A lot of attention is paid to our history at Knox, particularly regarding Abraham Lincoln, but we sometimes forget that there are two professors who help to keep this legacy alive, breathing new life into our 16th president with their ongoing research: Rod Davis and Doug Wilson, co-directors of the Lincoln Studies Center. This spring, they received the inaugural Legacy Award from the Abraham Lincoln Institute in recognition of their achievements. They also received the Gilder Lehrman Lincoln Prize Special Achievement Award; the only other past recipient is Steven Spielberg. We sure are #KnoxProud of our resident Lincoln scholars.

A 180-year old campus with many historic buildings has its share of maintenance issues, including the notorious steam pipes underneath campus. These pipes have caused frustration for many dedicated facilities employees through the years, but this spring takes the cake-a steam pipe on the east side of Old Main sprang a leak, literally cooking the ground and various cables around it. Weeks of work and yards of new sod later, the pipe was fixed in time for Commencement. Let's all give a big shout out to our facilities folks for their good work (and cross our fingers that no new leaks spring anytime soon).

Welp, after trying to write this section about five different times, we figured out something . . . we're burned out on Burned Out. At least for this issue. Oh, there was plenty we could write about, from the ongoing saga in the Illinois State Capitol to recent polls regarding perceptions on higher education, but it just wasn't happening. Instead, let's all think about a few more things were Fired Up about and see how that feels . . . like how amazing the new Whitcomb Art Building looks in the spring or the fact that the new Prairie Fire logo received a CASE Silver Award for visual identity programs. Ah, that feels much better.