Chicago Scholars

That's a wrap on the seventh summer of the Emerge Summer Career and Leadership Program with our partner, Invest For Kids. We're so incredibly proud of this year's class of Emerge Interns - the future is looking bright with these young leaders of Chicago on the way up 🌇

In celebration of National Intern Day today, we’re bringing you a blog post written by one of our very own Emerge Summer Career and Leadership Program Interns, Aniyah Davies, on how her internship this summer has shaped her future. This year’s Emerge program wraps up with the closing ceremony tomorrow, and our interns are walking away with an incredible experience, new connections, and friends for life – proving just how valuable internships can be, particularly for students from under-resourced communities. Head here for Aniyah's full post: https://bit.ly/3Speyua

Nazareth University is one of our newest Gold Plus Partners – and they’re pioneering a new relationship with our Scholars, too. Starting in the 2025-2026 application cycle, Nazareth will begin a direct admissions relationship with Chicago Scholars. That means that all high school Scholars who apply to Nazareth and have a 3.0 GPA will be automatically admitted. Scholars who choose to attend Nazareth will also receive $23,000 annual scholarships. Working with institutions invested in removing barriers for first-generation students is of the topmost importance for Chicago Scholars. This new partnership is a one-of-a-kind strategy that I hope will encourage other College Partners to consider,” said Andre Hebert, Managing Director of Partnerships at Chicago Scholars. “I also hope Scholars view Nazareth as a serious consideration as they narrow their college choice. We are so grateful for the partnership with Nazareth University and hope to see this grow and set new precedents.” Read more here: https://bit.ly/3LFzQjg

Here's to another successful year of our College Send Off Event for our Scholars headed off to School in just a few short weeks! Scholars were able to drop by to stock up on some much needed items for their dorm rooms - everything from shower caddies to bed sheets, and even some exclusive items this year like a smart TV and a microwave! We want to send a special thanks to our volunteers from West Monroe and the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago! Thanks to your support, we were able to: - Prep gift items for 50 Scholars to take to their respective college campuses - Write 250 “Best Wishes” letters to our Scholars going away to college this Fall - Clean and organize our Scholar Resource Room so that Scholars can enjoy this space while they are in our office - Get ready for our upcoming College Fair thanks to you preparing 500 bags and 130 signs Best of luck to our class of 2028 headed off to college! Next stop for the CS Dream Team - College Fair this Friday for our Class of 2029! 🤩

This Monday, our Chicago Scholars staff headed to Wrigley Field to celebrate the incoming class of Chicago Cubs Scholars, along with their alumni, as they honored their mentors, their college graduating class, and the support from players and families! We’re so proud to have celebrated with these amazing students and Cubs Charities. Send the new scholars and the Cubs congratulations on their amazing work!

Did you hear? Chicago Scholars is raffling off tickets to the biggest game of the year - when Chicago Fire FC takes on Inter Miami CF at Soldier Field, followed by a post-game concert with Jason Derulo! Grab your raffle ticket today for a chance to win the best seats in the house along with a parking pass! https://lnkd.in/eyKSkgPs

Thanks to one of our final Emerge Growth Lab hosts, Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. for hosting some of our interns today! As we look towards the finish line of this year's program, we're so thankful for the dedication of our career partners to open their doors to our interns and give them a chance to meet company leadership. Thanks to our friends at Duff & Phelps for such a great day! #CSEmerge2024

Finishing off our Volunteer of the Year awards, we’re so excited to announce that both McKinsey & Company and Magid Glove & Safety are receiving the award for Outstanding Company Service to Chicago Scholars for 2024. Each year with this award, we acknowledge companies or organizations that have shown outstanding commitment to community engagement and philanthropy through their partnership with us, and both McKinsey & Co and Magid have gone above and beyond in their work with our Scholars this year. Cynthia Liu, Senior Business Analyst at McKinsey said, “On a more personal level, I’ve spent most of my academic & professional career figuring out how I want to show up and contribute meaningfully to my community & the wider world. I also believe that education is one of the greatest enablers of a happy, healthy, and purposeful life, and everyone should have equitable access to it. I’m really happy knowing that our work with Chicago Scholars will make a student’s life better or provide them with opportunities they might not otherwise have.” Gigi Cohen, Executive Vice President at Magid said, “It’s very meaningful to receive this recognition from Chicago Scholars. We try to do our part to help end discrimination by investing in communities that need support, and working with and supporting Chicago Scholars helps us in those efforts. We work to develop strong, diverse, inclusive leaders and to create opportunities for team members to reach their full potential. The Rusty Cohen Legacy Scholarship, directly in partnership with Chicago Scholars, is one element in our ongoing efforts to make Magid a more inclusive, diverse, and equitable company.” Head to the link to read the full responses from both companies about what it means to them to receive the award, and about their ongoing commitment to Chicago Scholars and our work: https://bit.ly/3zQNtK1

I am profoundly honored to receive this award, which celebrates my dedication to mentoring, guiding, and advocating for students, and acknowledges the positive impact on their lives and futures. This recognition affirms my commitment to supporting students' educational journeys through Chicago Scholars. This achievement would not have been possible without the support and collaboration of the event organizers and the guidance from Chicago Scholars management. I am truly grateful for the opportunity to contribute to this exceptional program. Chicago Scholars #chicago #mentoring #volunteering #students #support https://lnkd.in/gD3ujaMy

Meet Our 2024 Reach Pathways Innovation Award Winner, Levenfeld Pearlstein, LLC- With this award, we honor a company or organization that has allowed Chicago Scholars and Reach Pathways to reach new heights due to their support and innovation. LP has been an incredible growth partner over the last year, and has allowed us to grow Reach to new stages, and introduce it to new audiences. We spoke with Suzanne Shier, Of Counsel in the firm's Trusts and Estates group, about what it means to be recognized for this award, and how it drives LP forward as they continue their work in partnership with Chicago Scholars. Read the full blog post for her responses: https://bit.ly/3LsBk0r