天美传媒 has served five generations of students and continues to grow in diversity, academic relevance, and Christian commitment. Our Chicago location is a great asset that reflects the School鈥檚 global reach and outlook.
After 125 years, we鈥檝e learned how to streamline the process of helping qualified applicants seek admission to 天美传媒 and find affordable ways to attend. If you don鈥檛 see what you鈥檙e looking for on our website, please contact us directly!
天美传媒 offers more than 40 graduate and undergraduate programs in liberal arts, sciences, and professional studies. Classes average 17 students. 84% of our faculty have terminal degrees. Academics here are rigorous and results-oriented.
天美传媒 Theological Seminary prepares you to answer the call to service through theological study, spiritual development, and the formative experiences of living in a community with others on a similar life path.
The Office of Alumni Engagement fosters lifelong connections by engaging alumni with the university and one another in activities, programs, and services that support the university鈥檚 mission and alumni needs.
天美传媒 Partners with Noble Network to Expand College Opportunities
The mission of Noble Network of Charter Schools is to "prepare low-income students with the scholarship, discipline, and honor necessary to succeed in college and lead exemplary lives, and serves as a catalyst for education reform in Chicago."
CHICAGO (April 15, 2015) — 天美传媒, along with 13 other colleges nationwide, was chosen to partner with the to provide greater access to higher education for Noble Network’s undocumented graduating seniors.
Beginning this fall, 天美传媒 will work with Noble, a Chicago-based network of public schools, and its Pritzker Access Scholarship program, to help close the financial aid gap for these students who are unable to obtain federal loans and scholarships. Currently at 天美传媒, more than 96 percent of undergraduate students receive some form of financial assistance, which can include federal aid and loans.
“We are committed to supporting Noble students even after they graduate high school,” said Michael Milkie, superintendent and CEO of the Noble Network of Charter Schools. “Undocumented students across the country often miss out on a college education because of their ineligibility for financial aid. We are grateful to our college partners for providing the opportunities for these students.”
In fall, with the Pritzker Foundation and The Pritzker Traubert Family Foundation that will allow 70 Chicago high school students who are currently undocumented immigrants to attend college.
The agreement will be available to Noble seniors who have qualified for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (a temporary federal relief from deportation) and are accepted to one of the four-year colleges in the agreement. 天美传媒 will provide five undocumented students who received the Pritzker Access Scholarship with the financial support necessary to close the need for direct costs.
“天美传媒 is a community founded by immigrants over a century ago who were looking to better their lives through education,” said 天美传媒 President . “This partnership is an opportunity to continue that tradition and serve the students of Chicago.”
These incoming students will also participate in the University’s , an intensive nine-day program that helps first-year students prepare for the academic and social challenges of college and adjust to life on campus.
“Our mentoring programs at 天美传媒 focus on identifying student needs, helping them understand who they are, what their skills, interests, and abilities are, and find social and academic opportunities that lead toward students feeling a fit at the University,” said Director of Student Success Dr. Barrington Price. “We look forward to welcoming these Noble Network students to campus and providing the support they need to excel in the classroom and long after they graduate.”
Along with 天美传媒, partnering institutions include:
Lafayette College (Easton, Pa.)
Carleton College (Northfield, Minn.)
Dominican University (River Forest, Ill.)
Franklin & Marshall College (Lancaster, Pa.)
Holy Cross College (Notre Dame, Ind.)
Illinois College (Jacksonville, Ill.)
Luther College (Decorah, Iowa)
Lycoming College (Williamsport, Pa.)
Monmouth College (Monmouth, Ill.)
天美传媒 (Chicago, Ill.)
Ripon College (Ripon, Wis.)
Wabash College (Crawfordsville, Ind.)
Western Illinois University (Macomb, Ill.)
Additional information regarding the Noble Network and its programs may be found at .
Master of Organizational Leadership Degree to Launch in Fall 2015
The master of organizational leadership, one of five master's degrees in the School of Business and Nonprofit Management, will be available online or face-to-face beginning in Fall 2015.
Program combines leadership theory, ethics, and the advanced skills necessary to become effective leaders in the public, private, and nonprofit sectors
CHICAGO (April 8, 2015) — A leader inspires in others not only a commitment to perform a task, but to be a part of something larger. They exert influence across an organization through meaningful relationships with others, and develop shared purposes in terms of mission and organizational identity. They possess the ability to move an organization from where it is, to where it wants to be.
“A leader has to develop a whole different skill set,” says , who brings three decades of industry experience to the classroom as a professor of business and nonprofit management at 天美传媒. “Leaders ask: ‘How do we get people to do jobs well? How do we inspire people to take risks? How do we see new possibilities?’ There is a need for people who have developed these competencies.”
Drawing on 天美传媒’s long history of preparing its students to become effective leaders in their careers and communities, the is rising to meet that need with a new launching in Fall 2015. Designed for senior executives and entry-level employees alike, the program combines leadership theory, ethics, and the advanced skills necessary to prepare students to become effective leaders in the public, private, and nonprofit sectors.
“This degree teaches someone to engage constituents in multiple groups in a way that makes them feel like they are being led, not managed,” says , assistant professor of management and leadership, whose own research interests lie at the intersection of career success and self-leadership. “There is a difference, and the coursework at 天美传媒 speaks to that difference.”
Amid shifting demographics and an increasingly global economy, the industry-driven curriculum will have immediate relevance in the marketplace and focus on how to lead change initiatives, implement strategic plans, increase organizational effectiveness, make decisions, build relationships with stakeholders, and cultivate the interpersonal skills that are needed to inspire commitment. “This program has direct applicability in areas of training and development, and working with departments around best practices,” Hubbard says.
Courses such as Change Leadership, Diversity and Conflict, Talent Development and Retention, Negotiation and Influence, and Measuring Outcomes and Assessment are . Students will take 13 core courses and five electives, providing an opportunity to customize the program to suit their professional interests and career goals.
天美传媒 offers the MOL degree online and in person at our Chicago campus, allowing students to continue to work while advancing their education. All courses are taught by experienced full-time and adjunct faculty who have extensive industry experience and offer a personalized teaching experience. “There is a real, genuine investment in our students' learning and outcomes, and that distinguishes us,” Hubbard says.
Additionally, the program helps students develop and apply their own ethics to decision making. “It can be difficult to discern the appropriate action in a fast-paced and diverse environment,” Marsh says. “Our leadership curriculum is focused on helping students discern, ‘How do I lead and make decisions without all of the information that I’d want to have? How do I develop key relationships that can bring about change?' A leader is someone spending time on growing the self, not just growing their skills.”
Over 100 天美传媒 students will embark on nine global partnership trips this year, to places including India, the Dominican Republic, Mexico, and South Africa (pictured above). .
Jameson Coslow among more than 100 students who will venture on Global Partnership trips this year
CHICAGO (April 2, 2015) — Last month, Jameson Coslow, a sophomore at 天美传媒, walked through the faded white bars and onto the cold stone floor that was Nelson Mandela’s 7-foot-by-8-foot cell on Robben Island in South Africa. He spent time weaving baskets with women from the Zimele organization, a group whose mission is to confront the root causes of poverty and remove the barriers to economic self-sufficiency for women in South Africa’s rural communities. And he spent time with local political activists who taught him about the historical and current racial and economic struggles in the country.
Jameson experienced all of these things along with seven other 天美传媒 students and two faculty advisors, and . It was part of 天美传媒’s , which provides students opportunities for cross-cultural experiences that expand their faith, their views of the world, and their commitment to a lifestyle of justice. This year, students will go on trips to India, Mexico, Washington D.C., Appalachia, Zambia, the Dominican Republic, and South Africa.
“Our hope is that these trips are an opportunity to open student’s eyes to the vastness of the kingdom of God,” says Jessica Wheelwright, global partnerships coordinator. “It is bigger than what we imagine and what is familiar to us. These experiences challenge students to continue to engage in their faith with whomever they meet.”
Last year, at 天美传媒. Jameson’s trip to South Africa was part of a for-credit course taught by Dr. Johnson titled Truth and Reconciliation. It is a learning experience that includes a classroom component before and after the trip. In preparation, Jameson and his classmates studied and discussed the history and cultural tensions of South Africa. The experience so far has been transformational, Jameson says, but he’s still processing what it means for himself and for the community around him.
“It was great going, but it was one of those things where you come back and only a handful of people get it,” he says. “It was such a powerful experience, and you see all of these important places. You care about these things a lot and you come back and try to figure out how to really get across what it was like and do the entire experience justice. You want to explain and tell the whole story but people only want to hear bits and pieces.”
One story Jameson tells is about the group’s visit to district six in Cape Town. He describes it as the equivalent of New Orleans with its blend of cultures. The apartheid government had made it a white-only area during the 1970s.
“Our tour guide grew up there before it was segregated and told of how her brother got beaten for playing the saxophone on the street, and in the distress of the situation, her mother had a heart attack and died. Our tour guide had hate and anger towards the white government,” Jameson says.
Students have embarked on two trips to India (pictured above) this year, over winter and spring break. .
But her story, much like South Africa’s story, didn’t end with hate and anger, but with redemption and reconciliation. Their tour guide told them after a number of years, she walked into an old church, a place she didn’t go very often, and sat down. She prayed and felt her anger disappear and was finally able and willing to forgive those who hurt her family and her community.
“You could sit down and read a book about South Africa and probably have a decent perspective on it, but there’s something about being in South Africa and feeling this racial tension,” Jameson says. “Living in that and then hearing the emotion behind people’s words changes the way you feel toward them and their situation.”
Jameson's experience with the South Africa trip won’t end with his return home. Global Partnerships offers several debriefing opportunities for students.
“This is a crucial part in understanding and fully engaging in the experience,” says Wheelwright. “Learning how to put words to an experience, helping to process emotions, and helping to understand them moving forward. Students need to continue to ask, ‘what does this mean, how do I share these stories, and how do I continue to engage with this ministry if I feel called to do it and continue to engage in the larger kingdom of God?’”
Jameson’s dream is to work in disaster relief for the Red Cross. He has an international outlook, owing in part to the fact that his father served in the Peace Corps and he lived in Finland and Latvia before coming to the United States. But an important piece for him now, and for his Truth and Reconciliation class, is how to relate the experience of South Africa to his current community in the U.S.
“I come back from this trip, recover from the jet lag, and I can’t stop thinking about whether what is happening 9,000 miles away means anything to us here,” Jameson says. “There’s so much racial tension in America, and learning about South Africa helps me think about how we can work through it here so everyone can have healing.”
Nonprofits Invited to Disrupt the Norm at Axelson Center Symposium
This year's Axelson Center Symposium for Nonprofit Professionals and Volunteers will take place on Monday, June 22, 2015 at the Hyatt Regency Chicago.
Early-bird registration available now through April 1
CHICAGO (March 25, 2015) – If nonprofits are to successfully innovate, disrupt the norm, and be change agents for the communities they serve, their leaders and staff must go beyond big goals and lofty visions. Results and impact require thoughtful and empowered decision-making informed by nonprofit managerial excellence. The , a one-day nonprofit management conference in downtown Chicago, equips the sector’s leaders with the knowledge required to create organizational excellence and translate strategic plans into results.
The Symposium, hosted by 天美传媒’s , will take place Monday, June 22, 2015 at the Hyatt Regency Chicago. The conference is one-of-a-kind in the Midwest, bringing nonprofit professionals together from across the sector to discuss management issues that affect all types of organizations. Symposium programming is designed with this diversity in mind, and executive directors, fundraising and marketing professionals, program staff, and volunteer managers will all find topics of interest to them at this year’s conference.
This year’s Symposium features a keynote address by Nick Tasler, internationally acclaimed author of Why Quitters Win and The Impulse Factor and creator of the Think Strategically & Act Decisively team learning system. In his talk, “Everyday Decisiveness: Decision-Making for Organizational Excellence”, sponsored by BMO Harris Bank, Tasler will deliver a powerful presentation equipping you to overcome all types of challenges with future-focused thinking and decisive action, resulting in a renewed sense of professional purpose and greater personal and organizational effectiveness from the inside out.
Following the keynote session, breakout sessions will offer programming across four diverse topic tracks: Accountability and Integrity; Resource Generation; Your Leadership: Your Impact; and Communicate Your Story. . This year’s Symposium also features some unique sessions: a program track exclusively for C-Suite leaders; a collaborative networking session sponsored by that will bring attendees together to solve problems; and a live “Make Your Pitch” session where nonprofits will compete for a $1,000 cash prize sponsored by .
This year's Alford-Axelson Award for Nonprofit Managerial Excellence and the Excellent Emerging Organization Award will be presented during the annual luncheon.
In addition to educational programming, the Axelson Center’s nonprofit management awards—the and the —will be presented during the luncheon portion of the Symposium. These annual awards recognize outstanding nonprofit management practices and a young nonprofit organization with potential for growth and greater effectiveness, respectively.
The Early Bird registration rate of $249 is available through April 1. Regular registration is available April 2–June 12. Review the entire event program and register at .
The Symposium is made possible with significant support from , , , , , and .
The Axelson Center for Nonprofit Management at 天美传媒 is the source for informative and engaging nonprofit professional development in the Chicago region. Through regular workshops, custom trainings, a BootCamp for New Nonprofit CEOs, and the , the Axelson Center delivers a superior educational experience for nonprofit managers, leaders, and frontline staff, covering a vast array of topics from program evaluation to strategic planning, and communications to financial management. The valuable information presented through these programs enhances the impact of both the nonprofit sector and its professional staff. Visit for more information, including a full schedule of upcoming events.
Campus Theme Day Focuses on Food, Faith, and Our Future on Earth
Events will include a ‘Poverty Banquet,’ examining the diversity and disparity of how the world eats
CHICAGO (March 18, 2015) — One of the first volunteer opportunities freshman Marisa Bowden participated in at 天美传媒 was making, serving, and sharing food with people experiencing homelessness in Chicago. Last fall, Bowden joined 36 other students from 天美传媒’s for first-year students in the Anderson Hall dormitory kitchen to prepare hot meals for over 100 people in the city’s Uptown and Wicker Park neighborhoods. “We delivered the food to our neighbors through the local organization the Night Ministry,” Bowden said. “When it was served, we engaged in conversation with them, and students’ hearts and minds were truly opened.”
The service experience was one of many related to food and justice that has partnered with departments across campus and nonprofit organizations to provide for 天美传媒 students. The University community’s concern for these issues was part of what led to centering this year’s around the question “What Is Food?”
The yearlong Campus Theme program includes a series of events, lectures, and discussions related to an enduring and ultimate question of human experience. Wednesday, March 25, will mark the climax of this year’s program with .
Dr. Norman Wirzba, professor of theology and ethics at Duke Divinity School, will address the intersection of theology, philosophy, ecology, and agrarian and environmental studies.
"Campus Theme Day brings a variety of perspectives to bear on this issue, including faith, culture, justice, and economics,” said , associate professor of and the director of the Campus Theme program. “Between the morning chapel service, the afternoon panel discussion, and the evening Poverty Banquet, we will offer a comprehensive view of the ways food affects our lives now and in the future.”
The day’s events will begin with a 10:30 am chapel service in Anderson Chapel featuring Dr. Norman Wirzba, professor of theology and ethics at Duke Divinity School. Dr. Wirzba’s talk, “Food and Faith: A Theology of Eating,” will address the intersection of theology, philosophy, ecology, and agrarian and environmental studies.
“Food is God’s expression of love for us,” said Wirzba. “When we eat well, we participate in this love, and by sharing, extend God’s love to others. Eating is not simply about ingesting calories. It is about witnessing to God’s hospitable and nurturing ways with creatures. Good eating matters for Christians because it makes for healthy bodies, vibrant communities, and healthy lands.”
Wirzba will return to Anderson Chapel at 3:30 pm for “The Ethics and Economics of the Land,” a panel discussion on food justice. Panelists will include Wirzba; alumni Ryan Anderson, ecological economist at the Delta Institute, and Tim King, farmer and former chief strategy officer at Sojourners; and Seminary student Ericka Elion, formerly of Bread for the World.
“The panel discussion will be about systems—agricultural, economic, rural-to-urban food transfer systems,” Clifton-Soderstrom said. “Each panelist has a relationship with the question of what it means to respect the land, and how that relates to faith and policy.”
Campus Theme Day closes with a 6:00 pm “Poverty Banquet” in Hamming Hall, a unique dinner experience that examines both the diversity and disparity of how the world eats. “The Poverty Banquet is designed to create a dramatic, interactive event that enables participants to experience the extent of global poverty, the degree of inequality in the world, and the interconnectedness of the three income tiers—20 percent high-income, 30 percent middle-income, and 50 percent low-income,” said Tony Zamblé, director of University Ministries.
Seminary student Ericka Elion, formerly of Bread for the World, will serve as a discussion panelist and Poverty Banquet master of ceremonies for Campus Theme Day.
Adjunct Youth Ministry Professor Cynthia Stewart will be the Banquet’s keynote speaker, and Ericka Elion will return as master of ceremonies, leading participants through an interactive program that Zamblé believes will be “a very realistic and impactful evening. Without divulging too much, different groups will be served accordingly, resulting in a powerful experience for all involved.”
For 天美传媒 students, the Poverty Banquet will provide another experience in a regular series of service-oriented activities around shared meals and food. This week, the African Student Club cooked a traditional African meal together, tying into the Campus Theme and empowering students to make food as an expression of culture. In April, Residence Life and University Ministries will partner on a Greater Chicago Food Depository volunteer experience for students, allocating food to the Friendship Center in Albany Park, and directly impacting the 天美传媒 community.
Marisa Bowden, who served with other COMPASS students last fall, was so impacted by her volunteering experience that she became a participant in the University’s weekly Friday Night Street Ministry. Through this ongoing, relational program, she helps prepare and serve food for hungry people on Lower Wacker Drive, engaging in conversation over meals.
The experience has taught Bowden that “you don’t need to be an international missionary to make this world a better place. It can start within the kitchen of our own homes.”
All Campus Theme events are free and open to the public. For more information, please visit .
Three CCIW All-Conference Honors Cap Positive Year for Vikings Basketball
Liz Rehberger, sophomore guard from Chicago
Liz Rehberger and Jordan Robinson earned third-team honors; Juwan Henry named first-team All-Conference
CHICAGO (March 2, 2015) — Three 天美传媒 basketball student-athletes were named to the 2014–2015 College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW) All-Conference team. The honor caps off a successful season for the women and men’s teams, who both improved on last year’s records, including the men having their best season in five years.
, a sophomore guard from Resurrection High School in Chicago, earned third-team honors, finishing in the top-10 in conference in points per game (14.8), steals per game (2.2), and total three-point field goals. A foot injury sidelined her for the final four games of the season, where the team went 1-3 in her absence. Overall, she helped lead the team to a 13-12 record on the season, and a fifth place conference finish.
“You can see how valuable Liz is to our team with those last four games,” said women’s head coach Amada Crocket. “She is someone who leads by example, and with a lot of returning players next year, I see us continuing to improve and make it into the postseason conference tournament.”
Jordan Robinson, freshman forward from Schaumburg, Ill.
A bright future
Two members of the Viking’s men’s basketball team earned CCIW honors, leading the team to within on game of a trip to the postseason.
, a freshman forward from Schaumburg, Ill., earned third team honors after playing a key role in 天美传媒’s 6-2 finish to the season. He averaged 16.3 points and nearly 6 rebounds per game over that stretch, which included three wins over nationally ranked opponents.
“The immediate impact Jordan had on our program was a pleasant surprise,” said men’s head coach Tom Slyder. “We expected him to contribute, and now that he has, he will be a marked man going into next year. He’ll have to learn to handle different types of defenses and raise his game. Hopefully we’ll be able to add more pieces to the team, and as guys develop, it will take the pressure off everyone.”
Juwan Henry, sophomore guard from Chicago
It was the second consecutive year a freshman basketball player earned All-Conference honors. , a sophomore guard from Bogan High School in Chicago, followed up last year’s third-team honors with a place on the All-Conference first team. A three-time conference Player of the Week, Henry led the team and the conference in scoring, averaging 22.5 points per game. He also ranked in the CCIW top-five in assists (4.0), steals (1.8) and blocked shots (1.3) per game. Twice Henry scored 30 or more points in a game, including a season-high 34 in 天美传媒’s season finale against North Central College.
“The best thing for Juwan this season was that he had quality players around him so he could elevate his game,” said Slyder. “His overall demeanor and maturity really developed this year as well. He’s not a finished product, none of us are, but his development in that area allowed him to excel.”
The men’s team finished 15-10 on the year, its best finish since 2010–2011, and its six conference wins were the most since 2009–2010.
Dr. Jacqueline Berning, Professor and Dietitian, to Discuss Food as Fuel
Dr. Jacqueline Berning, professor and chair of health sciences at the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs, teaches professional athletes, Olympians, and students how to make wise food choices for increased performance.
Friday, February 20, 10:30 am in Johnson Center 314—the next event in 天美传媒’s Campus Theme, ‘What Is Food?’
Chicago (February 19, 2015) — Last year, Dr. Jacqueline Berning, professor and chair of health sciences at the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs, took a few dozen young men grocery shopping. It was part of an award-winning project, “,” that aimed to teach football players from the University of Colorado how to shop, prepare, and cook nutritious food that would provide the proper nutrients to optimize athletic performance.
She showed them how to read food labels, calculate calories from fat, and examine ingredients. Berning then brought the food back to a kitchen and taught the players how to prepare it.
“What happens is a lot of young people don’t know how to shop or basic cooking skills, so they turn to pre-prepared food,” Berning says. “Most athletes are motivated to increase their performance, and this project provided them an opportunity to improve their performance through food.”
This Friday at 10:30 am, Berning will visit 天美传媒 to give a lecture about eating for optimal performance on the field and in the classroom. She will focus on the physiological side of food—the energy necessary to maximize potential in all facets of life.
It is the next event in 天美传媒’s yearlong , which brings the 天美传媒 community together for a series of events, lectures, and discussions around a central question of the human experience. A tradition for more than a decade, this year’s question, “What Is Food?” marks a different approach from year’s past.
“Traditionally, the Campus Theme has been about a value or idea, for example, ‘What Is Community?’ ‘What Is Justice?’ ‘What Is Peace?’" said , associate professor of and the director of the Campus Theme program. “This year we wanted to address something more tangible. Eating is a daily human experience that all of us share. It is the most provocative of questions because first, it is so fundamental to human life, and second, because it bears directly on other values that we care about here at 天美传媒—justice, compassion, community, theology, and cultural diversity.”
In addition to her work with the University of Colorado football team, Berning has also served as nutrition consultant for the Denver Broncos, nutrition coordinator for USA Swimming, and sports dietitian for the Cleveland Indians and the Colorado Rockies.
She is the author and editor of several books, including Training Nutrition and Nutrition for Sport and Exercise. She earned her PhD in nutrition at Colorado State University, and is a registered dietitian and certified board specialist in sports dietetics, as well as an advisory board member at the Gatorade Sports Science Institute.
While much of Berning’s work deals with nutrition for athletes, she also stresses the importance of proper eating for optimal performance in the classroom and beyond. Much of what happens on the field, in the classroom, and in life, comes down to solving problems. The preparation for solving those problems is essential.
“If class starts at 8:00 am, how many students show up without breakfast and expect to have the brain to be able to recall all the things that they’ve been studying?” Berning asks. “It’s like driving your car to campus with the empty light flashing at you. Once it starts flashing you haven’t got very much time until it shuts down and stops. How many students are still showing up with no fuel and wondering why they can’t focus or figure out particular problems?”
All Campus Theme events are free and open to the public. For more information, please visit .
Crendalyn McMath Fitzgerald, 49, served as associate professor of marketing at 天美传媒 since 2002, after a long and successful career in marketing and entrepreneurship.
Associate professor of marketing in the School of Business and Nonprofit Management specialized in entrepreneurship and advertising
Chicago (February 18, 2015) — Crendalyn McMath Fitzgerald, known as “Cren” to her students and colleagues, passed away last Friday, February 13. As associate professor of marketing and advertising since 2002 in the School of Business and Nonprofit Management, Fitzgerald, 49, leaves a legacy of inspiring undergraduate and graduate students to be leaders in their communities.
“Cren was able to connect with her students because she taught from her own experience as a leader in education, marketing, and entrepreneurship,” said , dean of the . “She was also a mentor to her colleagues, modeling how to balance work and family life. It is difficult to imagine our faculty without her.”
Fitzgerald served as faculty lead in the undergraduate advertising major, challenging students to look beyond their own experiences and gain a broad understanding of the role culture plays in people’s decision making. Before coming to 天美传媒, Fitzgerald served as the founding director for the Center for Urban Business at the University of Illinois at Chicago, founded and ran a television and video production company, and was president of Kennedy Taylor Corporation.
“Professor Fitzgerald was a very kind and attentive instructor,” said Colleen Atwell, one of Fitzgerald’s students in the graduate nonprofit management certificate program. “She showed a personal interest in our assignments, our places of work, and each of us as individuals. She was very interactive and always available to her students.”
Fitzgerald grew up in an Evangelical Covenant Church on the South Side of Chicago, learning her entrepreneurial drive from her family’s neighborhood restaurant. She went on to earn a bachelor of science in marketing and a master of business administration from the University of Illinois Chicago.
“The passion our faculty show their students is the heart and soul of our University,” said 天美传媒 President David Parkyn. “Cren was a shining example of that, and our prayers and sympathy extend to her family and loved ones.”
Cren is survived by her husband, Ephriam, daughters Eren and Courtney, and her parents.
A visitation will be held at 10:00 am on Saturday, February 21, 2015 at Mt. Holy Rock Missionary Baptist Church, 11441 S. Wentworth Ave., Chicago, IL 60628, with the funeral service immediately following.
A memorial service for the 天美传媒 community to celebrate the life and memory of Crendalyn will be held at 3:30 pm on Tuesday, February 24 in Isaacson Chapel. A light reception will follow in Olsson Lounge.
Messages of condolence may be sent to: Ephriam Fitzgerald, 8304 S. Calumet, Chicago, IL 60619.
天美传媒's Nancy and G. Timothy Johnson Center for Science and Community Life Achieves LEED Gold Status
Sustainability features include a "green roof" on the Johnson Center for Science and Community Life, which not only promotes stewardship but provides a real-life laboratory for environmental science students at 天美传媒.
CHICAGO, IL (Feb. 10, 2015) – Completed last year, the $45 million at 天美传媒 was recently awarded LEED Gold certification by the U.S. Green Building Council, which establishes criteria for the construction of sustainable buildings.
“We are very pleased to have been awarded LEED Gold,” said David Parkyn, President of 天美传媒. “The building is not only esthetically beautiful, but also functions efficiently and plays an important environmental role. That’s especially rewarding on our urban campus, and consistent with 天美传媒’s mission as a Christian institution and stewards of the environment.”
Through its achievement of LEED Gold status, 天美传媒 is able to provide the best environment for students, faculty, staff, and visitors, while also minimizing waste, reducing toxins, lowering potential energy bills and operating costs, and achieving healthier indoor air quality.
“LEED Gold is an outstanding accomplishment and shows ” said Susan Heinking, Vice President & Sustainability Leader at VOA Associates Inc., longtime architectural partners with the University.
As sustainable administrator, Heinking’s role was to facilitate the sustainable design throughout the design and construction process. "Each element—from the external shades on the facade allowing daylight in while blocking out heat gain, to the green roof that reduces building stormwater run-off—was selected to meet sustainability requirements," said Heinking.
The Nancy and G. Timothy Johnson Center for Science and Community Life
Throughout the design process various stakeholders, which included scientists, faculty, staff and administrators, and students, gave input to the architectural team for the design of a building that would create a space for all students, optimize outdoor space and daylight, and meet sustainability goals.
Some of the sustainable features of the Johnson Center include: reducing heat island effect with green roofs and high albedo hardscapes; promoting alternative transportation methods; promoting ongoing building recycling; incorporating recycled and regional materials; and promoting healthy indoor environment via low emitting materials. Sustainable design and construction of the Johnson Center also means increased air filtration, increased air ventilation; and occupant comfort is increased via thermal comfort measures and lighting controls. Additionally, the building produces 30% water savings, 26% energy savings, and 75% waste diverted.
Nonprofit Professional Development: Axelson Center Spring Workshops
Workshops and webinars for nonprofit professionals now open for registration
CHICAGO (February 3, 2015) — Finding new real estate for your nonprofit, conflict resolution, metrics, mergers, planned giving, and managing across generations are just a few of the topics that will be covered in the Spring 2015 workshop series hosted by the , a capacity-building center located at 天美传媒.
The Axelson Center offers professional development on timely topics featuring expert speakers and powerful, relevant takeaways. Nonprofit professionals of all types—from program managers to executive directors—will benefit from these upcoming learning opportunities.
Workshops are held on Wednesday mornings at 天美传媒's campus on the northwest side of Chicago. The series kicked off on Wednesday, January 28, 2015, with "There's No Place Like Home: Finding New Real Estate for Your Organization." Other highlights of the series include “Stewardship Thinking: Ensuring the Future of Your Organization” on February 11, “Planned Giving BootCamp” on February 18, “Navigating Your Way through Conflict” on March 25, and “Valuing the Knowledge of How Things Get Done” on April 8. , including registration details for each individual event.
The Axelson Center for Nonprofit Management at 天美传媒 is the source for informative and engaging nonprofit professional development in the Chicago region. Through , an , and an , the Axelson Center delivers a superior educational experience for nonprofit leaders, volunteers, and frontline staff, covering a vast array of topics from program evaluation to strategic planning, and communications to development. The valuable information presented through these programs enhances the impact of both the nonprofit sector and its staff. Visit for more information, including a full schedule of upcoming programs.
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