Columbia College Visit

On Friday, November 12th, four students (Kierre, NyShanell, Starisha, and Akeim) and I visited Columbia College in downtown Chicago. Each fall we try to visit one university or college per month because it is prime time for applications. However, while our seniors may get the most tangible use out of these visits, we encourage all students to take advantage of the opportunities. Even for our elementary school students, it is important to begin the visioning process now.

Northwestern University College Visit

Yesterday, on a day off from school (Columbus Day), 23 students from Cabrini Connections visited Northwestern University in Evanston. Myself, EL Da' Sheon, and Karina, all alumni of Northwestern, chaperoned the trip. We were also joined by former volunteer, and forever an advocate for the program, Stephanie Rogers.

This was the largest group we've ever had for a college visit, which I believe is a result of a renewed commitment to the program in 2010-2011 and is a testament to the success of our College Zone. Our vision is that every child who joins a tutor/mentor program in 7th or 8th grade is starting a job and career of his or her choice by age 25, and trips like this fit directly in with that. In order for our youth to fulfill this year's theme, "My Dreams are My Reality!", they need to see themselves on a campus, eating lunch, walking through a dorm, acting like any other student. This is the reality they some day hope to achieve.

University Partnerships

In my 14 months at Cabrini Connections and the Tutor/Mentor Connection, I have seen a host of university students contribute to our successes. In May, I spotlighted many of our interns here. Since then we have welcomed two interns from Hong Kong Baptist University and two summer volunteers from DePaul University. Jenny and Willow (above) reached out to the Chinese community and helped promote the Tutor/Mentor Jam. Chris (below) and Damien have been streamlining our computer lab in preparation for the 2010-2011 tutoring year. (I should also note that they have gone above and beyond in helping staff and students with tech-related issues. Thanks, guys!)

All of this gets me thinking... What would a full-fledged university partnership look like? What if a college or university - not just one department or one program - "adopted" a tutor/mentor program? Their alumni association could be responsible for recruiting a certain number of volunteers each year. Departments of the school could develop resources for core subjects like math, reading, and writing. Facilities of the school could be provided for programming and special events. Fundraisers could be sponsored by the university and supported by the development office. A scholarship could be awarded to the top senior in the program each year. The possibilities are endless!

At CC, T/MC, we appreciate of all the work interns have done for us. We are better off as an organization because of it. But I hope universities will start to think critically about what more they can do, either in their surrounding communities or with organizations that they already have ties to. My alma mater, Northwestern University, has connected four graduates to us for staff positions over the last four years through its Public Interest Program. Cabrini Connections had 10 volunteer tutor/mentors last year who are alumni of NU. The Freshman Urban Program, a pre-orientation activity for incoming freshman at NU, visits our center each September to work on a project. Could all of this be part of an official partnership which expands and excels and is beneficial for both parties over time? I think so.

Here is a reflection from our president, Dan Bassill, about this very idea. My predecessor, Chris Warren, wrote about this topic, too. I also suggest you skim through our ABC University presentation which outlines many parts of this vision. Colleges and universities do seem to be taking a greater interest in community service and engagement in the 21st century. Well, we are taking a greater interest in them as well. Let's get together and make it happen!

The School of the Art Institute College Visit

10 students, one volunteer (SAIC student Szu-Han Ho) and I visited The School of the Art Institute of Chicago today, one of the largest accredited independent schools of art and design in the country. (We also visited The Art Institute of Chicago.) From our first moments in the Columbus Building, we knew this wasn't your average college. Our first three stops were a room with giant kilns, a sculpture class, and a foundry equipped to pour bronze and aluminum. We then passed through the wood and metal shop to a performance area and painting and drawing classrooms. We also saw the photography, fiber and material studies, and film, video, and new media departments.

SAIC is an amazing school with incredible resources. Students have 24-hour access to studios and most of their materials can be purchased on-site at reduced cost. A lot of them don't receive grades; they have critiques - a group discussion in which you analyze, describe, and interpret art - and they simply pass or fail. Also, as part of a comprehensive liberal arts program, students take classes in humanities, mathematics, sciences, and other subjects, making them well-rounded 21st century artists.

After lunch, we spent an hour in The Art Institute, one of the world's greatest fine art museums. Its collection contains more than 250,000 works of art including paintings by Claude Monet, Henri Matisse, and Vincent Van Gogh. Most of the students had never been to an art museum, so it was my pleasure to walk them through the halls of this famous building. People travel from all over the world to see The Art Institute; all we had to do was take the CTA blue line.

I hope you see this unique experience as an example of the value of tutor/mentor programs like Cabrini Connections. Our learning and enrichment activities are designed to build social, team-building and leadership skills and encourage an interest in arts, technology and social service. This trip was relatively simple to plan and carry out and it cost less than $100 ($45 for CTA passes and $50 for lunch at Subway), but I guarantee their memories of it will last forever. It is important for young people to visualize themselves in college and today, if only for a few hours, that vision became a reality.

UIC College Visit

On Saturday, November 14th, I accompanied nine Cabrini Connections students to University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) for a college visit. At the start of this quarter, our objective was to offer one college visit per month and so far we've followed through with that goal. In September we visited Northwestern University and in October we visited DePaul University. All of these trips are part of our College Application Assistance Program (a.k.a. the College Zone) which provides learning opportunities and support related to college admissions.

Once again, our trip began in a dining hall. Thanks to UIC Dining Services and Sodexo, we were treated to "All-You-Care-To-Eat" breakfast in the East Cafe of UIC Student Center East, and we all left satisfied. (There was even a competition to see who could make the best Belgian waffle. Kierre won.) Special thanks to Roslyn Pitts, Director of UIC Meetings, Conferences, and Dining Services, for helping arrange our visit. We like to instill positive associations with college and buffet-style dining halls are a great way to do so!

After lunch we went to an information session. We ran late because of some confusion regarding its location, but we made it in time for a Q&A session with current students which was informative. Soon it was time for our campus tour led by the wonderful Ana. Our group was comprised almost entirely of high school students (one parent) which relaxed her and allowed for a more casual tour. She prompted our students with questions throughout the tour and they always replied promptly. "What do you want to study?" got answers like architecture, English, chemistry, and computer engineering. For each answer, she was able to connect it to an actual area of study at UIC. It was a great way to show that in college you can study whatever you want!

Ana led us through most of East Campus, including The Quad, a classroom in Douglas Hall, and the Student Recreation Facility. We ended in Student Residence & Commons South where we got to tour three different types of dorm rooms with actual students living in them. UIC is one of the most diverse schools in the country. There is not a single racial/ethnic group which represents a majority. It's nice for our students to see people that look like them at a university. Ana herself, a first-generation college student, was a good model for what it takes and what it's like to attend college.

Now, usually, our visit would end here, but UIC invited us to a Flames basketball game! Volunteers, students, and their friends met at Cabrini Connections to board a bus for a free ride to the game. At UIC Pavilion, those of us who went on the college visit met them to witness the UIC Flames defeat the University of Illinois at Springfield (UIS) Prairie Stars 72-59. UIC held a commanding lead throughout in their first game of the 2009-2010 season. Thank you to Megan Sparks of UIC Community Assist Program for providing this exciting experience. A lot of our youth currently play sports at school, so I'm sure it is was a pleasure for them to witness competition at the next level.


Your donations to Cabrini Connections make visits like this possible. Please consider making a small donation on our web site. Thank you!

DePaul University College Visit

CPS students did not have school on Monday (Columbus Day), so some of them chose to go to college instead! Yesterday I had the pleasure of leading 10 students from Cabrini Connections on a field trip to DePaul University in the Lincoln Park neighborhood of Chicago. This trip, like the one to Northwestern in September, is part of our College Application Assistance Program (a.k.a. the "College Zone"). Each one of our students meets with a College Zone Coordinator at least once per quarter to discuss post-secondary plans. Though, for some, college is many years away, they are learning about what it takes to get into college - they begin to understand what kind of GPA they need to maintain, what kind of ACT score they should shoot for, and how much scholarship money they may need.

Our visit to DePaul began in the school's Student Center. Chartwells Dining Services was kind enough to treat our students to free lunch in the Center's Cafeteria, which features several different made-to-order food stations. Needless to say, they came away happy. Special thanks to Stephanie Moye for her help!

After lunch it was time for an information session followed by a campus tour. DePaul is known as one of the best schools in Chicago and it certainly showed. DePaul has more than 15,000 undergraduate students, nearly 250 student organizations, and its athletics compete in the BIG EAST conference. The average high school GPA of admitted students is 3.5 on a 4.0 scale and their average ACT Composite is between 22 and 27 (middle 50% score range). Also, in 2009, the Princeton Review ranked DePaul No. 10 in the Diverse Student Population category, making the sixth consecutive year that DePaul has been ranked in the nation's top 20.

Our campus tour took us from the Student Center, to the Academic Center, inside a dormitory (left), through The DePaul Quad, to the library, and, finally, to the Fitness and Recreation Center. As I walked around, it was great to hear some of the students who went on the Northwestern trip comparing the two universities (e.g. the sample dorm was nicer and larger at DePaul, but Northwestern has a more spacious campus). This is part of the goal for these trips: to answer the questions, what does college look like, and, most importantly, what does your college look like? Where do you imagine yourself going to school? So it isn't necessarily about visiting DePaul per se. It's about visiting college, of which DePaul is an easily accessible example.

Thank you for welcoming us, DePaul! I look forward to seeing some of our students becomes yours!

Northwestern University College Visit

Last Friday, EL Da' Sheon and I escorted 10 students from Cabrini Connections to Northwestern University for a college visit! As part of our College Application Assistance Program - better known in our center as the College Zone - we offer free trips to Chicago-area colleges. In the past we have visited places like DePaul University, Illinois Institute of Technology, and Westwood College, however, this visit held special significance. I am the third NUPIP Fellow at Cabrini Connections; EL Da' Sheon went to Northwestern; and we have 12 mentors who are alumni of Northwestern. All of us cherish our time spent at NU, so it was an honor to share the Evanston Campus with prospective students from our program.

Our visit started at Allison Hall dining room where Sodexo food services was kind enough to allow us free entry! The environment was both exciting and overwhelming, with NU students everywhere and countless food options to choose from. Our students gradually got the hang of it, though, and soon their trays were piled high with fresh food.

We sat down to eat with students from Promote 360, a student group in the School of Education and Social Policy that empowers and supports minority students. It truly was a humbling moment to see so many of my friends turn out. Thank you for supporting what I do; and special thanks to my friend Candise Hill for organizing the P360 group, to ASG President Mike McGee for attending, and to Ms. Doris Timmen from Sodexo for welcoming us with open arms! Lunch was the highlight of our trip and it wouldn't have been possible without your fantastic hospitality.

After lunch, we headed to the Office of Undergraduate Admission for an information session and campus tour. We learned about the university, its six undergraduate schools, student life, the application process and financial aid. It was a beautiful day for a tour and our stroll took us through The Arch, by The Rock, and into Norris University Center.

It was great to be back on campus, but it was also great to see our students on campus. Some of them had never seen a college before. I heard of a few of them say things like, "this is so cool," or, "I want to go to college." It is one thing to exceed academically, but you also have to want to go to college. You have to think that it is fun. Well, our students definitely had fun last Friday. I know they want to go to college and we at Cabrini Connections expect them to go to college. I look forward to their admissions one day. I just wonder what colors they'll be wearing. Purple would sure look nice :)

Edgewood College Visit

My first three days on the job were very special as they coincided with an annual visit from Edgewood College in Madison, Wisconsin. For 11 years now, Dr. Tom Holub, an Associate Professor in Education, has brought a contingent of his graduate students to Cabrini Connections for an immersion experience. Dr. Holub supervises the experience and its focus is aimed at helping youth discover a personal future. In line with our vision, Dr. Holub's cheif concern is that young people are on a career track of their own choice by age 25.

Throughout their three-day visit, the graduate students (all studying Special Education) led personal and educational enrichment activities for up to 12 kids from our program. Their first activity asked our youth to consider their ABCs: aspirations, barriers, and capacities. Another asked them to consider self-image by creating pictures of themselves using magazine clippings.


The latter part of the first two days also included trips into the city. Therefore, in addition to participating in numerous educational activities on-site, I also found myself chaperoning trips to Navy Pier and the Museum of Contemporary Art and a scavenger hunt in downtown Chicago. Much fun was had by all.

However, the greatest payoff for me was the opportunity to meet some of the students in our program. They are all great spirits who appreciate what Cabrini Connections has to offer and they each showcased a full range of personality: from funny to serious to thoughtful to tired (we all were by day's end!). In one-on-one conversations and group work, I found their insights to be very astute and honest. I was impressed by their willingness to share with me and the Edgewood volunteers, all of whom are new faces in their lives.

Though this was just a sampling of the more than 70 students who participate in our program, its benefits were clear to me in them. We were even able to recruit two new students who came with friends. Both of them must have felt the same level of respect as a newcomer that I did. I look forward to working with them and everyone else involved with Cabrini Connections in the year to come.