A volunteer puts the finishing touches on a tree that is in one of more than a dozen rooms in the 1879 Ellwood House mansion decorated for the holidays. The mansion will hold its holiday weekend Nov. 30-Dec. 2.

COUNTY

History center wins state honor

The Illinois Association of Museums has honored the DeKalb County History Center for its exhibit, “Adventures To and From Sycamore.”

An Award of Excellence for Best Practices from the association recognizes work of excellent quality that uses available resources well, is creative, and meets professional standards. The review committee said it was impressed with the center’s “Kid Historian” video and liked how the project included an Altrusa grant that provided copies of the book “Tetro Breve” to local high schools and libraries, the release said.

This is the ninth Award of Excellence in exhibits for the former Sycamore History Museum and first for the DeKalb County History Center. The award-winning exhibit is no longer on display, but an online version is available at dekalbcountyhistory.org.

The DeKalb County History Center is located at 1730 N. Main St. Its hours are from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday and Saturday. Admission for members and children younger than 14 is free, while adults cost $5 a person.

For information, call 815-895-5762 or visit dekalbcountyhistory.org.

DeKALB

Holiday weekend at mansion

The Ellwood House Museum will hold its holiday weekend celebration Nov. 30-Dec. 2. Visitors can guide themselves through the house, 509 N. First St., DeKalb. More than a dozen rooms in the 1879 mansion have been decorated by volunteers, community organizations and local businesses. Tour guides will be stationed throughout the house to share its history. Other highlights include live music, visits with Santa and refreshments.

Holiday weekend hours are 6-9 p.m. Nov. 30, 1-5 p.m. Dec. 1 and Dec. 2. Admittance to the mansion will end 30 minutes before closing.

Tickets may be purchased at www.ellwoodhouse.org or in person in the Ellwood House Visitor Center. Tickets also can be purchased during the event in the Ellwood House Visitor Center. The cost is $10 for adults and $5 for youth ages 6-17. Children under 6 and Ellwood House members are admitted free.

NUI to open new tech research center

A research center that will harness and promote cutting-edge scholarship at the intersection of education and technology – including the use of robots – will open next year at Northern Illinois University.

The Cross-disciplinary Research on Engaging Advanced Technology for Education, or CREATE, research center at the university aims to address current and urgent challenges in education for learners of all ages and backgrounds.

Yanghee Kim, technology research chairwoman within NIU’s College of Education, who will be the CREATE center’s director, said her career focus has been to see if technology initiatives and programs she has helped implement were effective in solving problems in education.

MALTA

Art gallery showcases faces of Kish college community

Portraits of people who make up the Kishwaukee College community are the subjects of a recently opened art exhibit. “Faces of Kish” can be seen at the Kishwaukee College Art Gallery, a show of the artwork of Miles Halpern, assistant professor of art at the college.

“Faces of Kish” features watercolor portraits Halpern painted from August 2017 through November of this year. He conducted 15-minute portrait sessions on campus. Various faculty, staff and students participated in the sessions. Halpern’s work captured the global aspects of the college, painting portraits of students from Haiti, Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Cameroon and Mexico.

The show has about 170 works. The portraits were painted with watercolor in a singular color of the subject’s choosing. Halpern chose to work in watercolor because the medium has energy and spontaneity and offers no opportunity for erasing or editing.

The exhibition runs through Dec. 11. There will be a closing reception and 50^th anniversary celebration of the college at 4 p.m. Dec. 11 at the gallery. The Art Gallery is open from 10 a.m.–2 p.m. Mondays-Thursdays and is on the campus of the college at 21193 Malta Road, Malta. For more information on “Faces of Kish,” contact Kimberly Jordal at kjordal@kish.edu.

WATERMAN

Holiday train offers rides for 25^th year

The 25^th annual Waterman Holiday Lights Train celebration will run Nov. 24 to Dec. 23 in Lions Community Park, 435 S. Birch St., Waterman. More than 300,000 lights will be on display and free train rides will be given. Hours are 5-9 p.m. Fridays, 4:30-9 p.m. Saturdays and 4:30-8 p.m. Sundays. Santa will visit 6-8 p.m. Fridays, and 5:30-8 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays. Hours will be extended Dec. 19-Dec. 23. Admission is free. For more information, go to pertestrain.com or call 630-360-6523.

MAPLE PARK

Village promotes staffer to public works director

Maple Park Board of Trustees has hired a new public works director. He is Lou Larson, the village’s current building inspector. He will begin his new job Dec. 3.

Larson has more than 25 years of experience in municipal government, and years of construction experience. He holds an associate’s degree from Kishwaukee College and a bachelor of science degree in education from Northern Illinois University. 

From October 1993 to June 2014, Larson worked for DeKalb, in the city’s building, community development and public works department. While there, he supervised staff and projects, worked on budgeting and snow removal at the airport.

–DeKalb County News Briefs–