SIU announces new partnerships with community colleges

More students from diverse backgrounds will now be able to become accounting professionals thanks to a new partnership between the City Colleges of Chicago and Southern Illinois University Carbondale. The partnership will focus on improving access for students who want to pursue accounting but don’t want to leave Chicago. Southern Illinois University Carbondale has entered an agreement with City Colleges of Chicago that will allow students in Chicago to pursue a bachelor’s degree from SIU while staying in Chicago. Both institutions of higher education say they hope it’ll help draw more students of color to the field of accounting. The National Association of Black Accountants says fewer than 9% of accountants and auditors are Black. Illinois is taking the lead in expanding professional access to historically underrepresented groups.

Students participating in the program will pay the first two years of tuition at their community college rate. Following graduation with an associate’s degree from the community college, students can go on to complete their SIU bachelor’s degrees online without leaving Chicago. After completing their first two years in their community college, students will receive a $4,000 scholarship once they transfer to Southern Illinois University for their final two years.

This recent initiative is part of a broader effort made by SIU to expand its joint programs with participating community colleges across the state.  On Oct. 4, SIU Carbondale entered agreements with Harper College, Oakton Community College and Harold Washington College, part of City Colleges of Chicago. The signing ceremonies were part of a larger SIU Carbondale initiative, called the “Saluki Takeover Tour: Chicago.” Representatives of SIU Carbondale met with school administrators, alumni groups and others to improve access for students and build partnerships in the Windy City. The agreements with Harper College and Oakton College, in suburban Cook County, will give qualified community college students the option to earn their bachelor’s degrees remotely and at a lower cost in six academic programs: accounting, business and administration, health care management, radiologic sciences, criminology and criminal justice, and psychology. Beginning next year, Illinois students will have more educational opportunities that they may not have thought were available to them before.

Belleville theater makes cinema history

• Movies
• Theater
• Belleville
• Slideshow

Lincoln Theater in downtown Belleville observed its 100-year anniversary this year. Established in 1921, the theater has entertained locals for a century, offering silent films, black-and-white movie reels, and the masterpieces that shake box offices today.

Located on 103 E. Main St., the Lincoln Theater is owned by Dave and Sandy Schoenborn after Sandy’s father, Richard Wright, bought the business in 1980 and ran it with his wife, Betty. The Schoenborn family took over management in 2007. The family will celebrate the Lincoln’s 100th anniversary with “A Century of Entertainment,” a variety show with music, dance and theater reflecting the 1920s through today. It will be performed on Nov. 12 and Nov. 13 at 7 p.m. and Nov. 14 at 2 p.m. This show will also be live-streamed. More information about the event and its live stream can be found here.

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The H-ART of Illinois

• Arts & Culture
• Tourism
• Museums

Illinois is home to a number of famous artists, including Donna Zarbin-Byrne, Teresa Cash, Tony Abboreno, and so many more. Nov. 9th is National Go To An Art Museum Day, a day dedicated to celebrating the talents of artists and content creators everywhere. More than 30,000 museums around the world participate in National Go To An Art Museum Day by hosting events and displaying their exhibits according to a theme that changes annually. Illinois museums offer a variety of ways to discover the abundance of talent in the state.

Illinois has over 1,000 museums. Each location offers unique accounts of not only Illinois excellence but also nationally recognized artistry. These locations can be found across the regions, and their displays demonstrate the influence of every corner of the state. The art Institute of Chicago, for example, is featuring Barbara Kruger, who exposes the power dynamics of identity, desire, and consumerism through animations, photos, and more until late January. The Krannert Art Museum at the University of Illinois is hosting several temporary exhibits that highlight everything from individual artists, to themes to styles of production.

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Illinois businesses recognized as Makers

• Tourism
• Business
• Makers

The Illinois Office of Tourism has announced a list of new additions to the Illinois Made program, which recognizes businesses classified as hidden gems for locals and visitors to discover. The businesses highlighted by this initiative, called Makers, are recognized because they offer unique products and experiences to their customers and passersby.

The Illinois Made program, which now features over 200 Makers from all parts of Illinois, continues to plant people into small businesses around the state by promoting the unique destinations that make the state a one-of-a-kind place. Some of the products offered by Makers include music shops, art galleries, bakeries, farms and more.

The new round of Makers provides visitors with a range of vegan desserts, crafts, candles, general wares and other products that diversify and improve the lives of people across the state. This class of Makers includes 28 small businesses from every region of the state and comes just in time for the holiday shopping season. While the majority of these 28 Makers reside in the Chicago area, a healthy handful are sprinkled in the northwest, central and southern parts of Illinois.

The IOT celebrates Illinois Makers through its road trip itineraries, which run along paths created to endorse these local businesses. The IOT also operates Enjoy Illinois through which travel magazines, events, seasonal campaigns and the annual Illinois Made Holiday Gift Guide can be found. People can nominate businesses for the Illinois Made Program on a year-round basis here. Nominations are open to all businesses, but chosen businesses must adhere to criteria regarding location, visitor experience, manufacture process and history or origin.

The contributions made by Makers shape the state. Because Makers reflect a variety of business types—restaurants, breweries and wineries, farms and orchards, and even international markets that have humble beginnings as small businesses in Illinois—the artisan nature of the state facilitates visitor attraction and boosts tourist activity. Celebrating these contributions is one of many ways to support local businesses. Discover the many available experiences in every region of the state here.