Shaheen heads U.S. Chamber board

Gerald Shaheen ’66 MBA ’68 was recently elected chairman of the board of directors of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the world’s largest business federation. It represents more than 3 million businesses in the U.S. and abroad.

Shaheen joined Caterpillar Inc. in 1967 and has been group president since 1998. He is responsible for the design, development, and production of the company’s mining and construction equipment. He also oversees Caterpillar’s marketing and sales operations in North America, the components business, and the research and development division.
He serves on the Bradley

University Board of Trustees, and has been president of the BU Alumni Association. He received the Distinguished Alumnus Award and was inducted into the Centurion Society in 1993. Shaheen also is chairman of the Association of Equipment Manufacturers. He serves on the boards of National City Corp. and the Mineral Information Institute, as well as several boards in the Peoria area

Bradley ranked in top 10

U.S. News & World Report’s 2007 edition of “America’s Best Colleges” once again ranked Bradley University among the nation’s best Midwestern universities that grant master’s degrees. Bradley is ranked seventh in the annual listing and continues to be considered a “great school at a great price” with a fifth place ranking in that category. Bradley is the only school in Illinois listed in the top 10.

Bradley’s Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering and Technology Department once again earned a second place national ranking from the publication. Among private universities offering master’s degrees, Bradley’s business program is ranked in the top 10 percent.

“For more than 10 years, Bradley has been ranked in the top 10 Midwestern universities, and we take pride in that distinction,” said Bill Engelbrecht, Bradley’s vice president for advancement. “Our faculty and staff work tirelessly to ensure our students are enriched by the Bradley experience.”

U.S.News & World Report’s rankings are based on data collected about student retention, faculty resources, student selectivity, financial resources, graduation rate, and alumni giving. Bradley tied for fourth place with Drake University in the 2006 edition. The formula used to determine schools that offer the best value relates a school’s academic quality as indicated by its ranking, to the net cost of attendance for a student receiving the average level of need-based financial aid.

BU Braves

Mascot mania

On April 28, the NCAA Executive Committee announced that Bradley University could retain its nickname, Braves. While this decision allows the University to continue this important tradition, Bradley does not have a mascot (character that represents the teams) or an athletic logo that capitalizes on the Bradley University name and enhances the University’s strategic marketing capabilities.

Bradley President David Broski has appointed a mascot selection committee to solicit ideas for a Bradley Braves mascot from Bradley students, faculty, staff, alumni, and members of the community. The committee has established two requirements: the new mascot (1) must equally represent both genders and (2) must not have any Native American representation. Ideally, the Braves’ mascot would be representative of Bradley University’s and the region’s history or tradition; original
(not used by many schools); visually aggressive but not frightening; and compatible with the University’s colors of red and white. Mascot information is available and will be updated at bradley.edu/bravesmascot.