Alumni Military Tribute

THE DEPARTMENT OF ECONOMICS WOULD LIKE TO EXTEND A SPECIAL THANK YOU TO ALL OUR ALUMNI WHO HAVE SERVED OUR COUNTRY. THANK YOU FOR ALL THAT YOU DO.

Major Ronald Bussey - U.S. Marine Corps (1971-1991)

A 20 year veteran of the Marine Corps, Ronald Bussey proudly represented his family, friends and school. A helicopter pilor, Major Bussey worked with many proud Marines who gratefully served their country.

Brian Fennelly - U.S. Navy (1983-1987)

Prior to his arrival at Illinois, Brian was proud to serve four years as a Cryptologic Technician in the U.S. Navy, operating primarily in Northeast Asia.

Robert Haddick - U.S. Marine Corp (1982-1991)

A 9 year veteran of the Marine Corps, Robert served as a Infantry Company Commander and Battalion Staff Officer in infantry and field artillery units in active duty and reserve regiments. He was deployed to Asia and Africa on security force assistance training operations with partner military forces and he participated in the Personnel Reliability Program related to command and control duties.

Robert completed a Bachelor of Arts in Economics and also an MBA fromthe University of Illinois at Urbana-Chamapaign. He has published extensively and had an impressive career in the aeronatuical and research fields. He is currently a Senior Fellow with the Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies.

Michael Kolbuk - U.S. Army (1971-1974)

I received a notice to take a draft physical in Chicago during April of my senior year at Illinois. I wound up entering the Army in September 1971 making $134/month with my Economics degree. After 37 months of service mostly in Europe I was discharged in October 1974. My work career began as a cost accountant for National Can, and I spent 33 years at various manufacturing companies (all gone or merged away) such as Northwest Industries, Union Tank Car and Outboard Marine Corporation. I began my present position as CFO of Horizon Hospice & Palliative Care in 2007.

Major John Krysa- U.S. Marine Corps (1999-Present)

Commissioned through the NROTC program at the University of Illinois in 1999. Served in Okinawa, Japan; Twentynine Palms, CA; Cherry Point, NC; Quantico, VA; and again in Cherry Point, NC. Deployed once in support of Operation NOBLE EAGLE, twice to Afghanistan in support of Operation ENDURING FREEDOM, and twice to Iraq in support of Operation IRAQI FREEDOM. In addition to earning a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from the University of Illinois, I also earned a Masters of Science in Management from Troy State University and a Masters of Military Studies from Marine Corps University.

Maurice Cecil Mackey Jr. U.S. Air Force (1956-1957), U.S. Army, U.S. Navy, Alabama National Guard

Cecil started college at age 16, attending Georgia Tech for a year. He then transferred to the University of Alabama where he received his B.A. and M.A. in economics. He earned his Ph.D. in economics from the University of Illinois, where he was also an assistant professor of economics from 1955-1956. Cecil received his law degree from the University of Alabama, while concurrently teaching as assistant professor of law from 1957-1958, and studied post-graduate law at Harvard University from 1958-1959. He then returned to the University of Alabama to be an assistant law professor from 1959-1962. As a proud alumnus, in 2009, Cecil established the M. Cecil Mackey Endowed Scholarship in the School of Law at The University of Alabama.

Cecil's military service included the Alabama National Guard; the U.S. Army; the U.S. Navy-receiving the "Outstanding Cadet" honor as the top airman in his Naval Air Flight class; and the U.S. Air Force. While on active duty with the U.S. Air Force in 1956-1957, Cecil developed the economics department and was associate professor at the United States Air Force Academy.

Cecil served several years with the U.S. federal government in Washington, DC during the Kennedy and Johnson administrations. In 1962, he was assistant counsel for the U.S. Senate Subcommittee on Antitrust and Monopoly chaired by Senator Estes Kefauver. In 1963, he became director of the Office of Policy Development for the Federal Aviation Agency (later called the Federal Aviation Administration). In 1965, Cecil was director of the Office of Transportation Policy for the U.S. Department of Commerce. In 1967, he helped establish the U.S. Department of Transportation, and was named its first assistant secretary for policy development. Cecil received the Arthur S. Flemming Award in 1967, which honors outstanding men and women in the federal government.

After leaving federal government service, Cecil pursued a career in university administration. In 1969, after a short stint as visiting professor at the University of Maryland, he was selected as executive vice president and professor of law at Florida State University. In 1971, he was chosen to be the second full-time president of the University of South Florida. In 1976, Cecil moved to Lubbock, Texas to become president and professor of law at Texas Tech University. From 1979-1985, he was president and professor of economics at Michigan State University. In conjunction with his work as a university president, he served terms as president and director of the American Association of State Colleges and Universities.

From 1985 until the time of his death (February 8, 2018), Cecil remained a full-time economics professor at Michigan State University

Source:  http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/tampabaytimes/obituary.aspx?pid=188195879

Other links: 

  • http://archives.msu.edu/collections/presidents_mackey_m.php
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M._Cecil_Mackey
  • https://msutoday.msu.edu/news/2018/maurice-cecil-mackey-jr-msus-16th-president-dies/
Kenneth Sullivan - U.S. Marine Corps (2013-Present)
Alexander Sunday - U.S Army (1966-1968), Illinois National Guard (1968-1970)
Samuel Weinstein - U.S. Army (2014-Present)

Samuel graduated from Illinois with a BA in Economics in 2014. Shortly after graduating, he enlisted in the U.S. Army as a 12B Combat Engineer. After OSUT (one station unit training, a combination of basic training and advanced individual training) he was given the opportunity to go to Airborne School to become a paratrooper. He graduated from airborne school and is now with the 173rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 54th Brigade Engineer Batallion where they are currently conducting NATO missions all throughout Europe, mainly the Baltic states and Ukraine. He is currently a specialist E4 and is planning to become a noncommissioned officer, graduate from Ranger and Sapper school and eventually become a commissioned officer. 

 

Joshua White - U.S. Air Force (2003- Present)
Chris Williams - U.S. Navy (1997-Present)

Note: This is not a comprehensive list, historically this was not data kept on our alumni. If you are affiliated with the Economics Department at the University of Illinois-Urbana and have served with the military, please fill out this short survey by clicking here or contact us at econ-alumni@illinois.edu