University of Illinois System
The University of Illinois is the set of three public universities in Illinois. These schools are taxpayer-subsidized institutions of higher learning. B. Joseph White is the current president of the university.
Urbana-Champaign
The Urbana-Champaign campus is the largest of the three. It holds 18 schools, including a law school and an aviation school. It also houses the National Center for Supercomputing Applications, NCSA. This was where, amongst others, Marc Andreessen (later of Netscape fame) helped forge the Mosaic web browser, the first HTML browser capable of rendering images. In addition, in 1987, NCSA created NCSA telnet, a program which permitted users access to the supercomputer's resources remotely. UIUC is also famous for its contributions in Electrical Engineering, and the birth place of world's first light-emitting diode (LED). It is highly ranked in law, library and information science, architecture, engineering, electrical and computer engineering, computer science, physical sciences, advertising, psychology, labor and industrial relations, educational psychology, agriculture, accounting, speech communication, and music. The school's marching band, named the Marching Illini, also enjoys a superb reputation. The symbol of the University's athletic teams is a Native American figure, Chief Illiniwek, which has sparked significant controversy.
Chicago
The largest university in the Chicago area, UIC has 25,000 students, 15 colleges, including the nation’s largest medical school, and annual research expenditures exceeding $290 million. Playing a critical role in Illinois healthcare, UIC operates the state’s major public medical center and serves as the principal educator of Illinois’ physicians, dentists, pharmacists, nurses and other healthcare professionals.
The modern UIC was formed in 1982 by the consolidation of two U. of I. campuses: the Medical Center campus, which dates back to the nineteenth century; and the comprehensive Chicago Circle campus, which in 1965 replaced the two-year undergraduate Navy Pier campus designated to educate returning veterans. This consolidation and expansion is why "UIC" is the preferred shortened name today.
UIC’s student body is recognized as one of the nation’s most diverse, and they reflect the global character of Chicago.
Springfield
Another campus is University of Illinois at Springfield, formerly Sangamon State University from 1969 till June 30, 1995. It is the smallest of the three, and is located in Springfield, Illinois, the state capital of Illinois.
Notable alumni
Noteworthy alumni are listed on the individual wiki pages for each of the campuses.
Alumni Association
The University of Illinois Alumni Association publishes Illinois Alumni magazine bi-monthly. It contains feature articles on individual alumni, activities of the Alumni Association, obituaries, and other information designed to keep alumni informed and connected to campus. Illinois Alumni is provided by mail to dues-paying members of the Alumni Association. The magazine has been assigned ISSN 1096-5866 and it is in its 18th volume as of 2005.