Skip to content →

2010 Science and Technology Week

Science and Technology Week celebrates advancements in the field of science and technology, as well as the hardworking, dedicated students and professionals who make those advancements possible. Past keynote speakers include: television host and Chief Creative Officer at Liz Claiborne Inc. Tim Gunn, chef Charlie Trotter, television personality Bill Nye, theoretical physicist Brian Greene and more. 

The College of Applied Science & Technology, along with Illinois State University is proud to host Ed Begley Jr. on April 14, 2010

Live Simply So That Others Can Simply Live

Ed Begley Jr., actor and activist, serves on the boards Thoreau Institute, the Earth Communications Office, Tree People, and Friends of the Earth. He is the costar of the hit Planet Green series Living with Ed, a look at the day-to-day realities of living green with his not so environmentalist wife, Rachelle Carson. Begley has appeared in such films and television series as Arrested DevelopmentVeronica MarsCSI: MiamiPineapple Express, and Whatever Works.

Schedule of Events – April 12-16, 2010

Prevention through Design National Initiative; Integrating Occupational Health and Safety into Sustainability

Details: Monday, April 12, 2010 at 7:30 p.m.-Old Main Room, Bone Student Center

Speaker: Ms. Donna Heidel

Donna Heidel, MS, CIH coordinates the Prevention through Design (PtD) program at CDC/NIOSH, including the Green, Safe and Healthy Jobs initiative to ensure that occupational health and safety is included in green jobs and sustainability. She coordinates research and facilitates the translation to practice that will reduce occupational injuries and illnesses among workers by eliminating hazards and minimizing risk during the design process. She chairs the PtD Council and fosters collaborative partnerships with labor, industry, government, and other stakeholders. In addition, she coordinates the activities to achieve the five strategic goals identified in the PtD Plan for the National Initiative.

Prior to NIOSH, Ms. Heidel gained 20 years’ experience in the pharmaceutical industry, first at Merck and Co, Inc. and later at Johnson & Johnson. While at J&J, she completed a 2-year international assignment establishing industrial hygiene programs at 42 facilities in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. She also served as World Wide Director of Industrial Hygiene and Occupational Toxicology where she led the development and implementation of their global health hazard and control banding programs. In that role, she developed the J&J “prevention through design” process for designing out hazards and minimizing risks during the facility, process and product design. These design standards were applied to 14 new pharmaceutical R&D and manufacturing facilities, including chemical synthesis and biotechnology plants. Ms. Heidel has an M.S. in industrial hygiene from Temple University. She is board-certified in the comprehensive practice of industrial hygiene by the American Board of Industrial Hygiene.

Co- sponsored by the Department of Health Sciences and the student sections of American Industrial Hygiene Association, American Society of Safety Engineers, and Student Environmental Health Association


State of World Agriculture 2050

Details: Tuesday, April 13, 2010 at 7:30 p.m. – Circus Room, Bone Student Center

Speaker: Dr. Robert L. Thompson

Dr. Robert L. Thompson Powerpoint Presentation

Professor Robert L. Thompson holds the Gardner Endowed Chair in Agricultural Policy at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where he teaches courses in agricultural policy and international agricultural development.  In addition to his on-campus teaching and extension public policy edeucation responsibilities, he serves on the USDA-USTR Agricultural Policy Advisory Committee for Trade and the International Food and Agricultural Trade Policy Council.

Previously Thompson served as Director of Rural Development and Senior Advisor for Agricultural Trade Policy at the World Bank (1998-2002); President and CEO of the Winrock International Institute for Agricultural Development (1993-98); as Dean of Agriculture (1987-93) and Professor of Agricultural Economics (1974-93) at Purdue University; as Assistant Secretary for Economics at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (1985-87) and as Senior Staff Economist for Food and Agriculture at the President’s Council of Economic Advisers (1983-85). 

Thompson, who received his B.S. degree from Cornell University and his M.S. and Ph.D. degrees from Purdue University, holds honorary doctorates from the Pennsylvania State University and Dalhousie University (Canada). He is a fellow of the American Agricultural Economics Association and the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and a foreign member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Agriculture and Forestry and of the Ukrainian Academy of Agricultural Sciences.

Thompson was raised on a small family dairy farm in northern New York State. He has extensive international experience and has lectured, consulted, or conducted research in more than 90 countries worldwide, including extended periods in Denmark, Laos, and Brazil. He is frequently interviewed by the media on international food and agricultural issues. He has served on several corporate boards and is a former president of the International Association of Agricultural Economists.

Co- sponsored by the Illinois Soybean Association


Live Simply So That Others Can Simply Live

Details: Wednesday, April 14, 2010 at 7:00 p.m. – Braden Auditorium, Bone Student Center

Speaker: Ed Begley Jr.

Ed Begley Jr., actor and activist, serves on the boards Thoreau Institute, the Earth Communications Office, Tree People, and Friends of the Earth. He is the costar of the hit Planet Green series Living with Ed, a look at the day-to-day realities of living green with his not so environmentalist wife, Rachelle Carson. Begley has appeared in such films and television series as Arrested DevelopmentVeronica MarsCSI: MiamiPineapple Express, and Whatever Works.

Co- sponsored by ISU Milner Library and Center for Mathematics, Science, and Technology (CeMaST).


Hope from the Heartland: Jobs, Clean Air, Energy Security

Details: Thursday, April 15, 2010 at 7:30 p.m. – Old Main Room, Bone Student Center

Speaker: State Representative Jay Hoffman

Jay Hoffman has served as an Illinois State Representative since 1991. He received his Bachelor of Science in finance from Illinois State University and his Juris Doctor from Saint Louis University School of Law. Before being elected to the Illinois General Assembly, Jay began his career as an Assistant State’s Attorney in St. Clair County, Illinois and was later appointed the Director of Probation and Court Services for the 20th Judicial Circuit Court.

During his time in office, Jay has been a leader on transportation issues, serving as the chair of that committee.

He has also been active in pushing legislation regarding education, job creation, child welfare, and healthcare. He has received numerous awards, including the Southwestern Illinois Development Authority’s Outstanding Individual of the Year, St. Louis Children’s Hospital State Advocate of the Year Award, and Cardinal Glennon’s 2007 Crystal Wagon Award for contributing to the health and welfare of children. He has also been honored with the St. Louis Regional Commerce and Growth Association Lewis and Clark Statesman Award six times.

In addition to his work as an Illinois State Representative, Jay is also of counsel to the Lakin Chapman law firm in Wood River, Illinois.

Jay and his wife Laurie, currently reside in Collinsville and have two daughters, Emily and Katelyn.

Skip to toolbar