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Fall 2022 ISACorps Alumni E-Newsletter
Be Informed. Food for Thought. Resources.
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In this Issue
Welcome to the ISACorps Alumni quarterly e-newsletter! Visit the ISACorps Alumni webpage to access the newsletter, join the ISACorps Alumni directory, and read more about ISACorps alumni updates and announcements.
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ISACorps Alumni Recognition
Share your stories with us at ISAC.CorpsAlumni@illinois.gov. Congratulations to ISACorps alums Denise Delgado and Duane Willingham II who were recently selected as National College Attainment Network (NCAN) College and Career Readiness Fellows! The fellowship provides professional development opportunities, including practitioner feedback and advocacy training, to help fellows grow into even more effective college and career readiness leaders in their schools, communities, and states. Read their stories below. 
Denise Delgado
Denise Delgado is the Assistant Director of Post-Secondary Success at Catalyst Maria High School in the Chicago Lawn neighborhood. In this role, Denise co-leads the post-secondary team at Catalyst with a mission focused on supporting scholars of Catalyst Maria with the resources and assistance needed to attain a quality secondary education and embark on their postsecondary plan of choice. Denise is always looking for different opportunities her students can engage in, both during and after high school. As an NCAN College and Career Readiness Fellow, Denise looks forward to collaborating with other fellows around the country who are leading the work in college and career readiness in their schools. The NCAN fellowship will allow her to explore, build, and implement different best practices and supports to better serve students. Denise served in the ISACorps from 2015 to 2017 in the Richard J. Daley Community College District. Catalyst Maria was one of the schools she supported while part of the ISACorps. She was then offered a full-time position to join the Catalyst team. She received her Bachelor of Arts in Spanish at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. She then received her master's degree in Educational Policy Studies at the University of Illinois Chicago.
Duane Willingham II
Duane Willingham II is the College, Career, & Military Liaison at Rich Township High School in Richton Park, Illinois. In this role, Duane works with the postsecondary team supporting students in exploring post-secondary options, while celebrating their progress along the way. Duane believes in empowering students to do what the American theologian and ethicist Dr. Katie G. Cannon calls “the work your soul must have.” Duane looks forward to the unique opportunity he will have as a fellow in the NCAN program. He believes it will be a rewarding opportunity to meet and learn with brilliant minds from all over the country who are also supporting students with their postsecondary plans. Duane served in the ISACorps from 2017 to 2019 in the South Suburban Community College District. Duane then went on to serve as an admission counselor for one year at a local university before joining the postsecondary team at Rich Township High School, one of the schools he supported as a member of the ISACorps. Duane received his Bachelor of Arts in Sociology and Anthropology at the University of Illinois Springfield. He then received his Master of Divinity degree from McCormick Theological Seminary.
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News & Announcements
CorpsCon Alumni Week Panel Discussion
 Check out the stories and experiences that ISACorps alums shared during CorpsCon training in August: “Working Independently in the Field”, “Working with Challenging Professionals”, “Leveraging your Professional Network” and “Being a First-Generation Professional”. We appreciated their transparency and amazing tips to the Corps. Some of the feedback we received from the Corps…
- 95% of the Corps was very satisfied or satisfied with the variety of topics presented
- 97% of the Corps felt that the panelists were well-prepared and answered the questions in a clear and concise manner.
Some of their favorite parts were: “I loved how transparent the speakers were and I loved seeing someone who looked like me talk about their experience with navigating their career and life journey.” “I liked their insight on everything, such as how we are near-peer mentors to high schoolers. It was nice having people close to our age talk about their experiences with the Corps and life after the Corps.”
FAFSA Symposium and Alumni Reception
  ISAC hosted its 4th annual FAFSA Symposium at the College of DuPage on September 28th. A sold-out event, it was a huge success and a great number of alumni attended. In addition, we hosted a small alumni reception after the event. Good eats and reconnecting! We look forward to seeing more alums at future events.  Jocelyne Morales '18 presented "How Community-Based Organizations Can Support Financial Aid Application Completion" at ISAC's FAFSA Symposium. Kudos to Jocelyne for a great presentation! We would love to see more alums present at our future symposiums and conferences. When you receive an email from ISAC looking for proposals to present, don't be shy and send one in! Don't forget to join the alumni directory to update your contact information to receive recent job postings, our quarterly e-newsletter, the latest PD opportunities, alumni event invitations, and more. https://www.isac.org/.../isacorps-alumni-directory.html Want a new alum t-shirt? Fill out this form! https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/VLWPWVJ Lastly, subscribe to our e-Messaging listserv to receive information about the latest ISAC-related programs and services, and ISAC-hosted events and symposiums. https://www.isac.org/emessaging/
SAVE THE DATE: Engage and Entertain
The Illinois School Counselor Association (ISCA) 2022 Annual Conference will be held November 10th and 11th, 2022 at the Tinley Park Convention Center. Come join some of ISAC’s staff for appetizers following the ISCA Conference on Friday, November 11th. We’ll have a great time mingling and catching up with each other. More details on the alumni event will be sent out in the upcoming weeks. If you are planning to attend the conference, please email ISAC.CorpsAlumni@illinois.gov by November 1st.
Job Opportunities!
Looking for a new job? Check out available positions by clicking on the following link:ISACorps Alumni Job Postings List.xlsx Are you looking to change careers or looking for career coaching? Need assistance with your resume or cover letter? Are you looking to change careers or looking for career coaching? Need assistance with your resume or cover letter? Feel free to email Tiffany Sharp at tiffany.sharp@illinois.gov if you would like to schedule an appointment to chat. If you know of any job opportunities in your area and would like to share them with your fellow ISACorps alumni or current ISACorps members, please email ISAC.CorpsAlumni@illinois.gov.
Lunch and Learn: Alumni Connections
Join our monthly Alumni Connection event to network with your fellow ISACorps alums, old and new. Think of this as an informal mid-week gathering to reconnect with former colleagues, create new relationships, meet partners in various industries, and grow your professional network. All virtual chats will be held on the last Wednesday of the month from 12pm to 12:30pm CST. Register below:
November 30, 2022
January 25, 2023
February 22, 2023
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PaCE: Planning for College and Career Readiness
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If you work for a high school district, don't forget to include a plan for college and career readiness in your school/district as you kick off the 2022-23 school year! With the new PaCE legislation going into effect soon (Public Act 102-0917), high schools will want to get on track for adopting and implementing a PaCE Framework. If your school or district is looking to learn more about implementing the PaCE legislation, as well as new strategies for college and career readiness, we can help! ISAC's PaCE webinar series is the place to start! This fall, ISAC's Professional Development team will be hosting monthly webinars from October through December on how to get started with the Illinois PaCE Framework, the new Public Act 102-0917, and how to kick off implementation in your school or district! All webinars are available at no cost to school counselors, college and career staff, and school/district administrators. To learn more and register, visit the PaCE Webinars page at www.isac.org/pace/Webinars/.
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Public Service Loan Forgiveness
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If you work or have worked in public service, recent temporary changes to the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program (PSLF) could be beneficial to you. Because some of these changes are set to expire on October 31, you won’t want to delay in determining your eligibility and applying for PSLF. ISAC is offering webinars on PSLF and the temporary changes, and assistance to those who have questions or need help in determining their eligibility and applying for PSLF. To determine if you work (or have worked) for a qualifying employer, use our PSLF: Do I work for a qualifying employer? flowchart. October Webinar Dates: Tuesday, October 25, 5-6 p.m. (CT)
Thursday, October 27, 8-9 a.m. and 12-1 p.m. (CT)
Learn more and register: https://www.isac.org/pslf.
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Additional Professional Development Opportunities and Webinars
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Hosted by Blue Icon Advisors| NASFAA consulting
Aspiring Director Group Coaching: If your goal is to become a financial aid director, we invite you to participate in a professional development opportunity designed especially for you, Aspiring Director Group Coaching! This six-week, virtual experience requires no travel. The weekly online group meetings take place each Friday, 1:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m. Eastern Time (ET).
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Date: Wednesday, October 26th 10AM CST
Meeting Title: ACCOUNTABILITY AT WORK: Creating a Culture of Ownership and Responsibility
Description: Hosted by Illinois Department of Human Rights: Picture a workplace where mistrust is the norm, employees are concerned with protecting their reputations, and teams seek to defend their “turf” and often fail to keep their promises. Now, picture a workplace where trust is unquestioned, commitments are clear, personal responsibility is high, people take ownership of problems, and mistakes are treated as opportunities to improve rather than reasons to blame. These conditions are the cornerstone of a positive work environment.
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Date: Friday, October 28th 10AM CST
Meeting Title: Resilience: How to Keep Going When the Going Gets Tough
Description: Hosted by Illinois Department of Human Rights: Workplace stress is unavoidable. The key to handling stress is not to avoid it, but to find methods to work with it without losing resolve. This course is designed to give participants the tools they need to identify workplace stressors, end self-deprecating talk, build communicative workplace structures, and calmly deal with change. As a result, participants will be able to calmly handle daily upsets, have better relationships with coworkers and clients, and find greater happiness and satisfaction in day-to-day work life.
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Date: Tuesdays, November 1, 8, 15, and 29, 7-8:15pm ET ($50-75 per person) Meeting Title: Another Level: A Monthlong Conversation about Antiracism in Education Description: Join Cornelius Minor, Yolanda Sealey-Ruiz, Cheryl Matias, and Paul Gorski all together for four evenings of deep, intimate, real conversations about key topics related to antiracism in education. (Click those names if you want to learn more about us.) Each week, one of the facilitators will lead the other three in a conversation on a topic of their choice related to antiracism in education. No holds barred. No question unasked. They will be in dialogue for 40-45 minutes, then open the conversation to the audience, responding to comments and questions. All sessions are recorded in case you have to miss one or all of them live. Participants receive a 5-hour certificate of completion.
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If you have any questions regarding this e-Message, please contact Alumni Relations by sending an e-mail message to ISAC.CorpsAlumni@illinois.gov. |
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© 2022 Illinois Student Assistance Commission
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