University News

RPTA at WIU Presents Annual Alumni, Student Awards

April 25, 2022

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MACOMB, IL – Western Illinois University's Department of Recreation, Park and Tourism Administration (RPTA) recently presented awards to several alumni of the program, as well as current students.

Retired Macomb City Forester Tim Howe was presented this year's Distinguished Alumni Award. Howe received his bachelor's degrees in management and in biology in 1975, his master's degree in RPTA in 1978.

While at WIU, Howe's mentors were emeritus professors John Warnock, Frank Lupton and John Reeves. While in graduate school, Howe worked at Horn Field Campus, helping establish the native prairie at the site, and building trails and planting trees. After graduation, Howe became a Resource Conservationist at three local Soil and Water Conservation Districts, then with the United States Department of Agriculture Soil Conservation Service in the Fulton, Effingham and McDonough County offices, assisting landowners conserve their top soil and other natural resources.

During the 1990s, Howe began working in the WIU School of Agriculture as a grant-funded research associate in sustainable agriculture. He also worked with other researchers conducting a statewide community forestry research project with grant funding from the U.S. Forest Service.

After enrolling in WIU's urban forestry program, Howe became an International Society of Arboriculture Certified Arborist. Through this role, he helped Macomb develop a community forestry program and become at Tree City USA. In Fall 2000, Howe became Macomb's first city forestry, a position he held for 16 years.

In retirement, Howe serves on the Prairie Land Conservancy (PLC) Board, helping preserve important tracts of natural areas in west central Illinois. He is also a member of several local civic organizations, including the Morning Centennial Rotary Club, Macomb Beautiful, the McDonough County Historical Society, McDonough County Genealogical Society and the Western Illinois Museum. He also serves as the volunteer sextant for St. Paul Cemetery.

Other awards presented by the RPTA department include:

• Distinguished Service Award – A 2008 RPTA graduate, Eric Brown advocates for people with disabilities within Illinois through his education and advocacy coordinator position at RAMP in Rockford, IL. Brown works with state legislators to modify bills to be written with person first language.

He is also involved with a work group to revise the Illinois Accessibility code, serves on the Illinois Network of Centers for Independent Living Advocacy Committee and is co-chair of the Statewide Independent Living Council Advocacy Advisory Group. He works closely with local media to make sure stories about the disability committee are told in appropriate ways. He also serves on the Mayor's Task Force for Domestic Violence and Human Trafficking Prevention, as well as a commissioner for the City of Rockford Community Relations Commission, and has presented to several RPTA Therapeutic Recreation courses to talk about advocacy.

• Distinguished Graduate of the Last Decade Award – A 2014 graduate, Cassandra Roy moved to southern Illinois to pursue her passion for outdoor education. She is also an alumna of the 2013 ECOEE program, and has worked for numerous outdoor education centers teaching about adventure and environmental education. Roy began working at Southern Illinois University's Touch of Nature Environmental Center (TONEC), where she has served as camp director, an AmeriCorps volunteer, AmeriCorps Vista and graduate assistant, while earning her master's degree.

She has served as a volunteer coordinator for the U.S. Forest Service in the Shasta-Trinity National Forest and is currently the director of outdoor education and recreation at Lyon College in Arkansas.

• Distinguished Graduate of the Last Decade (Graduate) - Ryan Bromberek received his bachelor's and master's degrees from WIU in RPTA in 2011 and 2017 respectively.

Bromberek is the adventure program director at Adventure Works in Dekalb. He promotes and advocates for RPTA, specifically in wilderness therapy. He has dedicated his life to serving youth and young adults through nature modalities. He is also an ECOEE alumnus.

• Outstanding Graduate Student Award – Rok Locksley, an RPTA graduate student from Macomb.

• Developing Scholar Award – Samuel Howard, a freshman RPTA major from London Mills, IL.

• Arthur F. Clayton Award – Kylie Winsor, a senior RPTA major from Verona, IL

• Outstanding Senior Award – Maya Quick, a senior RPTA major from Ottawa, IL.

• Anita H. Magafas Nontraditional Student Award – Bryce Moore, a senior RPTA major from Farmington, IL.

For more information about the RPTA program at WIU, visit wiu.edu/RPTA.



Posted By: University Communications (U-Communications@wiu.edu)
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