SIUE to Induct Nine to Alumni Hall of Fame during “A Night Among the Stars”
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville will honor nine remarkable graduates at the 2021 SIUE Alumni Hall of Fame ceremony, A Night Among the Stars, on Thursday, Sept. 23. The impressive alumni have made exceptional contributions in their chosen fields, in their communities and at SIUE through their leadership, character and hard work.
“Those selected for the Alumni Hall of Fame represent the best of SIUE,” said Andrew Ravanelli, PhD, SIUE Alumni Association president. “It is our honor to induct these outstanding individuals.”
The 2021 honorees listed by their college or school:
College of Arts & Sciences: Jessica McCaskill, BA Communications ‘06
Jessica “CasKILLA” McCaskill made her professional boxing debut in 2015. In the lightweight division, she earned the No. 1 female ranking in the U.S. and third in the world. Based in Chicago, she was the first female to headline in the state of Illinois, making history. She has achieved numerous accolades, including being named Ring Magazine’s 2018 Most Inspirational Fighter after winning her first World Boxing Council title, and World Boxing News’ 2020 Women’s Fighter of the Year. She was featured in the 2018 Amazon Prime documentary, “Making McCaskill.” After moving to the welterweight division, she became the unified and undisputed welterweight champion in 2020. McCaskill is one of only three female fighters holding the undisputed title.
College of Arts & Sciences: Bill Land, BA Mass Communications ’73
Land is the TV play-by-play voice of the San Antonio Spurs, where he has spent 18 years and earned three NBA titles. His announcing career spans 17 sports, from basketball and baseball to water polo and power tumbling. From 1988-2016, he served as TV sports announcer and program host for Fox Sports Net, where he covered play-by-play in the Big XII Conference, Major League Soccer and Texas Rangers baseball. Other notable accomplishments from his more than 40-year career include serving as sports director at radio and TV stations in Wichita and Tulsa. During those years, he was the play-by-play voice of Wichita State University, Oral Roberts University and the University of Tulsa. He credits his SIUE education and his WSIE radio experience for providing him with a great foundation to enter the real world.
School of Business: Kelly Malson, BSA Accountancy ‘93
Malson began her accounting career in 1994 with KPMG LLP before moving to Andersen LLP. In 2004, she became finance compliance manager for ITRON Inc.’s IEM Unit before joining World Acceptance Corp. in 2005 as vice president of internal audit. She became vice president and chief financial officer in 2006, a position she held until becoming senior vice president, chief financial officer and treasurer in 2009. She retired from World Acceptance Corp. in 2014. From 2012-20, she also served on the Conn’s Inc. Board of Directors as a board member, audit committee member, and nominating and corporate governance committee member. Before retiring for a second time, she served as chief financial officer of Nicholas Financial Inc. from 2018-19.
SIU School of Dental Medicine: Dr. Terry Barnfield, BS Biological Sciences, ’82 DMD ’86
Barnfield has held a private dental practice in Salem, Ill., since his graduation. On the national level, he has been a member of the American Dental Association’s (ADA) House of Delegates for more than 10 years and currently serves as the ADA Political Action Committee director for the 8th District. He is a fellow in the American College of Dentists, International College of Dentists and Pierre Fauchard Academy. At the state level, he is a past president of the Illinois State Dental Society (ISDS) and continues to serve as a clinic section lead for the ISDS Foundation’s Mission of Mercy events. He also served the ISDS as a trustee and in the House of Delegates. Locally, Terry is a past president of the Wabash River Dental Society and of the Salem District 111 Board of Education.
School of Education, Health and Human Behavior: Kim Gidley, BS Physical Education, ‘89
Gidley is the winningest coach in women’s tennis history at the U.S. Air Force Academy (USAFA). She begins her 24th season as head coach of the women’s tennis team in 2021-22 with 309 career wins. Since 2003, she has recorded 12 winning seasons, including leading the USAFA to its first 20-win season at the Division l level in 2017. She has earned numerous awards for her work on and off the court, including the U.S. Professional Tennis Association's 2020 Intermountain Region College Coach of the Year. As a student-athlete, Gidley earned All-American honors while helping the Cougars win the 1989 NCAA Division II national championship. She was also invited to the 1984 U.S. Olympic Trials for tennis. In 2008, she was inducted into the SIUE Athletics Hall of Fame.
School of Engineering: Mike Marchal, BS Construction ’94
Marchal is the president of Holland Construction Services, a position he has held since 2011. He began at Holland Construction as a project manager in 1997 and has 27 years of experience in the construction industry. He is a leader who is passionate about nurturing the growth and development of Holland Construction, his family and his community. He has been involved with many professional organizations, including Leadership Council of Southwestern Illinois, Associated General Contractors of America Board of Directors, Big Brothers Big Sisters, and the SIUE School of Engineering Construction Management Advisory Board. He serves as a mentor for high school and college students, and he has held active fundraising roles for the United Way of Greater St. Louis, the Greater St. Louis Area Council of the Boy Scouts of America and his church.
School of Nursing: Christina Moore, MPH, BSN, RN, BS Nursing ‘14
Moore is a Public Health Institute/CDC Global Strategic Information Fellow with the Center for Global Health, Division of Global HIV/AIDS and TB, at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Country Office in Nairobi, Kenya. She conducts monitoring, evaluation, data management, reporting and technical support for the national HIV program in Kenya. Moore has served on the International COVID-19 Task Force as a technical assistance epidemiologist. She earned a master's in public health, specializing in global health from the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis. In addition to her SIUE degree, she earned a bachelor’s in health and society with a minor in Spanish from Beloit College. Moore has completed numerous internships, community-based research and testing/treatment programs in Australia, Costa Rica, Mexico, Nicaragua and Tanzania.
School of Pharmacy: Dr. J. Cody Sandusky, PharmD ’12
Sandusky is the president of the Illinois Pharmacists Association (IPhA) and director of pharmacy at Harrisburg Medical Center in Harrisburg. In addition to his role with IPhA, he serves on the American Pharmacists Association (APhA) House of Delegates, Harrisburg Medical Center Foundation Board of Directors, and the One Shawnee Tourism Collaboration Task Force. He is a past member of the SIUE Pharmacy Advisory Board and Illinois Pharmacists Association Foundation Board. His career has spanned multiple arenas of pharmacy, including retail and independent community pharmacy, pharmaceutical industry consulting, and health-systems pharmacy. He has been a featured guest speaker for the APhA, developed guidance statements for the American Society of Health-Systems Pharmacists, and been recognized by the APhA for excellence in COVID-19 vaccine education and promotion.
Graduate School: Sherri Wu, MSA Accountancy ’97, MS Computing and Information Systems ’99
Wu currently manages strategy, key accounts and revenue for VoyageOne Group. Before joining VoyageOne, she was the chief strategy officer and head of international business development of Alitrip at Alibaba Group, where she led a team in building growth opportunities for businesses around the world. Wu also served as head of international development for Americas at Tmall Global, as well as vice president and general manager for product and technology at Orbitz Worldwide. While serving as chief technology officer of PEAK6 Retail, she built the company’s e-commerce development team, and designed and developed e-commerce and financial social networking websites. In addition to her master’s degrees from SIUE, she holds a bachelor’s degree in economics from Nanjing University in China.
Event details are still being developed. For more information on A Night Among the Stars, call 618-650-3630, email siuealumni@siue.edu or visit siue.edu/alumni.
