Rebecca Monroe Veach was born July 11, 1942, to Karl and Mary (Meni) Monroe. Rebecca grew up in Collinsville, Illinois. She would start her career in education by attending Albion College where she was a part of Delta Zeta. She would finish her undergraduate at Sangamon State University and obtain a master’s in history from the school. She would go on to work as the assistant to the Vice President for Academic Affairs for nearly twenty years. She would later become the Director of Undergraduate Medical Education at the University of Illinois Chicago. She even authored a book, “Growing Up with Springfield” as well as editing multiple histories of Abraham Lincoln and medical texts. In 2001, she retired and moved to Columbus where she and her husband became active in their church as well as area Democrats.

She married Gerald Veach, and they had three children, Timothy, Matthew, and John. She died February 10, 2015, in Columbus.

The Vice President for Academic Affairs oversees the academic policies at the university, that their quality of the faculty, academic policies, and student body help maintain educational excellence. The VPAA and the Division of Academic Affairs at UIS now comprise four colleges, The colleges of Business and Management, Health, Science, and Technology, Liberal Arts and Social Sciences, and Public Affairs. They also oversee the library, and the Center for State Policy and Leadership. Smaller departments included in the division are Center for Academic Success and Advising, Graduate Education, Graduate Assistantships, Information Technology Services, Institutional Research, Online, Professional, and Engaged Learning, Research and Innovation, Undergraduate Education, and Institutional Effectiveness.