Undergraduate Excellence Recognized with the Bronze Tablet

Illinois-based chief of emergency medicine Dr. Morris Kharasch provides management in patient care for four emergency departments at NorthShore University HealthSystem. Prior to earning his MD in 1988, Dr. Morris Kharasch received an undergraduate degree at the University of Illinois, where he earned inclusion in the university’s Bronze Tablet.

Dating back to 1925, the Bronze Tablet is the University of Illinois’ way to recognize undergraduate students achieving consistent high honors. As outlined in the university’s Student Code, qualified students must maintain a grade point average of at least 3.5 through the semester preceding graduation. Additionally, each student named on the Bronze Tablet must rank within the top 3 percent of their graduating class. Transfer students are eligible to receive this honor, provided they meet two additional requirements concerning comparative grade point averages and a minimum amount of completed semester hours at the University of Illinois.

Each year, a new Bronze Tablet inscribed with the names of students receiving the honor is displayed in the Main Library. Should they wish to commemorate their achievements by displaying this honor at home, undergraduates have the option of purchasing prints at the Illini Union Bookstore.

National Alliance for Mental Illness Hosts National Convention

A former professor at Northwestern University, Dr. Morris Kharasch serves as president of the professional staff at NorthShore University HealthSystem in Evanston, Illinois. To help him stay informed about changes in the medical industry, Dr. Morris Kharasch maintains membership with the National Alliance for Mental Illness.

As the largest mental health organization in the country, the National Alliance for Mental Illness (NAMI) seeks to improve the lives of those affected by mental illness. Begun in 1979, the NAMI educates the public and advocates for people with mental illness at various events and activities.

Each year, the NAMI hosts a convention for members to gather and share ideas. The 2016 event, scheduled for July 6 through 9 at the Sheraton Denver Downtown in Colorado, has a theme of “Act. Advocate. Achieve.” This conference features the latest research as well as clinicians offering information and tools to advance recovery from mental illness, policy makers presenting strategies and tactics for improving the nation’s mental health system, and people living with mental illness and their families sharing their own perspectives.

Attendees can also partake in networking opportunities to learn how to improve the lives of those living with mental illness and how it affects their families. Continuing education credits are also available for nurses, licensed counselors, and social workers.                            

Friends of the Green Bay Trail Seek Volunteers to Maintain Foliage

A graduate of Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine, Dr. Morris Kharasch is the president of the professional staff at NorthShore University HealthSystem in Evanston, Illinois. Active in his community, Dr. Morris Kharasch supports several local organizations, such as the Friends of the Green Bay Trail.

A volunteer-based nonprofit organization, the Friends of the Green Bay Trail maintain healthy environmental habitats along the path. The Friends do this by removing invasive species of plants and replacing them with native foliage. This pedestrian trail, created in 1965, runs parallel to the Metra Union Pacific North commuter railroad, where it passes through Chicago’s North Shore communities.

Since it relies heavily on volunteers, this organization seeks individuals to work on the trail. Each month on the second Saturday, the organization hosts a trail workday that runs from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. and meets in Glencoe, Illinois. Volunteers bring work gloves so they can plant foliage, water plants, remove weeds and invasive species, and sow wildflower seeds. They typically work together in groups ranging from five to 25 people. Off the trail, they nurture seedlings in a greenhouse and attend park district or village meetings.