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Alumni for Illinois

• Ben Brownback ('99 LAS – Molecular Biology)
  • Korean-American alumnus who owns his own very successful media production company in Las Vegas and is currently president of the Las Vegas Illini Club.  Brownback regularly returns to campus to speak to a variety of classes, offering tips on leadership and career success.  His company produces the halftime spots for televised UI basketball and football games.
    
• Dick Cline ('57 LAS – Political Science), Chairman and Director, Hawthorne Investors, Inc.  
  • Cline played a pivotal role in planning and funding three important programs for LAS students: (1) the annual Cline Symposium on Values and the Public Interest, and (2) the Center for the Study of Democratic Governance, both of which bring nationally-known speakers to the campus; and (3) the Civic Leadership Program, which provides fellowships for the leaders of tomorrow.  Cline continues to be a tireless advocate and fundraiser for these programs, and frequently returns to campus for one-on-one interaction with students
• Rhonda Houston ('98 ENG – Ceramic Engineering), PPG Industries in Grand Prairie, TX  
  • African-American alumna who is a member of the Department of Materials Science and Engineering Alumni Board.  Houston regularly returns to campus to speak to students.
• Deron Huck ('90 ENG – Civil Engineering), CH2M-HILL in Kansas City, MO
  • Huck serves as Corporate College Relations Ambassador for his company.  In this role, he frequently travels back to campus to recruit future Illinois graduates, and also secured Illinois as one of 20 schools to receive a scholarship endowment from CH2M-HILL.
• Mercedes Iacoviello (MA '95, Institute of Labor & Industrial Relations)
  • She teaches at two different universities in Buenos Aires and is a human resource consultant.  She founded the Illinois Alumni Club of Argentina, which has spearheaded a number of activities to foster the student/alumni connection, including orientation programs for Argentinian students preparing to attend the U of I.  The club also represents Illinois at an annual college recruitment fair in Buenos Aires and has hosted groups of study abroad students from the campus.
• Charla Krupp ('75 COMM – Journalism), executive editor of SHOP Etc. Magazine and frequent "Today Show" guest
  • Her success includes three decades in editorial roles at leading women's magazines, including Mademoiselle, Glamour, and In Style.  Krupp has provided advice and contacts for many UI students and alumni interested in the magazine world, has sponsored internships, and returned to campus to speak to students.  
• John Micetich ('69 LAS – Psychology), certified financial planner and owner of a financial planning firm in San Diego, CA
  • He returns to campus each year as a popular presenter at the College of LAS's Senior Series, "Money Matters," providing practical advice on personal finance and investment, and meeting one-on-one with students interested in careers in financial planning.
• Anthony Petullo ('61 COMM – Marketing)  Art collector and art dealer in Milwaukee, WI
  • His collection "Self-Taught and Outsider Art" is renowned in the art world. In addition to his support for Krannert Art Museum and other UI units, Petullo's gift made possible the creation of The Leadership Center on campus, which he calls "the best investment I ever made."  He frequently returns to campus to participate in Leadership Center programs and talk with students.
• Kozo Yabe (LLM '94, LAW), patent attorney with the firm Yuasa and Hara in Toyko, Japan
  • Yabe is a member of the College of Law's Board of Visitors and returns to campus to attend meetings and teach Law students a four-day course on practicing business law in Japan.  He is also a very active board member for the Japan Illini Club, and the "mover and shaker" behind programs such as student recruitment and the club's annual sponsorship of five Japanese students who spend a year on campus.

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