WUIS to air special centennial coverage of the Springfield race riot

Public radio station WUIS will present special, original programming in observance of the 1908 Springfield race riot over three days – Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, August 6, 7, and 8.

This special coverage for the centennial of “The Riot” was produced by WUIS reporter Jenna Dooley. Segments will air each day on Morning Edition at 8:20 a.m. and All Things Considered at 4:50 p.m.

Illinois Edition will also present programming observing the centennial at 6:30 p.m. Friday, August 8, and at 6:30 a.m. on Saturday, August 9.

While Springfield is known as the home of Abraham Lincoln, the city was also the site of a darker chapter in the history of American race relations. One hundred years ago this August, racial tensions erupted into three days of rioting that left two black men dead and many black-owned businesses burned to the ground. Several others, black and white, were injured in the mob violence.

These special programs will present a history and timeline of those bloody three days, including archived audio clips from first-person accounts. Listeners will also hear an interview with the oral historian who, some years later, collected interviews from members of the black community who had lived through the riot. Finally, a look at the status of race relations in Springfield today will include conversations with community members who are taking a leadership role in preserving the history of the past.

WUIS-WIPA is a listener-supported public radio service of the Center for State Policy and Leadership at the University of Illinois at Springfield. WUIS' mission is to satisfy a curious, societally engaged audience through programming and community outreach.

For more information or for the program schedule, visit www.wuis.org.

WUIS to air special Jacksonville Symphony programs in August

Public radio WUIS/WIPA will air four programs of "Forty-five Years of Great Music" from the Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra and Chorale during August. The programs will be broadcast from 1 to 3 p.m. on four consecutive Fridays beginning August 1; rebroadcasts will be from 10 p.m. to midnight on the following Monday.

Recorded live in historic Rammelkamp Chapel on campus at Illinois College in Jacksonville, the programs will also feature interviews with JSO conductor Garrett Allman. Allman is currently celebrating 27 seasons as the symphony's music director and conductor and is also an associate professor of music at Illinois College, where he conducts the Concert Choir and Brass Ensemble.

The first program, "Operatic Gems," will feature lyric soprano Diane Dietz in an evening of operatic favorites including "Ah! Je veux vivre" from Gounod's Romeo et Juliette. The August 8 presentation will showcase accordionist Maria Merkelo and violinist Dorothy Matirano playing works by Dominick Argento and Johannes Brahms. The third program, on August 15, will feature the Illinois College Concert Choir with "Choral Gems." The August 22 program brings the husband-and-wife duo of Erik and Heidi Harris, members of the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra, to perform the Grand Duo Concertante by Giovanni Bottesini.

WUIS-WIPA is a listener-supported public radio service of the Center for State Policy and Leadership at the University of Illinois at Springfield. WUIS' mission is to satisfy a curious, societally engaged audience through programming and community outreach.

For more information or for the program schedule, visit www.wuis.org or contact WUIS Music Director Karl Scroggin at 217/206-6407.

New subscriber series subscriptions on sale now at UIS' Sangamon Auditorium

Sangamon Auditorium at the University of Illinois at Springfield announces that new subscriber series subscriptions are on sale now to the general public.

In an effort to create greater flexibility for Auditorium patrons, Sangamon Auditorium is again featuring a variety of series/subscription opportunities for the 2008-2009 Performing Arts Season. Based on a similar make-up of last year's performing arts season, Sangamon Auditorium continues to present a Visiting Artists series, showcasing the very best of traditional performing arts; a Broadway series, bringing some of the best in Broadway, direct from New York; and a Family series, providing programming that can be enjoyed by family and friends together.

Subscribers receive a variety of benefits that only subscribers get to enjoy. These benefits include up to a 20% savings on series tickets; the best seats at the best prices before the general public; same seat location within the series subscription selected; lost ticket insurance, available only to subscribers; and many other choice benefits.

For more information about the University of Illinois at Springfield’s 2008-2009 Performing Arts Season at Sangamon Auditorium, or to place subscription orders, visit www.SangamonAuditorium.org or call the Sangamon Auditorium Ticket Office at 217/206-6160 or 800/207-6960, Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Single tickets and Create Your Own series packages go on sale to the general public on August 22, 2008, at 10 a.m. after series subscriptions have been placed. Individual Broadway events go on sale approximately six weeks prior to each engagement.

Sangamon Auditorium, UIS

Located on the campus of the University of Illinois at Springfield, the auditorium hosts more than 120 performances annually. Home to the Illinois Symphony Orchestra and Springfield Ballet Company, it is the only auditorium of its kind and size in the Springfield area with a seating capacity of 2,018.

With a staff of 11 full-time employees, graduate assistants, more than 400 volunteers, ushers, and local stagehands, Sangamon Auditorium continues to fulfill its mission of presenting and supporting varied cultural and educational professional arts activities to the audiences in Springfield, Sangamon County, and the surrounding areas. The Auditorium administrative offices can be reached at 217/206-6150 or by e-mail at onstage@uis.edu.

Involvement & Volunteer Expo

Registration is now open for campus groups that would like to take part in the Involvement and Volunteer Expo, to be held August 27 during Welcome Week.

Participants will have an opportunity to promote their organizations to new and returning students.

Register your group and get more information

UIS to co-sponsor workshops on nonprofit fundraising

Two workshops designed to help nonprofit organizations focus on giving trends within Illinois and more effectively raise money in difficult economic times will be presented from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Thursday, July 31, at the Wedeberg conference facility, Memorial Medical Center, in Springfield. The program is open to the public, however advance reservations are required.

Sikich and the Donors Forum are sponsoring the event in conjunction with the Central Illinois Nonprofit Resource Center at the University of Illinois at Springfield, Sangamon County Community Foundation, and United Way of Central Illinois.

The session "Understanding and Getting Your Slice of the Pie" will include a presentation of the Donors Forum publication Individual Giving in Illinois. Participants will also see how charitable giving in the state compares nationally and will learn what characteristics define donors locally.

"Foolproof Funding for Hard Times: What Works Now?" will examine where to find local sources of unrestricted funding and will share techniques for raising money during an economic downturn.

Cost to attend the event is $35 per person, which includes lunch.

Sikich is a leading provider of professional services in the Midwest. The Chicago-based Donors Forum serves as a resource for networking, education, information, and leadership on behalf of philanthropy in Illinois.

The Central Illinois Nonprofit Resource Center, housed in Brookens Library at UIS, is a cooperating collection of the Foundation Center, a national authority on philanthropy dedicated to serving grant seekers, grant makers, researchers, policymakers, the media, and the general public. As a member of their nationwide network of libraries, community foundations, and other nonprofit agencies, the CINRC provides free public access to various materials and databases.

The Sangamon County Community Foundation acts as a vehicle to link donors at all levels with appropriate agencies. Funds raised during annual United Way campaigns are invested in local programs to create lasting changes in individual lives and in the community.

For more information or to register, call the Donors Forum at 888-578-0090 or contact Pamela Salela, coordinator of the Central Illinois Nonprofit Resource Center at UIS, at 217-206-6633.

The Power of Photography in Social Movements

A presentation in the ECCE Speakers Series

Noon on Wednesday, July 16, in Brookens Auditorium

Larry Livingston, assistant professor of Social Work, will speak about the power that photographs can have to spur people to action on social issues.

Examples will be drawn from the works of Ansel Adams (environmentalism), Lewis Hine (child labor), Dorethea Lange (poverty), Gordon Parks (civil rights), and Jacob Riis (housing standards).

Participants will be challenged to think about the causes that concern them, as well as what images might convey that concern to others.

This event is free and open to the public.

For more information, contact Kimberly Craig at 6-6245.

Two events from the Peoria alumni chapter

• UIS Night with the Peoria Chiefs
  Begins at 7 p.m., Tuesday, August 5
  O’Brien Field in Peoria
  For more information and to register
  

• UIS Music and Wine Night
  Begins at 6:30 p.m., Saturday, August 23
  Mackinaw Valley Vineyard in Mackinaw
  For more information

Trivia tournament

Saturday, July 19, PAC Cafeteria

• 6 p.m. - Doors open, teams register (max. 12 people/team)
• 7 p.m. - Tournament starts
• Cost - $10/person
• Cash prizes for top three teams
• Silent auction & door prizes

To register: 753-4921

Proceeds benefit the Friends of Brookens Library and the Friends of Lincoln Library, Springfield's public library.

Summer Golf Outing

Monday, July 28, Edgewood Golf Club, Auburn

• Four-ball scramble begins at 8 a.m.
• Sign up individually or groups of two, three, or four.
• Deadline to enter is 8 p.m., Monday, July 21
• Entrance fee includes 18 holes of golf, cart, prizes, lunch, soft drinks and water.

Contact the Department of Recreational Sports, TRAC 1008, phone 6-7103, for details.