SPRINGFIELD – University of Illinois Springfield students earned awards and were elected to offices at the Model Illinois Government (MIG) simulation, held Feb. 28-March 2 at the Illinois State Capitol.
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Abbie Hasty of Alton was one of the UIS delegation award winners.
The UIS delegation won five individual awards:
- Melody Colonel of Chester won the Outstanding Member of the Senate award.
- Maria Rodriguez Spengler of Santa Cruz, Bolivia, won the Outstanding Whip in the Senate award.
- Samuel Moore of Moweaqua won the Outstanding Committee Person in the Senate award.
- Abbie Hasty of Alton won the Outstanding Committee Chair in the House award.
- Timothy Malit of Springfield won the Outstanding Lobbyist award.
UIS students competed against peers from 15 colleges and universities across Illinois. The simulation allows participants to serve as legislators, staffers, lobbyists, journalists and executive branch officials. Throughout the weekend, UIS students debated legislation, amended bills in committee and ran for election.
“I'm incredibly proud of our students,” said Ken Owen, MIG faculty advisor and associate professor of history. “Students didn't just learn valuable lessons about how government operates - they learned about preparation, public speaking, leadership and teamwork. The team supported each other wonderfully throughout the weekend, and their success is richly deserved.”
Additionally, four UIS students were elected to the executive board for the 2026 simulation:
- Fiel Wilson of Homewood was elected governor.
- Caleb Grover of Stonington was elected secretary of state.
- John Kennedy of Oakdale was elected president of the Senate.
- Lucas Schilling of Valmeyer was elected speaker of the House.
During this year’s simulation, in the House of Representatives, Wilson served as speaker of the House, Hasty was majority leader, Ignat Striletskyi of Ukraine was majority whip and Schilling was minority assistant leader. In the Senate, Colonel was the majority leader, Rodriguez Spengler was the minority whip and Moore was the minority leader. Hasty, Kennedy and Schilling also served as committee chairs.
MIG members start preparing legislation during the fall term, polish their parliamentary skills and organize membership into a delegation for the spring conference.wa
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