illinois Judicial Conference Committee on Education since 2006, currently as co-chairwoman of the 2016 Judicial Education Conference and as chairwoman of the Illinois Judicial Benchbook on Domestic Violence.
Mason heads Elgin football program
Anthony Mason (B.S. education ’10) has been named the football coach of Elgin High School.
Mason comes to Elgin, Ill., after serving as an athletic director in Chicago. A defensive coordinator briefly at Kenwood in Chicago, he served as athletic director at Plato Learning Academy and then became athletic director at Hansberry College Prep.
Mason played defensive back at Bishop McNamara and was a backup defensive back and special teams player under Joe Novak and Jerry Kill at Northern Illinois University.
Paul Palian
Palian named PR director at Oakton Community College
Paul Palian will take over as director of college relations as of July 20 at Oakton Community College, based in Des Plaines, Ill.
Palian is currently director of media and public relations at Northern Illinois University. He holds a bachelor’s degree in communication and a master’s degree in sport management from NIU.
Schmidt publishes fifth novel
Tamara Schmidt
Tammy Schmidt has released her fifth novel, “Post-Traumatic Brazilian Wax Syndrome.”
Her book is about Bristow Sparks, an interior designer in Lake Geneva, Wis., who has just landed the contract of a lifetime – working for a volatile reality star and CEO of Wine-A-Lot.
Schmidt, who writes under her maiden name, Tamara Lyon, lives in Lake Geneva, with her family.
To find out more about her books, visit tamaralyon.com.
Brian W. Caputo
Caputo appointed to Governmental Accounting Standards Board
Brian W. Caputo, chief financial officer and city treasurer of Aurora, Ill., has been named to the Governmental Accounting Standards Board, an independent organization that sets accounting and financial standards for state and local government in the U.S.
In addition to his Aurora responsibilities, Caputo serves as an adjunct NIU faculty member in public administration.
Serving the city of Aurora since 1998, Caputo is responsible for developing and overseeing the execution of the city’s annual budget, preparing the comprehensive annual financial report and managing the annual investment of public funds.
He holds a master’s degree in public administration and a doctorate in political science from NIU. He also holds a bachelor’s degree from the United States Military Academy and a master’s degree in accountancy from DePaul University. He is a certified public accountant and a certified public finance officer.
Mark R. Imielski
Imielski joins Hinsdale law firm
Family law attorney Mark R. Imielski has joined the law office of Martoccio & Martoccio in Hinsdale, Ill.
He concentrates his legal practice on all aspects of family law, including child custody litigation, removal issues in pre- and post-decree divorce cases, and asset identification and division. Imielski is an active member of the Illinois State Bar Association and DuPage County Bar Association.
Imielski obtained his Juris Doctor from Northern Illinois University and a bachelor’s degree in creative writing from Knox College in Galesburg, Ill.
Isabel Florence
Florence takes on new marketing position
Isabel Florence is the new marketing director for Converged Technology Professionals Inc. and will be based in the Chicagoland office.
Florence will be responsible for all marketing activities, including expanding the company’s web presence.
In her previous role as marketing manager for North and South America, she handled the company’s digital, print and event marketing.
She holds a bachelor’s degree in communication studies from NIU.
Casey named dean at Alverno College
Kevin Casey, M.A. ’80, was named dean of the Alverno College School of Arts and Sciences, effective July 1.
He has taught at the Milwaukee-based college since 1987 and is a former history department chair and associate dean of humanities.
Tracie Suter
Suter becomes president-elect of nutrition association
Tracie Suter, assistant director of nutrition services for Valley View School District 365U, is the president-elect of the Illinois School Nutrition Association. She will become president a year from now.
Suter, who has been VVSD’s assistant director for 14 years, has been on the ILSNA executive board for two years. During her most recent stint as vice president, she was responsible for organizing this year’s state convention in Tinley Park.
She earned a bachelor’s degree in dietetics from NIU and began her career in hotel hospitality management.
Kelly Amidei
Amidei to lead management association
Kelly Amidei, deputy administrator of the village of Libertyville, Ill., was recently elected president of the Illinois City/County Management Association.
The group was founded in 1953 to support and improve municipal and county management and strengthen local government in Illinois. The association has more than 700 members, including city, village and county managers/administrators, students, consultants and other management positions.
Amidei has worked for Libertyville since May 2003. She focuses on human resources, risk management/safety and technology/website and serves as the village’s Freedom of Information Act and public information officer.
She received her undergraduate degree in business from the University of Iowa and a master’s degree in public administration from Northern Illinois University.
Mike Baker
Baker promoted to fire chief
Mike Baker has been promoted to fire chief of the Buffalo Grove Fire Department.
Baker has served as deputy fire chief in Buffalo Grove, Ill., since 2013. Prior to that, he had 30 years of experience as a paramedic, eight years of experience as assistant chief with the Elgin Fire Department and 14 years of experience as a fire instructor with the Elgin Regional Fire Academy.
He was named Firefighter of the Year in 1989 and has served on the adjunct faculty at Elgin Community College. Baker holds a master’s degree in public administration from Northern Illinois University.
English and Prokup join School District 214
The Northwest Suburban High School District 214 board of education recently hired two NIU alumni for administrative appointments for the coming school year.
Jason English, a science teacher at William Fremd High School in Palatine, Ill., was named the math and science division head at Rolling Meadows High School. English holds master’s degrees in physics education from Roosevelt University and educational administration from Northern Illinois University.
Kristen Prokup, special education department chair at Hinsdale South High School in Darien, Ill., was named the special education division head at Buffalo Grove High School. Prokup has master’s degrees in special education from Northern Illinois University and educational administration from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
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