Champaign Mayor Deborah Frank Feinen, left, the 2026 Simon-Edgar Award recipient, with (from left) Linda R. Baker, Paul Simon Public Policy Institute interim director; former U.S. Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood; Brenda Edgar, and keynote speaker, Chris Reynolds, Bradley University Athletics Director. (Photo provided)
August 05, 2026
Champaign Mayor Deborah Frank Feinen receives 2026 Simon-Edgar Award
CARBONDALE, Ill. — Deborah Frank Feinen, the mayor of Champaign, Illinois, was selected as the recipient of the 2026 Paul Simon-Jim Edgar Statesmanship Award for her years of hands-on, forward-looking leadership.
Now in her third term as mayor, Feinen’s journey in Champaign city government started in 2006 when she joined the city council as an at-large member. Feinen served three terms before winning the mayor’s seat in 2015. Feinen previously spent 14 years on the Champaign County Board, where she became known for consensus building and innovative thinking.
Former U.S. Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood, who now leads the Edgar Fellows Program, and Matt Collinsworth from Southern Illinois University Carbondale’s Paul Simon Public Policy Institute, announced Feinen’s selection at the annual dinner of the Edgar Fellows program in Champaign on Aug. 4.
During her time as mayor, Feinen:
- Served as Illinois Municipal League president in 2024–2025.
- Was selected for the prestigious Bloomberg Harvard City Leadership Initiative Class of 2021, a national leadership program for mayors.
- Led the push to establish Champaign’s Equity Engagement Department, which added mental health co-responder services, and developed a Homelessness Prevention Blueprint to assist the city’s unhoused residents.
- Simplified the permit process for new developments, pushed for tax increment financing (TIF) districts, and championed business-friendly policies.
- Oversaw large infrastructure projects, including the Garden Hills Drainage Project, the reconstruction of Kirby Avenue Bridge, and the first phase of the Downtown Plaza.
- Received the Athena Award, given by Champaign County Chamber of Commerce for her professional skill, community service, and leadership.
The Paul Simon-Jim Edgar Statesmanship Award is presented annually to a state or local official in Illinois who stands out for having vision, courage, compassion, effectiveness, civility, and the ability to bring both sides together. The award spotlights the best of Illinois leadership and inspires others in public service.
The award was created in 2020 by former Illinois Gov. Jim Edgar and John Shaw, then-director of the Paul Simon Public Policy Institute, with the first award handed out in 2021. After Edgar’s passing in September 2025, LaHood took on a leading role with the Edgar Fellows Program.