Gainesville, Ga. resident earns UIC alumni honor
James E. Jennings (click on image for larger size)
James E. Jennings, a 1988 doctoral graduate in history from the University of Illinois at Chicago, has received the University of Illinois Alumni Humanitarian Award for his contributions to the institution, Chicago and the world.
Jennings, who is founder and president of the Atlanta-based humanitarian aid group Conscience International, was recognized for his global work in relief efforts and as an advocate of peaceful resolutions to international disputes.
Jennings, a resident of Gainesville, Ga., was honored at the University of Illinois Alumni Association’s annual Alumni Five dinner and awards ceremony on Oct. 11.
“This year’s honorees reflect all that is great about UIC,” Alumni Association President and CEO Loren R. Taylor told the audience of 250. “Their stories inspire all of us and enhance the proud legacy of the University of Illinois.”
As executive director of U.S. Academics for Peace, he’s helped raise millions of dollars for assistance efforts and establish dialogues among professors, politicians and religious leaders from around the world.
Jennings, who worked with global health-related programs at UIC in the mid-1990s, is a fellow at the Cotsen Institute of Archaeology at the University of California at Los Angeles.
The UI Alumni Association is a not-for-profit, 501(c)3 organization for nearly 700,000 alumni throughout the world who attended the University of Illinois with campuses in Chicago, Springfield and Urbana-Champaign.
UIC ranks among the nation’s leading research universities and is Chicago’s largest university with 27,500 students, 12,000 faculty and staff, 15 colleges and the state’s major public medical center. A hallmark of the campus is the Great Cities Commitment, through which UIC faculty, students and staff engage with community, corporate, foundation and government partners to improve the quality of life in metropolitan areas around the world.
