2011 Fifty for the Future Winners Recognized at the 5th Annual Celebration

50 Students From Illinois Recognized as Technology Industry's Best and Brightest Students


CHICAGO, IL--(Marketwire - Oct 3, 2011) - The Illinois Technology Foundation (ITF), the philanthropic arm of the Illinois Technology Association (ITA), a not-for-profit organization dedicated to fueling the technology workforce, recognized the top 50 Illinois technology students for 2011. Over 200 people celebrated the award of the 2011 Fifty for the Future certificates at the Chicago Cultural Center on September 27, 2011. Awardees, along with their parents and friends, nominators, judges and other community leaders were present at the ceremony. This represents the fifth year of the event.

The following are the names of the students and their respective school.

Graduate Students 2010 Winners

Shivam Agarwal, University of Illinois at Chicago
Anushka Anand, University of Illinois at Chicago
Lisa Gandy, Northwestern University
Habiba Habiba, University of Illinois at Chicago
Konrad Kociszewski, Robert Morris University
Nick Mangiaracina, Northwestern University
David Miller, Southern Illinois University Carbondale
Shawn O'Banion, Northwestern University
Eric Olson, University of Chicago
Sandeep Ravula, University of Illinois at Chicago
Elliott Rouse, Northwestern University
Borna Safabakhsh, Chicago Booth
Alberto Tretti, University of Illinois at Chicago

Undergraduate 2010 Winners

William Anderson, Tribeca Flashpoint Media Arts Academy
Kyanne Baker, Illinois State University
Kevin Banks, DeVry University
Michael Berger, Tribeca Flashpoint Media Arts Academy
Alexander Borre, Tribeca Flashpoint Media Arts Academy
Laura Bowman, Illinois State University
Michael Brazeau, Illinois State University
Joseph Budlovsky, Tribeca Flashpoint Media Arts Academy
Brisbely Coriano, DeVry University
Stacy Economy, Illinois Institute of Technology
Andrew Erickson, Illinois State University
Melissa Estrada, DeVry University
Rafay Faruqi, Northwestern University
Muhammed Fazeel, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Sebastian Gosztyla, DePaul University
Emily Greenquist, Tribeca Flashpoint Media Arts Academy
Shawn Hamm, DeVry University
Aaron Harris, Illinois State University
Isabelle Ji, Northwestern University
Andrew Lambert, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Cory Levy, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Michelle Ludwig, DePaul University
Urba Mandrekar, Illinois Institute of Technology
Darrell Millar, Robert Morris University
Christopher Murphy, Illinois State University
Jonathan Naber, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Rayyan Najeeb, Northwestern University
Roger Najera, DePaul University
Juan Ortiz, DeVry University
Samuel Pasquesi, Tribeca Flashpoint Media Arts Academy
Tanya Prabhakar, Illinois Instutute of Technology
Bryan Quach, Loyola University
Jackson Quick, Tribeca Flashpoint Media Arts Academy
Chen Shi, University of Illinois at Chicago
Kamil Slowikowski, Loyola University
Steven Sprieser, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Cecilia Story, DePaul University
Samantha Strasser, Northwestern University
Alvin Tan, Northwestern University
Eric Trisilla, Robert Morris University
Ruonan Wen, Roosevelt University
Brad Wilson, Southern Illinois University
Eric Zupevec, Moraine Valley Community College

Chicago Public Schools

Joshua Galoway, Chicago Public Schools
Jonathan Johnson, Chicago Public Schools
The-Minh Ly, Chicago Public Schools
Tiffany Witkowski, Chicago Public Schools

"We are very proud of this year's awardees; they represent the brightest and most promising students in our community. We wish them much success in the future," said William R. Waas, chairman of the Illinois Technology Foundation.

The event provided student winners an opportunity to meet and network with the judges and local business leaders.

The annual event, Fifty For the Future, continues to build awareness of the talent of tomorrow for the Illinois' technology ecosystem. The Foundation is proud to carry on the tradition of highlighting and supporting the future workforce of Illinois.

About the Illinois Technology Foundation
The Illinois Technology Foundation's mission is to support the development of a technology talent pipeline that begins in elementary school, is refined in high school, and is fully developed in our region's higher education graduates. The Foundation facilitates relationships and efforts across industry, academia, students, and government, developing and managing targeted programs within the talent pipeline. Through action, leadership, and collaboration, the Foundation supports and nurtures the technology talent to ensure a viable and a regional wealth creating economy. The Foundation is the philanthropy arm of the Illinois Technology Association (ITA), a membership organization of more than 500 Illinois technology companies who support the development of a stronger technology talent pipeline in the region. Additional information is available at www.illinoistechfoundation.org.

Contact Information:

Contact:
Dorothy Radke
Marketing & Communications
ITA
+1.312.924.1044
dradke@illinoistech.org