College of Arts and Sciences

Seth Filbrun, M.S.'17

Seth graduated from ISU in 2017 with a Master of Science in chemistry after completing his bachelor's in 2015 at Miami Ohio. Subsequently, he earned a Ph.D. in analytical chemistry from Georgia State University in 2022.

Seth currently serves as senior consultant with Simon-Kucher with expertise in U..S pricing and market access strategy for life sciences. He resides in Boston with his wife, Alexandra (Mandl) Filbrun and their daughter, Eleanor.

Alexis McAdams '13

A broadcast journalism graduate, Alexis currently serves as an FNC correspondent, primarily the political team,  based in New York City. She joined the network in October 2021. Her most recent coverage included reporting live in Butler, PA, during the attempted assassination of Former President Donald Trump and the 2024 Republican National Convention. She was also the lead reporter on campus protests during FNC’s Primetime programming, following October 7.

Before her role at FNC, Alexis worked at ABC-7 News in Chicago covering major breaking news stories across the Midwest including the unrest in Chicago following the death of George Floyd. 

Kevin McCuen '12

Kevin started with COUNTRY Financial in 2015 as an insurance agent/financial advisor,  the youngest agent to be hired in Bloomington/Normal. Since then, he's been a two-time All-American, which is an award for being in the top 15% of all COUNTRY agents . Kevin has had his own agency office for seven years in Downtown Bloomington, with plans to open an additional office in Indiana within the next year.

Michael  Rigsby ’04 

Michael has found his passion in racing, but not on the track. He has worked in the media coverage of various dirt, track, and offroad racing. 

He built and sold DirtonDirt.com to FloSports in 2019 as it became the largest short track media platform in America. He currently leads FloSports largest vertical with over 200,000 subscribers and is the leading streamer of motorsports in North America with over 2,000 live events. 

His work has been recognized as he was inducted into the 2024 Dirt Late Model Hall of Fame. 

Leslie Swanson ’92 

Leslie is a trailblazing commercial real estate executive with over 30 years of experience. As executive vice president and chief operating officer of Tanger Inc., she has driven corporate growth by creating new revenue streams, streamlining operations, and leading cultural transformations. She successfully integrated three new shopping centers, expanded sustainability initiatives, and achieved Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certifications for over half of Tanger's portfolio.

Previously, at Simon Property Group, Leslie managed a $1.8 billion portfolio and directed a $160 million operating budget, achieving eight years of Net Operating Income (NOI) growth. She has overseen due diligence for over 135 acquisitions and led operations for 73 premium outlets. She was inducted into the Illinois State University College of Arts and Sciences’ Hall of Fame for her professional excellence and leadership.

Timothy Brackenbury ’89

Tim is a former resident of Fell and Hamilton-Whitten Halls. After graduating from ISU, he went to the University of Kansas to earn a master's and doctorate's. Dr. Brackenbury is currently a professor at Bowling Green State University. His clinical work focuses on preschoolers with and without developmental disabilities and his research examines word learning, phonological assessment, and the scholarship of teaching and learning. He teaches courses on a variety of child speech and language topics at the undergraduate, master’s, and doctorate levels.

Christopher Loman ’07

Christopher is a senior account executive at Carrier Corporation, a top performer in North America, covering the states of Illinois and Iowa. During his employment with Siemens, he supported ISU by providing the software that controls the campus-wide HVAC systems and still collaborates with ISU in his current role. Christopher was selected by the National Sales Manager for North America to represent the Sales Organization in restructuring their Organization Chart. 

Christopher volunteers with the Friends of Sangamon County Animal Control, transferring dogs to non-kill shelters for adoption, and serves as a Disaster Action Team responder for the American Red Cross to provide immediate shelter and relief for people impacted by natural disasters. 

Raquel Armas ’21

Raquel graduated from Illinois State University in 2021 with a degree in English Education and has taught at the high school and middle school level and is currently pursuing their master’s degree with a focus on how students can use their lived experiences as connective assets to better understand the world, others, and themselves. They will be entering their fourth year teaching eighth grade English Language Arts, and they have dedicated their practice to expanding the minds of their students by asking them to critically analyze the world they live in through the use of diverse texts in the classroom. With the belief that all students have a voice that deserves to be amplified, their mission is to co-create and collaborate with their students to ensure that they leave with the necessary tools that challenge them to create positive social change in their local and global communities.

Ricardo Cortez Cruz ’89, M.S. '91

Ricardo is Professor Emeritus of English at Illinois State University (ISU), where he earned two degrees and taught for over 25 years. He served one year as acting chair for ISU’s Department of English after working three consecutive years as associate chair for three different chairs. Cruz is the author of Straight Outta Compton and Five Days Of Bleeding, novels short and funky. He was a keynote speaker for the PEN Hemingway Award Ceremony, Minority Scholar-in-Residence for ISU, and guest artist/faculty for California State University’s Summer Arts Program. Ricardo's various publications continue to garner substantial critical attention, praise, and review, and his creative work appears in a variety of lit places. 

He is the recipient of numerous recognitions/honors, such as ISU’s Distinguished Young Alumni Award, Strand Diversity Achievement Award, John A. Dossey Award for Outstanding Teaching, and University Outstanding Service Award. He also received the Illinois Community College Trustees Association’s Distinguished Alumnus Award and was named Richland Community College’s Alumnus Of The Year. He is the first full-time faculty member ever hired by Heartland Community College in Normal.  

Jade Lambert ’01

After ISU, Jade earned a master’s in English from Penn State before attending law school at Northwestern.  She has been practicing law since 2006, representing individuals and corporations in their most sensitive investigations and litigation. She has particular expertise in matters involving Anti-Kickback violations, workplace violence, and sexual misconduct. She is a partner at the King & Spalding law firm in Chicago.

Jade lives in the southwest suburbs of Chicago with her husband and twin boys, Holden and Elliott.  She is also a proud stepmom to three adult kids (Nicole, Canon, and McKenzie).  Jade is the first person in her family to go to college, and the only attorney in the family (so she gets a lot of random legal questions). 

Elizabeth Ferry ’03

Elizabeth is now president of R.W. Harden & Associates, Inc., and a licensed professional geoscientist in the State of Texas with nearly 20 years of experience in the field of hydrogeology and the development of groundwater resources for beneficial use including public drinking water supplies. Her areas of expertise include the design and implementation of exploratory drilling and aquifer testing programs, geophysical logging interpretations for subsurface structural mapping and developing estimates of groundwater availability, and water quality data analyses.  She is experienced in all aspects of hydrogeology with a focus on numerical and analytical groundwater flow modeling, determination of groundwater availability with respect to quantity and quality of water within regulatory limitations, and design and implementation of well construction and wellfield projects.

Jodi Becker ’13

After receiving her degree in geography and environmental studies, Jodi was hired as a GIS intern at Macon County Emergency Telephone System in Decatur, and became a full-time employee shortly after. She has accumulated 10 years of experience through her service as the GIS specialist and the addressing authority in Macon County. Jodi has worked with the ISU Geography Department, hiring two interns, one of which turned into a full-time employee. 

She now uses her GIS experience as a supervisor at the Central Illinois Regional Dispatch Center in Decatur where they answer all 911 calls for Macon County. In her spare time, she enjoys exploring national parks with her other half, Tim’12 (criminal justice sciences), scrapbooking her vacations, and spending time with her dog, Scout.  

Colleen Kahl ’97, M.S. ’15

While working toward her degree in history education at ISU, Colleen completed her student teaching at Pekin High and never left. She started her 28th year in the classroom.  

Throughout her teaching career, she has taught U.S. History, Global Studies, Sociology, Psychology, AP Psychology, and Government/Civics. She has coached and sponsored several activities during this time and served in various officer positions in their union. She participated in partnership programs with ISU and has collaborated with the Tazewell County Clerk on various history projects. She still loves what she does even if she no longer understands all the teen vernacular. 

Rebecca Kijek ’12

Becca graduated from Illinois State University in 2012 with a degree in history teacher education. Immediately after graduation, she embarked on a fulfilling journey teaching high school history in Chicago Public Schools. For over a decade, she dedicated herself to shaping young minds and fostering a love for learning in her classroom.

In the fall of 2022, Becca transitioned into a leadership role as principal, where she continues to advocate for educational equity and student-centered policies. As principal of Peace & Education Coalition High School, Becca has a commitment to fostering an inclusive and supportive environment for both students and educators alike. Becca is passionate about empowering the next generation through education, believing strongly in the transformative power of learning.

Outside of work, Becca finds most joy in going on adventures with her 5-year-old daughter.

James Chrisman ’71, M.S. ’73

Jim discovered his love of language learning at ISU in the late 1960s and his professors encouraged him to become a Spanish teacher. After working to recruit promising Latino students to ISU’s High Potential Students Program, he accepted a position as a reading specialist and language instructor with the Illinois Corrections School District #428 Pontiac Correctional Center, eventually becoming an educational administrator and principal. He employed the first correctional bilingual instructor to provide bilingual and ESL instruction to adult inmates and was involved with the DOC’s PreStart initiative to provide a multi-pronged, dynamic response to recidivism in the correctional system.

Following his retirement, her taught Spanish at Heartland for 12 years. As a member of our community, an ISU alum, a former educator and administrator, Jim has promoted his embrace of language learning and cultural outreach at ISU. He serves as a partner in the Joseph L. Laurenti endowment.  

Trevor Brightwell ’00

Trevor has four years of experience working for Boeing defense systems developing automated test equipment for F-15 & F-18. Trevor has an additional 19 years of experience in Boeing Commercial Airplanes, developing flight controls systems and integrating into the airplane platform; performing requirements validation & verification, lab and airplane testing, safety analysis supported by fault tree development, equipment management, and certification. He has led and/or managed flight controls development projects in several areas of mechanical and electrical design on 737, 747, 767, 777/777X, & 787.

Trevor’s current role is managing a team of 20 individuals in flight controls electronics. His team routinely works with airline customers to improve in service reliability of commercial products and restore individual airplanes to flight worthy dispatch readiness. His team performs investigations into potential safety incidents and develops design changes and operational procedure changes to mitigate future occurrences.

Jon McAvoy ’95

After graduating from ISU in 1995, Jon attended Iowa State and earned a master's in materials science. He began his career with John Deere in 1997 as a materials engineer. Over the next several years, he held multiple roles in manufacturing engineering and operations at the Harvester Works factory. He then became the global manufacturing engineering manager for new product combines before returning to Harvester as the quality manager. Taking a career 180, he left the factory to become the ag business development manager supporting Deere’s harvesting, crop care, and aftermarket businesses.  Most recently, he has been the harvesting parts order fulfillment manager.  

Outside of work, Jon has stayed busy. He and his wife, Carlyn, have four daughters and currently run a 620+ acre farming operation.  An ISU football player, Jon has been a volunteer coach for Geneseo High School for 15 years.

Nora Atkins ’14, M.S. ’16

Nora has a diverse background in higher education, student development and equity/inclusion initiatives. She earned her bachelor’s degree in political science in 2014 and a master’s degree in college student personnel administration in 2016, both from Illinois State University.

She began her career as a program manager and success coach at the University of Louisville from 2016 to 2017, where she was pivotal in developing student success programs and providing personalized coaching. In 2017, she returned to Illinois State University as an academic advisor with University College - advising, coaching, and mentoring first-year and students in academic transition.

Nora made the leap to the financial and insurance industry in 2022, where she now serves as the diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) senior specialist at COUNTRY Financial. In this role, she oversees DEI initiatives for COUNTRY and the Illinois Farm Bureau, driving efforts to create inclusive and equitable environments within these organizations.

Jaimie Kent-Bowling ’14, M.S. ’17

Jaimie works for the Illinois Network of Child Care Resource & Referral Agencies, an early childhood education (ECE) nonprofit that partners with stakeholders to advance equitable and quality education for all children across Illinois. As a senior instructional designer, she develops a variety of in-person and e-learning courses for early childhood professionals. These courses are offered free of charge and help educators meet state licensing and child care subsidy training requirements. 

Christopher Wahlheim ’04, M.S. ’06

Christopher is a first-generation college graduate who earned his  bachelor's in psychology and master's in experimental psychology at ISU, and his doctorate's degree and two postdoctoral fellowships at Washington University in St. Louis. He is an associate professor of psychology and the director of the Memory and Cognition Lab at UNC Greensboro. His primary research interests are in memory, misinformation, beliefs, cognitive aging, and metacognition. 

Eric Wesselmann ’03, M.A. ’05

Eric is a professor in the ISU Department of Psychology. He earned both his bachelor's in psychology with a minor in film studies and his master's in the I/O-social psychology sequence at ISU and his doctorate's from the Department of Psychology at Purdue.

Eric publishes research on social inclusion and exclusion, sexual harassment, social stigma, and the psychology of religion and spirituality in various psychology and interdisciplinary journals. Eric’s research has been recognized both nationally and internationally by academics, practitioners, and popular press, and he also has research interests on the interface of psychology, fandom, and popular culture, as well as podcasts and other social media including his YouTube channel, Digital Golgotha Productions.

Linda Foster, M.S. ’16

Linda is president of the Bloomington-Normal NAACP branch. She works with the local and state levels of the NAACP by eradicating all elements of racism and discrimination through forums, meetings and education. She advocates for diversity and inclusion training to make certain all entities (schools, churches, law enforcement, housing, etc.) are aware of implicit and explicit biases. Organizations and schools with concerns and issues are contacting her directly, as they realize she is a stronghold in the community and is well-respected as a leader committed to action-oriented behaviors, all for the betterment of our beloved community!

She has worked tirelessly for over 40 years in this community. She has solid relationships with members of all races and she develops bridges to make certain everyone can cross over together, while working on community related disparities. 

Bunmi Akinnusotu, M.S. ’07

Bunmi oversees Bloomberg CityLab at the Aspen Institute, an annual convening of mayors and city leaders innovatively solving urban issues. Her expertise lies in the intersection of international relations and organization management.

Before Aspen Institute, Bunmi was the deputy director of the Charles B. Rangel International Affairs Program at Howard University. Her career in Washington began in the Obama Administration as special assistant in the Office of Land and Emergency Management at the US Environmental Protection Agency. Afterward, she was the chief of staff at Young Professionals in Foreign Policy. In 2017, Bunmi launched a foreign policy podcast called, “What in the World?” which made foreign policy relevant to everyday people and amplified experts of color. Bunmi was an AmeriCorps VISTA volunteer and fundraiser for the YWCA Chicago and United Way Chicago. She graduated from Columbia University SIPA with a master's in urban policy, Illinois State University with a master's in sociology, and Bryant University with a bachelor's in computer info systems.