of University
Professors
UIUC Chapter Members
Chapter Officers
Carol Symes
President
History
symes@illinois.edu
Carol Symes is a Professor of History and Director of the Program in Medieval Studies, with additional appointments in Classics and Theatre. She earned the BA at Yale, an M.Litt at Oxford, and the PhD at Harvard; she also trained at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School and is a member of Actors’ Equity Association, the labor union representing theatre professionals in the U.S. A member of the faculty at Illinois since 2002, she has led or served on numerous department, college, and campus-wide committees, and is a current member of the LAS Executive Committee, the Senate Committee on Committees, and the University Senates Conference. As an advisor in the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research in the Humanities, Arts, and Related Fields, she has worked with hundreds of faculty colleagues to develop research plans, grant applications, and book projects. She served as Vice President of the local AAUP Chapter from August 2023 until August 2026.
Carol Tilley
Vice President
Information Sciences
ctilley@illinois.edu
Carol Tilley is an Associate Professor of Information Sciences with additional appointments in Gender & Women’s Studies, the Center for Writing Studies, and the Lemann Center for Brazilian Studies. A member of the faculty at Illinois since 2007, she has led or served on numerous college and campus committees. Since 2019, she has served on the campus Faculty Advisory Committee. Tilley has served as a judge for several comics art awards including the Eisner Awards (2016) and the Small Press Festival’s Ignatz Awards (2025). Additionally she served as President of the Comics Studies Society (2018-2019), hosting the group’s inaugural conferences here at Illinois. She has served as Vice President of the local AAUP Chapter since August 2026.
Bill Williamson
Co-Treasurer/Co-Secretary
H.F. (Bill) Williamson is Associate Professor Emeritus in Economics and Emeritus Associate Dean for Undergraduate Affairs in the College of Business. He also served as Vice Chair and Director of Undergraduate Studies in the Department.
Williamson has served in several governance roles. These include membership on the following UIUC Senate Committees, where (*) indicates he served as Chair: Admissions*; Committee on Committees; Conference on Conduct Governance (CCG); Educational Policy; Faculty and Academic Staff Benefits (FB); Senate Executive Committee; Student Discipline*; and University Student Life*. Currently, he is a member of FB.
Within the UIUC Chapter of the AAUP, he has served as Treasurer and member of the Policy Committee for over forty years and, more recently, as Secretary/Treasurer.
Richard Laugesen
Co-Treasurer/Co-Secretary
Mathematics
laugesen@illinois.edu
Richard Laugesen joined the Mathematics Department at the University of Illinois in 1997. He believes higher education is a public good, and that academic freedom is essential to our ability as faculty members at the university to effectively serve our students and the broader society. Outside of work, he and his wife enjoy the intellectual and cultural attractions of Champaign-Urbana.
Robin Kar
Immediate Past President
Philosophy and Law
Robin Kar (Rob) is a Professor of Law and Philosophy. He received his BA from Harvard College, his JD from Yale Law School, and his PhD from the University of Michigan in philosophy. He works at the intersection of law and philosophy, having made award-winning contributions to the study of evolutionary game theory, moral and legal psychology, legal philosophy, and contract theory. He has clerked for the Honorable Justice Sonia Sotomayor and the Honorable John G. Koeltl in Manhattan.
Kar has served in significant leadership roles throughout campus, including Chair and Vice-Chair of the Academic Senate (at the university level) and Chair and Vice-Chair of the University Senates Conference (at the system level). He chaired the Committee on Faculty Sexual Misconduct and the Working Group that produced the System’s Guiding Principles on Fostering Healthy Relationships throughout the System. He is a 2022-2023 fellow with the President’s Executive Leadership Program. He served as the President of the local AAUP Chapter from August 2023 until August 2026.
Policy Committee Members
Hadi Esfahani (Business)
Lewis Hopkins (Urban & Regional Planning)
Robin Kar (Law & Philosophy)
Richard Laugesen (Mathematics)
Cary Nelson (English)
David O’Brien (Art History)
Robert Dale Parker (English)
Dana Rabin (History)
Daniel Steward (Sociology)
Leslie Struble (Civil & Environmental Engineering)
Carol Symes (History)
Carol Tilley (Information Sciences)
Donald Uchtmann (ACES)
H.F. (Bill) Williamson (Economics)
American Association of University Professors — UIUC Chapter
1001 S. Wright St.
Champaign, IL 61820
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