Moraine Valley alum receives statewide award
Moraine Valley Community College alumnus Jason Knade was a co-recipient of the 2024 Illinois Community College Trustees Association Distinguished Alumnus Award, which recognizes an alumnus who has exhibited outstanding success and distinction in their chosen field. Additionally, the recipient must have shown service that is beneficial to society and supported community college education.
Knade is a successful filmmaker who has worked worldwide on hundreds of films, music videos, commercials and documentaries.
He primarily works as a director but also has experience in writing, producing and cinematography. He currently is the creative director of Behold and is a self-employed director and cinematographer who also works with other production companies.
He has filmed such noteworthy people as the pope, a sitting president, famous actors, members of Congress, and Hall of Fame athletes. Knade has done work for brands like Nike, Canon, Nordstrom and Maker’s Mark. He has won prestigious awards, including two Emmys, and was nominated for three additional Emmys. He also received Best Film, Best Feature, Best Music Video and Best Short nominations and awards at film festivals around the world.
Knade credits Moraine Valley’s diversity with impacting his work. He has created films that celebrate underrepresented communities and aspire to create social change. His debut film, “Cyclicity,” was nominated for the Iris Prize, the biggest LGBTQ prize (in terms of award money) in the world. His film “Hogtown” won Best Film at the International Black Film Festival and other competitions and was named a Top 10 Film of the Year by The New York Times.
In addition to filmmaking, Knade has taught communications and film classes at Moraine Valley and other colleges.
Tinley Park’s Porter Place promotes Chavers to executive director
Laporsha Chavers has been promoted to executive director Porter Place, a memory care community in Tinley Park. Chavers will oversee all care, operations and programming.
She previously was associate executive director at the same community. Chavers also served as associate executive director for Grace Point Place in Oak Lawn.
New Lenox’s Szubryt conducting research
New Lenox’s Bradley Szubryt is participating in the 2024 Summer Undergraduate Research Experience at Carthage College. Szubryt is conducting research into The Role of Incompleteness and Disgust in Predicting OCD Symptoms: An Induction Study.
Millikin University spring graduates list
Country Club Hills: Donovon Anderson; Frankfort: Maddy Regan; Lockport: Taylor Young; New Lenox: Aidan Hart; Oak Forest: Kacey Mitchell
Tufts University spring dean’s list
Alvalyn Dixon-Gardner, Richton Park
Tufts University spring graduates list
Alvalyn Dixon-Gardner, Richton Park
Wichita State University spring graduates list
Brylee M. Kelly, Peotone
Moraine Valley athletes win academic awards
The National Junior College Athletic Association recognized 30 Moraine Valley Community College student-athletes with the 2023-24 All-Academic Team Award while four teams earned Academic Team of the Year. Additionally, 24 students were named Illinois Skyway Collegiate Conference All-Academic Athletes of the Year, and 38 freshmen were named All-Conference Freshmen Academic Athletes of the Year.
First Team: cross country’s Robert Slezak (Oak Lawn); soccer’s Matthew Rosier (Lockport); softball’s Riley Evoy (Shepard); and tennis’ Ewelina Dabrowski (Argo) and Henry Witek (Andrew).
Second Team: golfers Dan Davila (Argo) and Kyle Kuchel (Sandburg); soccer’s Horacio Gomez (STEM Magnet Academy) and Elena Popovic (Shepard); softball’s Cassidy Ostema (Sandburg); and tennis’ Allyson English (Oak Forest) and John Kenny (Lincoln-Way East).
Third Team: baseball’s Niko Mastoras (Lockport) and Dimitri Spatharakis (Lemont); cross country’s Mariah Karamagianis (Sandburg) and Andrew Sima (Shepard); golfer Ryan Flynders (Hinsdale South); soccer’s Jose Aceves (Oak Lawn), Olivia Jeziorczak (Richards), Niko Kunz (Sandburg), Natalia Ochab (Stagg) and Ytati Roca (Oak Forest); tennis’ Erica Chapan (Andrew), Maya Morris (Sandburg) and Izabella Slezakova (Stagg); and volleyball’s Lily Avelar (Beecher), Brooklyn Condon (Lincoln-Way Central), Sophia Davidson (Marist), Ava Pequette (Manteno) and Mary Zielinski (Stagg).
Men’s (cumulative 3.10 GPA) and women’s (3.68) tennis as well as golf (3.19) and volleyball (3.28) earned the NJCAA Academic Team of the Year Award among 1,194 teams across the country that had a 3.0 GPA or higher for the academic year.
To earn the ISCC distinction, students must have earned a 3.0 GPA or higher after completing at least 48 credit hours while participating in one of the college’s 12 sports. Moraine Valley recipients included baseball’s Nomar Areizaga (Frederick Von Steuben Metropolitan Science Center), Jack Hoh (Lincoln-Way East) and Arnoldo Velazquez (Lockport); basketball’s Ahmad Jarad (Stagg) and David Reyes (Oak Lawn); golfers Davila and David Prim (Oak Forest); soccer’s Dyani Calderon (Kennedy), Jada Cunningham (Stagg), Karina De La Torre (Argo), Mark-Vitaily Hul (Ukraine), Kostandino Latka (Shepard), Ochab, Roca and Rosier; softball’s Evoy, Mya Granados (Evergreen Park) and Ostema; tennis’ Chapan, Slezakova and Witek; and volleyball’s Kaila Butvilas (Shepard), Colleen Clancy (Oak Forest) and Condon.
Evoy, Rosier and Witek also were awarded the ISCC Dick Durrant Sophomore Academic Athlete of the Year Award for earning a 4.0 GPA.
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