People

Black parents who experienced higher levels of appropriated racial oppression — defined as shaping one’s behavior and self-concept around dominant cultural norms of whiteness — were less likely to transmit positive, culturally protective messages that affirmed racial pride and self-worth to their adolescent children, a recent study found.

In rural India, having a son is a strong social expectation that puts pressure on women to bear male children. A new study from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign examines how a firstborn son affects the well-being of childbearing women and their mothers-in-law, as well as the broader implications for household dynamics and economic outcomes.

Every year, Deborah Katz-Downie honors her sister's memory the same way.

She gives.

For more than three decades, Deborah and her husband, Stephen R. Downie, have made annual gifts to the Child Development Laboratory (CDL) at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in memory of Deborah's younger sister, Lauren Beth Katz, who died in 1989 at the age of 27 after a long illness.

Prasanta K. Kalita, professor of agricultural and biological engineering in the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences with a joint appointment in The Grainger College of Engineering at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, died on July 5. 

University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign research professor John Reid, also executive director of the Center for Digital Agriculture, received the prestigious 2026 Cyrus Hall McCormick-Jerome Increase Case Gold Medal. 

University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Professor Brian Ogolsky, part of the Department of Human Development and Family Studies in the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences, was recently one of three people to earn the prestigious Fellow status from the National Council on Family Relations (NCFR).

Mobile apps that allow people to share their location with others have become increasingly popular. But how and why do we use these apps, and what are the implications for interpersonal communication? That’s the topic of a new study from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.

When Pamela Smith, an editor for DTN and Progressive Farmer magazine, spotted a social media post from a friend looking to nurture her daughter’s love of writing, Pam stepped in with an old-fashioned offer: to write letters. 

Three members of the College of ACES community — Lisa Kelly, Carissa Nelson, and Mynda Tracy — are recipients of the 2026 Chancellor’s Staff Excellence Award. This is one of the highest honors for staff at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and reflects the meaningful impact of their work across ACES and beyond.

When the semester ended this May, the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign said goodbye to one of its most beloved professors. Paul Stoddard has retired after more than 25 years of dedicated service to the university and the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences.