Save the bees! DePaul grad giving away pollinator plants to help Rusty Patch Bumble Bee population By FOX 32 Digital Staff Published DePaul graduate student helping save bees one plant at a time A DePaul University graduate student is on a mission to save the bees, specifically a native Illinois bee that is endangered. CHICAGO - A DePaul University graduate student is on a mission to save the bees, specifically a native Illinois bee that is endangered. And you can help, right in your own backyard. Urban ecologist Libby Shafer is working to save the "Rusty Patched Bumble Bee." Their population has declined 87 percent in the last 20 years because of loss of habitat, driven by climate change and development, among other things.