70 CHA college students get tips on how to “Stay the Course”

Representatives from prominent corporate organizations – including RSM, BMO Harris, Rush University Medical Center and Art Institute of Chicago – networked virtually with 70 Chicago Housing Authority college students to discuss career opportunities at “Take Flight: Staying the Course.”

Sponsored annually by CHA nonprofit partner Springboard to Success (S2S), Staying the Course is a check-in event designed to help CHA college students connect with those who provide internship and employment opportunities.

More than a dozen corporate representatives spoke to students about their own careers and offered counsel in a panel discussion on how to achieve their dreams and stay afloat in the college world – financially and otherwise.

The students included S2S scholarship winners and previous participants of the S2S-sponsored “Take Flight College Send-Off” trunk party, which happens every August.

The virtual event was hosted by RSM on its WebEx platform.

“The ‘Take Flight College Send Off’ is meant to celebrate CHA residents getting into college. ‘Staying the Course’ is designed to help them stay there,” said CHA CEO Tracey Scott. “Students need to know where to find the resources necessary to stay in college, and this event helps them do that, providing them with connections to a variety of prominent organizations and networking opportunities that can lead to jobs.”

Among the representative organizations that participated in the virtual event:

RSM, BMO Harris, The Greenwood Project, Rush University Medical Center, Northwestern Memorial Hospital, Northwestern University, Chicago Public Schools, Chicago Police Department, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois, Elite Ambulance, Metropolitan Family Services, Beacon Hill Staffing, Art Institute of Chicago, and Rise Interactive

CHA also provided information on the S2S Scholarship, which opens its application period on Jan. 14, and reminded students of their free access to college counseling services provided by CHA’s Education Specialists, and free access to classes at City Colleges of Chicago (CCC).

Each summer, dozens of CHA students attending four-year institutions locally and nationwide attend CCC, transferring credits to their college. It allows these students to graduate quicker and with less debt.

This article originally appeared in The Chicago Crusader.