Meet Gibson City-raised, UI-educated Mandi Alt, who spent 20 years as a senior manager at Martin Hood before returning to her alma mater to teach tax classes in 2018.
Since returning, the senior instructor of accountancy at the Gies College of Business has been honored with the Anita Feller Memorial Award for Excellence in Accountancy Education and a Campus Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching, the latter for “designing new learning activities to maximize student engagement, stimulating active discussion in class and using a model of coaching and mentoring to inspire students toward mastery of technical and critical thinking skills in the area of taxation.”
She’s a proud mom of three boys — one finishing his Ph.D. in biochemistry at Loyola, another who’ll graduate in the spring from Illinois with a degree in math and computer science and a third who’s a senior in high school.
The fan of live music, reading, cooking and her new puppy, Georgia, took Editor Jeff D’Alessio for a virtual tour of some of her most memorable places and spaces on and around the UI campus.
This isn’t exactly on campus, but I would take them to visit the Gies Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program, which is hosted at Salt & Light from February through mid-April.
It is a wonderful way to see the campus community connect with the local community as students from the Gies College of Business meet with taxpayers to help them through the tax filing process.
I love watching my students connect with members of the Champaign-Urbana community and likewise.
I interviewed with now dean of the Gies College of Business, Brooke Elliott, in 360 Wohlers Hall when she served as head of the Department of Accountancy.
I remember sitting across the desk from her wearing her signature Illinois T-shirt, blazer and tennis shoes and thinking: This is the place for me.
South Farms. I grew up in a small town in Ford County, and the open space and the farming community feel remind me of home.
My favorite room to teach in is 3001 Business Instructional Facility. The Gies Classroom Technology Team has done a fantastic job with the setup in that space. There are multiple screens, projectors and monitors to allow for easy use of PowerPoint, tablet whiteboard space and instructor teaching notes all at one time.
It makes my lectures flow so smoothly.
The steps and plaza on the Quad side of Foellinger Hall. Whether you are looking at it across the Quad from the Illini Union or looking out over the Quad from there, the views are stunning.
It is one of my favorite places to stand and take in the energy of campus on a warm spring day.
When I was here as an undergrad — a long time ago! — I loved to study at the Main Library. There was an area in one back corner that was one of the quietest places on campus.
Illinois basketball. What a game against Texas Tech. The State Farm Center was electric.
I love the margherita pizza from Timpone’s.
I love the little courtyard behind Wohlers Hall. It is a quiet little spot with beautiful trees and bushes. The perfect place to eat lunch on a warm spring day.
