Their careers and lives are shockingly different but their stories all begin the same—an education from UIC set them on a path to success. Alaa Al Aswany, MS ‘85 Dent, Shoujie Fu, MBA ‘00, and Peter Harvey Hackett, MD ‘73, are recipients of the 2010 Alumni Achievement Award. Mary Ingram, MS ‘81 Nursing, was awarded the 2010 Alumni Humanitarian Award, and Gloria M. Curtin ‘74 ED, MED ‘80 and Arthur Jones, MD ’79 were awarded the City Partner Award. William Hawes ‘68 ENG, MS ‘69 ENG, received the 2010 Distinguished Service Award. All were celebrated at the Alumni Five Awards Dinner on October 15.
Each man and woman had a compelling story to tell. Al Aswany may be one of the best-selling Egyptian novelists, but that won’t make him give up his dentistry practice. Dr. Hackett earned his degree in one of the flattest regions in the country, but found his true calling in high-altitude medicine in the mountains of Nepal. Hawes is dedicated to keeping the rich history of UIC alive for the generations to come by sharing his experiences at the Navy Pier and Circle campuses, while Ingram has worked diligently to give Native American people good access to healthcare.
The UIC CBA’s own Shoujie Fu shared his Liautaud MBA story with the evening’s audience. He recalled the role reversal of businessman to student in the middle of his career, but he quickly took to the challenges and opportunities afforded him by UIC Liautaud’s close proximity to Chicago’s business community. His international experience at UIC propelled him quickly up the ranks at Honda China, where he now serves as chairman.
He used his business skills and leadership abilities to expand the company to include two production plants producing 360,000 automobiles annually and employing 7,000 people. He is also a firm supporter of environmental protection efforts and has implemented green technology at the company’s Zengcheng plant, making it the first of its kind in China to have zero water pollution emissions. His commitment to the environment has earned the company the honor of being voted Most Respected Enterprise in China for two years in a row.
The evening’s awards program was an opportunity to showcase the diversity of both the programs and the people of UIC. We congratulate all this year’s recipients for their achievements, and we look forward to honoring more successful UIC College of Business Administration grads like Mr. Fu in the future.