In Memoriam
DR. LORI ANN RUSSELL-CHAPIN | NOV. 7, 1951 – MARCH 13, 2024
Dr. Lori Ann Russell-Chapin dedicated her life to uniting the wonders of the heart and the powers of the mind. As the chairperson and associate dean of the College of Education and Health Sciences and co-director of the Center for Collaborative Brain Research, it is an understatement to say Russell-Chapin was an integral part of Bradley’s academic community. In her nearly 40-year career with Bradley University, she has had a lasting impact on generations of students and colleagues, serving as a mentor, friend, and inspiration to many.
Her passion and devotion to counseling, education, research, and neurocounseling made her a natural teacher and gifted healer. During her tenure at Bradley University, Russell-Chapin earned many accolades, including the American Mental Health Counseling Association’s Counselor of the Year, the American Counseling Association’s Trailblazer Award, the Burlington Northern Foundation Jr. Faculty Achievement Award for Teaching, the Rothberg Award for Professional Excellence in Research, the Putnam Award for Excellence in Teaching, a Caterpillar Professorship and being named an American Counseling Association Fellow.
Perhaps her most outstanding and enduring achievements are the countless individuals impacted and helped by those she taught to be professional counselors. Russell-Chapin’s spirit lives on in all of us lucky enough to have known her.
According to her colleague, Professor Emerita Dr. Nancy Sherman, Russell- Chapin was a mentor and cherished friend. “With her mentorship, I became the best professional counselor educator I could be. As chair and associate dean, she established the counseling department’s accreditation, online program, and development into a nationally recognized program.”
Russell-Chapin used the following quote in her signature from Nikosi Johnson, a 12-year-old AIDS advocate in South Africa, describing how she approached life, love and work: Do all you can with what you have in the time you have in the place you are.
She is survived by her husband Ted, daughter Elissa and her partner Adam Morris, son Jamieson and his wife Jody (Vance), and their four daughters, Shelby, Mackenzie, Haylee and Ryleigh.
Her memory may be honored by supporting professional counseling students through her endowed scholarship at Bradley University. Gifts may be made to the “Drs. Lori Russell-Chapin and Theodore Chapin Endowed Award for Neurocounseling at Bradley University.”