Distinguished Service Award

After growing up in north central Illinois and building on a rich career in campus ministry work, John Jordan first became involved at the University Y as a staff member, when he was hired as Executive Director in January of 1990. For a decade he served admirably in this role. During his tenure, the Y saw a growth in student participation with several student groups emerging or joining as affiliated organizations. He also successfully oversaw the rebuilding of our endowment, which had dwindled in previous years. And he led a successful Capital Campaign for the organization, the first in many years.

Since his retirement in 1999, John has remained actively engaged at the Y as a supporter and volunteer. Most recently, he served on the 150th Anniversary Planning Committee, helping to plan our Celebration on Sept. 30 of last year, participating in outreach and engagement, and contributing to several working groups throughout the 2 year planning process. In recent years John has also volunteered at Dump & Run for both collections and the Big Sale, spoken at Friday Forum, helped with the Annual Dinner & Auction, and been a member of asking teams for our past two Major Funds Campaigns.

For over 30 years John has been an active member of the University YMCA community, offering his time and institutional knowledge whenever needed. For all of us love the University Y, there have been few as consistently dedicated to advancing our mission and preserving our rich history as John Jordan.

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Liz Soellner is a Senior at the University of Illinois studying Neuroscience and Sociology. Coming from the small, rural town of Chester, IL, Liz was keenly aware early on how few students from rural areas were attending Illinois. This prompted her in 2022 to co-found Rural Area Student Initiative (RASI), a new student organization that strives to support UIUC students from rural areas as they transition to higher education, and provide resources to current high school students interested in higher education.

As the co-founder she was instrumental in the creation of this group, but has also played a critical role as its President for the past two years. As the only Registered Student Organization on campus dedicated exclusively to supporting rural students, she has helped to build a community for an underserved population on campus. She successfully led RASI in applying for membership as an affiliated student organization at the Y, and since then has worked closely with Y staff on strategies to grow the group, fundraise for their mentoring and Liaison programs, and actively participated in Y programming and the Student Board.

This past year she led RASI’s team at the Shark Tank 150, for their project on Nurturing Rural Roots, Fostering College Futures, and has spoken at multiple conferences, podcasts, and panels on her work with the organization. Beyond RASI Liz has also served in other leadership roles, including on the Board of the Governors for the Y during the spring and summer of 2023, the Student Board of the Y, as a Chancellor’s Scholar in the Campus Honors Program, and volunteering for Crisis Nursery in Champaign. For over two years she has been a Research Assistant in the Auerbach Lab at the Beckman Institute, aiding in the study of sensory processing and neural plasticity in autism spectrum disorders, as well as conducting her own research project as a Beckman Institute Undergraduate Fellow.

Liz's leadership within RASI has provided community, resources, and support for a minority group of students on campus. Her ability to forge connections, inspire change, and address the unique needs of rural students exemplifies the essence of dedicated service and exceptional leadership.

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