College news

• Twenty-nine residents were named to the spring-semester dean’s list at Benedictine University, Lisle. The dean’s list recognizes full-time students who achieve a minimum 3.5 grade-point average. Students include Broadview resident Stephanie Neal; Brookfield residents Michael Berry, Dina Messino and Courtney Mikesh; Burr Ridge residents Asma Ahmed, Hala Elkhadra, Ann Plamoottil, George Plamoottil and Eric Tee; Countryside resident Catherine McNulty; Hillside residents Whitney Henderson and Glenda Williams; La Grange resident Sara Hamilton; La Grange Park residents Anthony DeSanto, Monica Kritikos, Ashley Richy and Kimberly Schultz; Lyons resident Nicholas Dobes; Riverside resident Ammar Hassan; Westchester residents Sean Callahan, Amanda Carvelli, Theresa Harkey, Patricia Mayfield, Steven Montalto and Amanda Todro; Western Springs residents Suzanne Bartoz and Elizabeth Jarabek; and Willow Springs residents Jessica Bellino and Francis Jareczek.

• Fifty-eight residents were named to the spring-semester academic honors list at Morton College, Cicero. Part-time students with a minimum 3.0 grade-point average on a 4.0 scale are recognized on the academic honors list. Students include Brookfield residents Loretta Gorecki, Stephanie Kramer, Gospa Maksimovic, Melissa Santiago and Dana Sharp; Burr Ridge resident Johannalyn Pingol; La Grange resident Jorge Arreaga; Lyons residents Belinda Adkins, Dawn Ainsworth, Maria Arellano, Graciela Barrera, Russel Brown, Monica Buhle, Migdalia Caastillo, Ofelia Chavez, Carissa Conoboy, Aramis Corona, Erika Cortes, Grace Demaio, Lisa Fairchild, Joanne Fessett, Alfonso Giron, Dominique Gonzalez, Gabriela Guitron, Tami Gurrola, Leah Harter, Lillian Hoyos, Lauretta Kargbo, Olga Kondrashova, Anna Mezera, Ana Minjares, Edie Moncada, Elena Moreno, Alicia Morris, Amanda Moudry, Christine Olivo, Joseph Olsowka, Meloday Padilla, Dora Parra, Erik Perez, Maria Prete, Vanessa Ramos, Gabriela Salas, Oscar Serna, Faten Sharaf, Jennifer Spencer, Christina Stidham, Elizabeth Strachan, Mark Sujak, Edward Sullivan, Leslie Torres, Melissa Whitwell, Sue Wojakowski, Michael Wolter and Aracely Zaval; McCook resident George Cernetig; North Riverside resident Raul Vasquez; and Westchester resident Joy Dobbs.

• Six residents received degrees from Eastern Illinois University, Charleston, during summer commencement exercises. Graduates include Brookfield residents Kyle Chase and Emil Marcinskas, Hillside resident Tiffany McKenzie, Indian Head Park resident Kathryn Benson, La Grange resident Laura Dykman and Westchester resident Kelly Maline.

Accomplishments

• Jennifer Schulte of Burr Ridge, a senior at Fenwick High School, Oak Park, was named a National Merit Semi-Finalist by the National Merit Scholarship Program. National Merit Semi-Finalist status signifies a student has posted one of the top scores in his or her state on the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test taken as a high school junior and is in the top 1 to 3 percent nationally among the approximately 1.4 million students who took the exam in October 2006.

• Lyons Township High School students Dijana Keljalic of Brookfield and Austin Reilly and Jaime Kelleher, both of Western Springs, ranked nationally in the 98th percentile or higher on the annual national German foreign language exam.

Military news

• Army National Guard Staff Sgt. Jennifer J. Tarkowski-Jacobs has been mobilized and activated for a future deployment to an undisclosed overseas location in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. The staff sergeant is a supply specialist normally assigned to the 708th Medical Company in North Riverside. She has served in the military for 13 years and is the daughter of Jerome and Pauline Tarkowski of Westchester.

• Russell T. Fu graduated from the Army Reserve Officers’ Training Corps Leader Development and Assessment Course at Fort Lewis, Tacoma, Wash. The ROTC cadet has been commissioned as a second lieutenant in the Army.

Cadets in their junior and senior year of college must complete the leadership development course. Upon successful completion of the course, the ROTC program, and graduation from college, cadets are commissioned as second lieutenants in the U.S. Army, National Guard, or Reserve. He is the son of Russell V. Fu of Naperville and Susan C. Fu of Willow Springs. Fu is a 2004 graduate of Montini Catholic High School, Lombard.

• Air Force Reserve Airman Cristian D. Hidrobo graduated from basic military training at Lackland Air Force Base, San Antonio, Texas. He is the son of Jorge and Gloria Hidrobo of North Riverside. Hidrobo is a 2006 graduate of Riverside Brookfield High School.