Supporters Like You
Read about supporters who give students real-life, hands-on learning opportunities within and beyond the classroom.
Chuck Lounsbury
Chuck Lounsbury aims to enrich student education and opportunities, by supporting SIU’s supply chain management program.
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When the 2023 Saluki Takeover Tour visited Naples, Florida, Chuck Lounsbury was excited to engage with representatives from his alma mater.
“SIU has held a few functions in Naples, and it’s given me the chance to reconnect,” he said. “A school’s reputation is important to the graduate, and you should reinvest in the school’s mission.”
A graduate of the College of Business and Analytics, he was particularly interested in the expansion of the supply chain management program. So much so, that he decided to make a $500,000 donation to establish the Charles and Barbara Lounsbury Endowed Scholarship Fund, which will benefit students in the program.
“This will allow students to focus on what companies need and want out of their logistics and distribution employees,” he said. “I don’t think that’s happening at a lot of schools today. Hopefully, these funds make a difference in students’ lives and the program itself.”
Lounsbury’s connection to SIU dates to the university’s earliest day. His great-grandmother attended Southern Illinois Normal College, which trained teachers. His father and brother also attended SIU.
“I lived in Chicago, but my grandmother was from West Frankfort. I had a soft spot in my heart for SIU,” he said.
Heavily involved in campus life, Lounsbury was a member of Alpha Kappa Psi and helped found the American Marketing Association at SIU. He was inducted into Beta Gamma Sigma, the honor society in business and after graduation was elected to the COBA Hall of Fame. After graduating from SIU in 1965 with a bachelor’s degree in marketing, he earned a master’s degree from the University of Rhode Island.
“I gave serious thought to working in academia and taught at Murray State for four years,” Lounsbury said. “I had no business experience, so I thought it would be good to get some real-world experience to become a better teacher.”
That decision led to an illustrious career in the business world, including leadership positions at Toro, Tenneco, Leaseway Transportation Corp., Skyway Freight Systems, and ended with his retirement in 2005 as senior vice president for supply chain solutions at Ryder Systems. He also continued to teach classes at Northwestern, Georgia Tech, Stanford, The Monterey Institute, and Florida Gulf Coast University.
“I always enjoyed the student contact,” Lounsbury said. “It was SIU that gave me my start, and I thought that my gift could make a significant impact there.”
His investment in the future of the university, college, and its students represents how Lounsbury feels about his time at SIU and the positive direction it’s going.
“SIU has a lot of outstanding graduates, who have had very successful careers, and that’s thanks largely to the education they got at SIU. It’s up there with any school. You get what you put into it,” he said. “I hope to influence others in my position to give back. I think it will help the next generation of students.”
JOHN AND JAYNE SIMMONS
Their very generous and historic gift will expand and enhance opportunities for SIU students and faculty for years to come.
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A $10 million gift from John and Jayne Simmons will impact generations of Southern Illinois University Carbondale law students and strengthen the law school’s ability to serve its students and the region. In honor of their generosity, the law school will be named Simmons Law School, pending approval from the SIU Board of Trustees in April.
The transformational donation comes as the law school is celebrating its 50th anniversary. It will enhance and expand the educational offerings to students and opportunities for faculty.
“Fifty years ago, we were founded in the public interest to serve the public good,” said Camille Davidson, dean of the SIU School of Law. “This generous gift empowers us to advance our mission on a larger scale and with an even greater impact.”
This historic gift – the largest SIU Carbondale has ever received – was announced Monday, Feb. 5, further cementing John and Jayne Simmons’ legacy at SIU, which includes a $10.2 million commitment to the Simmons Cancer Institute at the SIU School of Medicine in Springfield. Their most recent contribution comes as a major step in the ongoing $500 million Imagine SIU 2030 fundraising campaign.
“We are so incredibly excited and inspired by this act of generosity,” Chancellor Austin Lane said. “John and Jayne Simmons are shining examples of the impact individuals can have on our institution and the entire region. Their unwavering support and diligent service speak volumes.”
John Simmons, a native and resident of Alton, is an SIU Edwardsville graduate, member of the SIU Board of Trustees, and chairperson and founder of Simmons Hanly Conroy law firm. His and Jayne’s support will help provide more access, services and opportunities to students seeking educational opportunities.
The law school is the alma mater of more than 180 local, state and federal judges. It has alumni practicing law in 48 states and more than 10 countries. It also features legal clinics that serve members of underrepresented communities and offer students real-world experience.
“The SIU university system has provided me with many opportunities to better my life,” John Simmons said. “A thriving law school will help support others in southern Illinois who are working hard day-to-day to improve their own lives. SIU holds a special place for me. We would really like people to look at Simmons Law School as an attainable place where they are welcome, they belong and they can thrive.”
A legacy of service, philanthropy
John Simmons has served two stints on the SIU Board of Trustees, the first from 2004 to 2015, and he was appointed again in 2019 by Gov. J.B. Pritzker. He has previously functioned as the board’s secretary and chairman. He earned his law degree from Southern Methodist University and previously served in the U.S. Army as a combat engineer.
In 1999, John founded Simmons Hanly Conroy, one of the nation’s largest plaintiff’s law firms. The firm has dedicated the past 25 years to representing workers and families impacted by mesothelioma, a fatal and preventable asbestos-related cancer. Under his leadership, the firm expanded to new practice areas and now employs more than 250 people, including more than 80 attorneys, in offices across the country. Most recently, the firm successfully helped lead the national effort to hold manufacturers and distributors of prescription opiates accountable for the opioid epidemic. Firm employees have donated more than $1 million to local charities through the Simmons Employee Foundation and more than $20 million to cancer research nationwide.
Simmons Hanly Conroy has long been involved with SIU’s law school, providing internships and employing its graduates.
“We have been working collaboratively with Simmons Hanly Conroy for years,” Davidson said. “Its broad reach as a national law firm will help to elevate the law school’s recognition and reputation.”
The Simmons Cancer Institute at the SIU School of Medicine is a community-based patient care, research, education and outreach program created to improve cancer care for the citizens of central and southern Illinois. John Simmons also started an initiative to provide free dental care for veterans at the SIUE Dental School in Alton.
John and Jayne are civic leaders, community advocates, real estate developers and act as a catalyst for transformational change in southern Illinois. Beyond Simmons Hanly Conroy, John and Jayne founded AltonWorks, a social impact redevelopment company focused on the revitalization of historic downtown Alton as a healthy, thriving, walkable city. Community contributions are an important part of their story. They have invested significant resources, including time, money and advocacy to people, programs, issues, initiatives and causes designed to create opportunities to help people better their lives.
AltonWorks was founded on the principles of livability, environmental stewardship, social justice and inclusivity and believes in rebuilding communities for optimum social impact. AltonWorks offers thought leadership, planning, convening and connecting, adding capacity to the region’s ability to attract funding, expand social impact, catalyze economic growth and anchor downstate recovery.
“The SIU university system has provided me with many opportunities to better my life. A thriving law school will help support others in southern Illinois who are working hard day-to-day to improve their own lives. SIU holds a special place for me. We would really like people to look at Simmons Law School as an attainable place where they are welcome, they belong and they can thrive.”
—John Simmons, SIU Supporter
Ron Smith
Ron’s desire to strengthen SIU’s marketing program, attract top faculty and enhance opportunities for students, was inspired by his own transformative experience at SIU.
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Growing up in the small Randolph County town of Walsh, SIU was the only reasonable college option for Ron Smith.
“It was where you could get the most bang for your buck,” he said. “SIU was so good to me and changed my life and made it better than it would have been.”
Since graduating in 1964 with a degree in marketing and a master’s in business administration in 1966, Smith has stayed engaged with his alma mater, including donating close to $170,000 over the last 20 years. Now, he’s taken his support a step further, making a gift of stock worth more than $480,000 to endow the Ronald L. Smith Endowed Chair in Marketing at the College of Business and Analytics.
Endowed chairs help attract and retain high-level faculty members by making the position more attractive and keeping salaries competitive with other institutions.
“I’m doing this to help the students of SIU,” Smith said. “I want to make the program stronger and provide better opportunities and better training for the students. We want to attract big names and incentivize them to stay.”
Before making his major gift to endow the chair in COBA, much of Smith’s philanthropy has been directed toward Saluki Athletics. Despite living in California, he has maintained season tickets to Saluki Football games and supported the Blackout Cancer fundraiser.
Smith has fond memories of his time at SIU, noting that he attended the university during the Delyte Morris era and the time of College of Business Dean Henry J. Rhen, for which the COBA building is named. Smith was also classmates with another of SIU’s most prolific benefactors, F. Lynn McPheeters.
“Dr. Morris was wonderful to listen to, and I was lucky to be there during his era,” Smith said. “The university had lots of programs that were geared toward students with limited financial resources. I was fortunate enough to make good enough grades that my professors thought I was a good candidate for graduate school.”
After graduation, he joined the Peace Corps and spent 30 months in Colombia. He worked with farmers and fishermen, teaching them how to make the most of their assets. He credits his education from SIU with giving him the expertise to share with those people and give them a vested interest in the business side of their industry.
Smith, a first-generation student whose niece now attends SIU as a fourth-generation student, said his continued support of the university shows the impact alumni can have even when they’re not able to get to campus as often as they may like.
“Is there a way you can help build up the university?” Smith said. “Even if you’re in California, like me, you can help folks in Southern Illinois.”
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With a $1 million gift, Professor James Franklin Sharp has chiseled his name into SIU’s legacy. Now, the university has honored his generosity by renaming the University Museum as Sharp Museum.
On Friday, Oct. 20, the university unveiled the Sharp Museum naming and renamed the Southern Illinois Gallery as the Mrs. Rosanna Sharp Myers Southern Illinois Gallery, after Sharp’s sister.
“(Professor Sharp) is forever tied to the history of this institution,” Chancellor Austin Lane said. “How fitting to have something like this during Homecoming week.”
Professor Sharp attended SIU from 1954 to 1956, but the university didn’t offer a four-year degree in engineering at that time. Still, he said he always felt a strong connection to the university.
While an SIU student, he played seven intramural sports, including football, corkball, basketball, volleyball, softball, badminton, and horseshoes. He was a member of the Theta Xi fraternity.
“Professor Sharp was all in during his time at SIU,” said SIU System President Dan Mahony. “He took advantage of that experience, and when you do that, it becomes a life habit.”
He transferred to the University of Illinois from SIU and completed his undergraduate degree in industrial engineering. He later earned a master’s and Ph.D. from Purdue University.
“I guess I would say I enjoyed my time at SIU more than the other colleges I attended,” Professor Sharp said.
Professor Sharp taught at three universities: Rutgers University, New York University Stern Graduate School of Business, and Pace University Lubin Graduate School of Business. He also held management positions at AT&T and founded Sharp Seminars in New York, which became a leading provider of training for Wall Street investment analysts and investment portfolio managers.
He has also written 36 books and had many articles published. He has achieved the following professional designations: CFA, CIPM, CMA, CFM, and Mensa.
A Chester High School graduate, Professor Sharp has made supporting education a lifelong endeavor. He has made multiple donations to Chester schools, totaling more than $600,000.
Sharp Museum first opened as a natural history museum in 1874, and it has evolved into a teaching museum that represents the humanities, the sciences, and the arts. With roughly 70,000 objects in its care, the Sharp Museum captures and illuminates the human story, opening a window to who we are and where we came from.
“This museum is deep in my heart,” said Dean of Library Affairs John Pollitz. “It’s such an incredible resource for this whole area.”
“Is there a way you can help build up the university? Even if you’re in California, like me, you can help folks in Southern Illinois.”
—Ron Smith, SIU Supporter
Roger and Sally Tedrick
The Tedricks are fostering the future of SIU by donating to a project they believe will significantly impact student recruitment and the overall university experience.
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With a $6 million donation, Roger and Sally Tedrick are leaving yet another indelible mark on the Southern Illinois University Carbondale campus.
In honor of their donation, a planned new building on campus will be named the Tedrick Welcome Center. The proposed building was presented to the SIU Board of Trustees’ architecture and design committee in April, and approval of its construction will be on the board’s Feb. 8 agenda.
“This university is moving forward in an exciting way, imagining a future with more students and prolific success,” Roger Tedrick said. “Sally and I knew we wanted to be part of something that would make a tremendous impact, and this welcome center is just that. It will be the launching point for thousands of Saluki journeys.”
SIU Admissions will begin open houses, orientations and host groups of students at the welcome center, which will be located just off U.S. Highway 51, near the previous location of McAndrew Stadium.
“Roger and Sally Tedrick are visionaries. They believe in our mission, and this gift exemplifies their remarkable dedication to this university and all Southern Illinois,” said Chancellor Austin Lane. “The Tedrick Welcome Center will be the first place that students walk into and experience what it’s like to be a Saluki. It is the capstone to our strategic plan.”
Roger Tedrick, a 1970 graduate of SIU’s College of Liberal Arts, is a member of the SIU Board of Trustees and the SIU Foundation Board of Directors. He is the owner and CEO of Tedrick Group Risk Management Solutions, based in Mount Vernon. Raised in Carbondale, he attended University High School on SIU’s campus. Sally Tedrick is a 1973 graduate of the SIU School of Education.
The Tedricks have a rich tradition of supporting the university. Their many contributions have included creating an endowed fund to enhance university excellence, making a lead donation toward the construction of the Saluki Alumni Plaza, sponsoring the inaugural Saluki Ball, and supporting numerous causes across campus.
“It’s a great pleasure to thank Sally and Rogers for how they have served SIU Carbondale,” said SIU System President Dan Mahony.
The state-of-the-art building will also house the philanthropy center, which will include SIU Foundation offices.
“It is more important than ever to support an institution as historic and impactful as SIU,” Roger Tedrick said. “This is the perfect thing for us to do. This building is going to help bring in and recruit the next generation of Saluki students.”
Herb Shear
Herb invested in SIU’s future supply chain professionals, believing in the essential role of education in equipping students for industry challenges.
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Even though it had been around for years, the phrase “supply chain” wasn’t on everyone’s mind until COVID-19. SIU alumnus Herb Shear, on the other hand, was an expert on the subject well before the pandemic.
With companies focused on improving supply chain logistics, Shear knew it was imperative for SIU’s College of Business and Analytics (COBA) to lead the way for the next generation of students. That’s why he chose to donate $200,000 to the Center for Logistics and Supply Chain Seed Fund.
“It was important before COVID, but it’s even more prevalent now,” he said. “This is how products get onto the shelves. You can’t have a modern business school without a supply chain program.”
Shear, a 1969 COBA graduate, is the former executive chairman and CEO of GENCO, which was sold to FedEx in 2015. He is also the executive chairman and co-founder of G2 Reverse Logistics, which provides reverse logistics software.
“GENCO was a small family business in Pittsburgh, when I took over,” he said. “We grew it to a nationwide supply chain services company and developed the concept of reverse logistics, which deals with consumer returns. Every major retailer in the U.S. and Canada used us.”
A self-described “really bad high school student,” Shear was accepted to SIU on a probationary basis. It didn’t take long for him to find success.
“I enjoyed my education in the business school,” he said. “It helped lay the foundation for my career. I always wanted to give back to SIU.”
In 2006, Shear made a $525,000 gift to the COBA Critical Impact Fund, which aimed to enhance the curriculum and student experience in the college. He is a former member of COBA’s external advisory board and the college’s campaign advisory board.
“My hope with this most recent gift is that it allows a pathway for a major corporation to come in and invest in the supply chain center,” he said. “Hopefully, it will create recruiting opportunities for the college and offer experiential learning opportunities for students.”
Shear encourages other alumni and friends of the university to consider making a similar impact if they are able.
“If you feel SIU was successful in helping you in your career and want to help others, a good way to do that is to make a gift to your school or college,” he said.
“I enjoyed my education in the business school. It helped lay the foundation for my career. I always wanted to give back to SIU.”
—Herb Shear, SIU Supporter
Allan Hodges
Allan’s lifelong connection with SIU inspired him to give towards the university’s future and help the School of Earth Systems and Sustainability expand.
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After years as a city planner, Allan Hodges is once again looking to the future by making a planned gift to his alma mater, SIU. His substantial estate gift will establish the Allan A. Hodges Graduate Scholarship in the School of Earth Systems and Sustainability Endowment Fund.
Born to British parents in Calcutta, India, the path to SIU wasn’t a direct one.
“We moved to England after World War II and immigrated to the U.S. in 1948,” Hodges said.
Originally hoping to become an architect, he enrolled at Ohio State University and later switched to the community analysis program. He spent a winter quarter at Mexico City College and became interested in the Latin American culture. He found a college bulletin advertising SIU’s Latin American Institute and Community Development Institute and decided to take the bus to Carbondale.
“They basically created a curriculum for me, which showed it was a caring environment,” Hodges said.
During his time at SIU, he was a member of the Phi Sigma Kappa fraternity along with Mike Morris, son of then SIU President Delyte Morris.
“They invited me to their home, and they invited me back the year after I graduated to meet Margaret Mead, who was speaking at graduation,” Hodges said. “It was an important phase in SIU’s history, and I was there. I enjoyed my entire experience at SIU. I met a lot of people and maintained many friendships for a long time.”
After earning his bachelor’s degree in 1962, Hodges worked in Columbus, Ohio, for two years before deciding to pursue a master’s degree at Michigan State University. It was then that he married his wife, Carol, and got his start in urban planning in Boston with Parsons Brinckerhoff (now known as WSP), a multinational engineering and design firm.
“I traveled across the country working on many important projects,” Hodges said. “I was the environmental document manager during the Big Dig in Boston, which started in 1986.”
The Big Dig was a major project in Boston that transformed the city’s transportation flow, including redesigning Interstate 93, the construction of the Ted Williams Tunnel (I-90) under Boston Harbor, the Leonard P. Zakim Bunker Hill Memorial Bridge over the Charles River, and the Rose Kennedy Greenway, a park above the I-93 tunnel.
Reconnecting with SIU
Hodges said he didn’t feel connected to SIU for many years. He noticed when the Saluki Football team won a national championship in 1983 and when Saluki Men’s Basketball had a run of NCAA Tournament appearances in the early 2000s.
“SIU was in the news,” he said. “I followed the sports from my home in Boston.”
More recently, Hodges said he’s taken notice of fundraising efforts that have exemplified how many people have been impacted by SIU.
“On the Day of Giving, SIU had more than 3,800 donors raising over $4 million. That’s impressive,” he said. “Then there was more than $600,000 raised in one night in Chicago at the Saluki Ball. Larger schools don’t see that level of support. I believe in the mission of the university.”
During a recent trip to Europe, Hodges spotted someone wearing something familiar.
“In Athens, I saw someone with an SIU sweatshirt,” he said. “I meant to circle back and acknowledge it, but I missed my chance. You really do see Salukis everywhere you go.”
Hodges hopes that his gift will help the School of Earth Systems and Sustainability expand more offerings to more students.
“I think SIU has the disciplines throughout the university to have a very important community planning curriculum in the near future that would really benefit Southern Illinois,” he said.
Ruth-Marie Frances Chambers
Ruth-Marie’s generosity illuminates her belief in unlocking futures through education, inspired by her own transformative experiences at SIU.
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Teacher, counselor, scholar, pilot, philanthropist. Ruth-Marie Frances Chambers has excelled in a diverse range of careers and avocations. A common theme running through all these life experiences is a commitment to open doors of access and opportunity by fostering educational opportunities.
A lifelong learner, Chambers’ commitment to education was demonstrated recently when she established the Ruth-Marie Frances Chambers Endowed Scholarship through a $100,000 planned gift, naming the SIU Foundation as partial beneficiary of her retirement accounts.
Chambers received her SIU bachelor’s degree in psychology in 1974 and subsequently began graduate studies in 1974-75 in the SIU Rehabilitation Department. In 1975, her interest in education and prevailing health and humanitarian concerns in developing nations led her to travel throughout the global community as a goodwill ambassador. She subsequently accepted an invitation to the United States Peace Corps as lecturer at the National School of Administration in Niger, West Africa. Chambers returned to SIU to complete her Master of Science in rehabilitation administration and services in 1982. After graduation, Chambers relocated to California to work at several educational institutions, including the University of California at Berkeley and Los Rios Community College.
When asked why she chose the SIU Foundation for her retirement account beneficiary designations, Chambers listed the qualities of an SIU education that she continues to value, including “leadership, integrity, a respected research university and faculty committed to student achievement.”
At SIU, Chambers was particularly impacted by her graduate school advisors and mentors, Dr. Irene Hawley and Dr. Jerome Lorenz.
“The diversification of prospective students within the campus community who require affordable access to educational and financial support to enhance their collegiate experience is a challenge for many educational institutions,” she said.
At SIU, she valued the “invaluable leadership skills, shared humanity and scholarly pursuits” that helped her to “confidently navigate the global and campus community with purpose.”
The Ruth-Marie Frances Chambers Endowed Scholarship will support a graduate student studying behavior analysis and therapy, communication disorders and sciences or rehabilitation counseling.
“I think SIU has the disciplines throughout the university to have a very important community planning curriculum in the near future that would really benefit Southern Illinois.”
—Allan Hodges, SIU Supporter
jim & Sue Legacy
Jim Legacy’s passion for agriculture started at an early age. Now, he and his wife, Sue, are sharing that passion with others.
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Jim Legacy came to SIU in 1977 as professor in the College of Agricultural Sciences. He retired at the end of 2001.
“The most enjoyable experience of my life was being a professor,” he said. “As an instructor, you have these 18-year-old kids who come ready to learn from your knowledge. They carry a great deal of respect for a professor, and you end up playing an important and often extended role in their lives.”
During his tenure, he had multiple students come to his home for dinner and attended many of their graduation ceremonies and even weddings. Legacy also participated in international agricultural projects that took him all over the world.
“SIU gave me so many memorable experiences that I will never forget,” he said. “I traveled to Africa, China, Jamaica and Western Samoa to do meaningful work. It definitely enriched my life.”
In order to give others the same opportunities, the Legacys donated $1 million from their charitable trust to the SIU College of Agricultural Sciences to fund scholarships for SIU students who participated in Future Farmers of America and provide support for faculty members like Jim.
Kimberly Omelson
SIU made a lasting impression on Kimberly Omelson, and now she plans to leave her mark on the university.
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Omelson, who graduated in 1993 with a bachelor’s degree in English, has planned an estate gift that will benefit the College of Liberal Arts and Morris Library.
“You don’t have to have a lot of money in order to make a difference,” she said. “Sure, we’d all love to donate $1 million to our alma mater, but that’s not going to happen for the majority of us.”
Choosing SIU made sense to Omelson because of her great memories from Carbondale. She joined the Sigma Sigma Sigma sorority and made lifelong friends. One of those memories is when she brought her mother to Founders Day in 1990.
“My mom saw a lot that day – her daughter being acknowledged by her sorority for academic achievement. She saw I had great friends. She saw that I had something that made me truly, genuinely happy,” Omelson said. “She was diagnosed with breast cancer later that year and died in May 1991. So, she didn’t see all of my college career, but she saw the aspect of it that meant the most to me – my sorority and my sisterhood.”
Through estate planning, anyone can be a philanthropist, and the SIU Foundation is ready to help anyone make the greatest possible impact.
“It’s kind of moving to know I’m going to be able to help a kid in the same boat I was in so many years ago,” Omelson said. “Philanthropy is pretty incredible.”
“We wanted to think about something that will last beyond our lifetime. I have a blessed life and career because of SIU.”
—Dan & Kathy Wheeler, SIU Supporters
roland burris
“When you graduate from SIU, you are a graduate of one of the greatest universities in this country,” Roland Burris said. “You are a Saluki!”
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SIU Carbondale alumnus Roland Burris speaks about being a Saluki with the same amount of pride one would expect him to speak about his many accomplishments.
Even the shortest version of his résumé speaks for itself. Burris was the first black national bank examiner for the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency for the U.S. and the first black man elected to statewide office in Illinois, replacing President Barack Obama in the U.S. Senate.
During his time as an SIU student, one of Burris’ housemates was forced to drop out and leave the college because of financial woes. “I never forgot that,” he said. “I said if I ever got in a position to help a student, I would lend a helping hand.”
As a result of that experience, Burris established an endowed emergency fund for students in need. Started in 2008, it benefits full-time SIU students from the Chicagoland area or Southern Illinois with preferences given to African American students.
“I got my foundation at SIU in political science that allowed me to do very well,” he said. “If it hadn’t been for scholarships, I wouldn’t have been able to make it.”
Burris offered sage words of advice to anyone in a position to make a difference in the life of an SIU student: “Make room for visions of other people and help if you’re able to,” he said. “We have to look out for those who are less fortunate. You cannot believe what a good feeling you get inside to know that you have helped somebody along the way.”
bob barrick
In Bob Barrick’s life, everything has been earned. But it has also been founded on his educational experience at SIU.
Read more of His story
Bob Barrick grew up in Lincoln and was the first in his family to earn a four-year college degree, graduating from SIU in 1962 with a degree in marketing. He worked his way through college as a soda jerk at Thompson Woods. At the time, ROTC service was mandatory for all male students, so Barrick spent three years on an American base in Japan doing financial work after he graduated.
“I was away from home for three Thanksgivings, three Christmases, and three New Year’s. I was extremely homesick by the time those three years were up,” he said.
After his service, Barrick worked for oil companies across the Midwest, ending up in Detroit. Over the years, he has expanded his investment in oil companies through his business, Barrick Enterprises.
“I worked my butt off. No one gave me anything,” he said. “College education is very important. I want to help open the door to get others to go to college. It’d be great to help some kid from Lincoln go to college.”
Barrick, 79, is acutely aware of his good fortune. To give back, Barrick has donated $250,000, including $100,000 for scholarships, to make a difference for future students.
“SIU holds a soft spot in my heart,” he said. “It contributed to my success in life. If I can help one or two others in life, then that’s what it is all about.
“I got my foundation at SIU in political science that allowed me to do very well…If it hadn’t been for scholarships, I wouldn’t have been able to make it.”
—Roland Burris, SIU Supporter
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