PhD student Mubarak Raji has been selected as an IAPP Westin Scholar Award honoree for the 2025-2026 academic year. The annual awards were created by the International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP) to support students who are identified as future leaders in the field of privacy and data protection. Honorees receive a $1,000 cash award; two years of membership with the IAPP; three complimentary exams for IAPP certifications (CIPP, CIPM, CIPT); and unlimited access to online training for the recipient's selected IAPP certification exams.

Prior to entering the MSIM program last fall, Sneha Vyas worked as a project management associate with Siemens in India. She enjoys using the skills she is learning in her classes on personal projects and looks forward to future opportunities where she can "turn information into smart decisions and see the impact of those decisions in action."

PhD student Ebubechukwu Uba has been invited to present her work at the National Digital Inclusion Alliance (NDIA) conference, Net Inclusion 2026, which will be held on February 3-5 in Chicago. Uba will discuss her digital inclusion work with StepUp Academy, a nonprofit education and digital inclusion initiative in Nigeria that she founded in 2023.

When BSIS+DS student Colin Bertrand steps onto the field with the Marching Illini, he isn't just performing; he's continuing a passion he's nurtured since childhood. He first encountered the Marching Illini as a young fan attending games, and the experience stuck with him. By the time he joined his high school drumline, his love for it had only grown. 

PhD student Gladys Kemboi has been awarded the Knowledge Manager of the Year Award from CILIP, the UK's library and information association. This is an international award that recognizes an individual who has made a significant contribution and excellence in the discipline of knowledge management through their work and professionalism.

The Association of Research Libraries (ARL) has awarded Christine Thuy Minh Nguyen the Julia C. Blixrud Scholarship to attend the 2026 ARL President’s Institute. Christine is a master of science in library and information science (LIS) student at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign specializing in digital archives and data stewardship. She currently serves as a graduate assistant in the Research Data Service Unit of the University of Illinois Library, where she has developed a strong commitment to inclusive user experience and accessible digital design by leading a project to innovate change in current technical workflows.

As a middle school student in Accra Newtown, Ghana, Fatihi Mohammed put his education on hold. Through renewed focus and efforts, the student has shown remarkable academic growth and is now working toward his MSLIS degree at the University of Illinois. Mohammed is receiving support for his studies through the Anna Mae Koval Scholarship Fund at the iSchool. 

PhD student Meng Li's research focuses on neuro-symbolic AI, with an emphasis on using syntactic analysis and large language models (LLMs) to understand Python notebooks. This cutting-edge research keeps Li "super busy" for much of the term, but in August, she took a brief break from her work and shifted her focus to designing the winning entry for the iSchool T-shirt contest.

While the idea of the design "just popped into my mind," Li has been thinking about the contest for years.

PhD candidate Xiaoliang Jiang successfully defended his dissertation, "Identifying Place Names in Scientific Writing Based on Language Models, Linked Data, and Metadata," on November 10. 

Informatics PhD student Sepehr Vaez Afshar has been named a Student Scholar by The Association for Preservation Technology International (APT). Each year, around ten students are selected worldwide for the scholarship program based on the quality and innovation of their research abstracts, as well as their contribution to the field of preservation technology. Scholars are paired with mentors from the APT College of Fellows, prepare and present their research during the association's annual conference, and enjoy opportunities for long-term professional networking and mentorship within the preservation community.