Kathryn Harris (MS/LIS '71), former director of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum in Springfield, has been inducted as an Illinois Library Luminary. The Illinois Library Luminary program, an initiative of the Illinois Library Association (ILA), recognizes those who have made a significant contribution to Illinois libraries.

Internet studies and digital media scholar Safiya Noble (MS '09, PhD '12) has been named a 2021 MacArthur Fellow by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. Noble, an associate professor in the Department of Gender Studies and African American Studies at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), is among 25 fellows who will each receive $625,000 in unrestricted support over the next five years.

iSchool students learned more about campus and each other at the second annual iSchool Scavenger Hunt. The event, which was held September 3-10, was open to on-campus students in all programs. Students who opted to participate were placed in small groups of peers in the same degree program. Students were given a list of ten campus locations to find, such as the Alma Mater, Morrow Plots, and Main Library. In addition to checking a point of interest off their lists, the students would take a group selfie at the spot.

In this feature, BS/IS student Jose Ramos discusses his practicum experience at JPMorgan Chase.

BS/IS student David Alegre discusses his summer internship with PepsiCo. After graduating, he hopes to earn a master's degree in user experience design and work for a company like PepsiCo.

Nine iSchool instructors were named in the University's List of Teachers Ranked as Excellent for Summer 2021. The rankings are released every semester, and results are based on the Instructor and Course Evaluation System (ICES) questionnaire forms maintained by Measurement and Evaluation in the Center for Innovation in Teaching and Learning. Only those instructors who gave out ICES forms during the semester and who released their data for publication are included in the list.

Kate Quealy-Gainer (MS/LIS '09) has been selected as editor of The Bulletin for Children's Books, one of the nation's leading children's book review journals for school and public librarians. She has over a decade of experience with the publication, starting as a reviewer while a student in the MS in library and information science program.

Associate Professor Jerome ("Jerry") McDonough passed away at his home on September 17 after a long illness. He is survived by his spouse, Associate Professor Lori Kendall, and extended family and many beloved friends and colleagues.

Sara L. Schwebel, professor and director of the Center for Children's Books, and Jocelyn Van Tuyl, professor of French at New College of Florida, have coedited a new book, Dust Off the Gold Medal: Rediscovering Children's Literature at the Newbery Centennial, which was recently published by Routledge. The Newbery Medal, the oldest and most influential children's book award in the United States, marks its 100th anniversary this year. In Dust Off the Gold Medal, Schwebel and Van Tuyl collect fourteen essays, written by contributors across the country, who examine Newbery winners that have been understudied by literary scholars.

Cassidy Russell wears many hats—theater director, improv teacher, visual artist, and MS/LIS online (Leep) student. However, she still finds time to be involved in service activities. Russell recently joined Students Advising on Graduate Education (SAGE), a student advisory board and leadership opportunity for graduate students at Illinois that fosters active engagement with Graduate College programs and initiatives.