Northern Illinois University’s College of Education and Education Systems Center at NIU are proud to announce new incentives for Illinois students graduating with the College and Career Pathway Endorsement (CCPE) in education. Starting immediately, admitted students with the endorsement are automatically advanced as finalists to receive select scholarships and to participate in the college’s innovative Educate and Engage program.
“Illinois is facing a critical shortage in educators, and we believe high school graduates who earn the College and Career Pathway Endorsement will become a vital stream in our state’s teacher pipeline, and the NIU College of Education is ready to help these students reach their full potential,” says Dean Laurie Elish-Piper, Ph. D., of the NIU College of Education. “The rigor of the endorsement program ensures us that these education pathway graduates will be some of our strongest candidates for admission.”
For the first time, the NIU College of Education will automatically advance students with the CCPE in education to the final stages for its Dean’s Achievement Scholarship, a $2,000 award; the Future Educators Scholarship, also a $2,000 award; and the Mary F. English Technology Award, which awards recipients with new iPads and new laptop computers for their academic, personal, and professional use.
Once admitted, Huskies with the CCPE in education who remain in good academic standing will also be automatic finalists for the Educate Series (Educate Local, Educate U.S. and Educate Global), which is part of the College of Education’s experiential learning program. These experiences connect teacher-candidates with hands-on learning opportunities in diverse settings regionally, nationally, and even globally. Some of the opportunities are highly selective and include week-long experiences in other states and countries.
“The new College and Career Pathway Endorsement in education promises to ensure not only that students are ready for the rigors of college, but that they are uniquely prepared for and passionate about a career in education,” says Pathways Director Juan Jose Gonzalez of EdSystems. “Through our Scaling Education Pathways in Illinois (SEPI) initiative, we are helping districts across Illinois recruit and prepare education pathway students who reflect the diversity of their own communities.”
“What the College of Education has done is create currency for education pathway students,” says Executive Director Jon Furr of EdSystems. “Through this offer, potential education pathway students can realize that earning the CCPE has value and can give them clear advantages toward reaching their goals. We hope to see more scholarship and postsecondary opportunities develop across the state for graduates of all of our CCPE areas.”
In December 2020, EdSystems announced a similar partnership with Golden Apple Scholars of Illinois, which is automatically advancing any applicants who have earned or are on track to earn the CCPE to the final stage of the application process.
