Senate President Emil Jones to help
rededicate NIU CHANCE Program

Since its inception at NIU, the Counseling, Help and Assistance Necessary for a College Education (CHANCE) Program has been synonymous with the name of its founder, McKinley “Deacon” Davis.

The university will make that link official in ceremonies Tuesday, Jan. 27, when it will formally re-name the program the Deacon Davis CHANCE Program in honor of its late creator, who died last March.

Ceremonies will begin at 6:30 p.m. in the Carl Sandburg Auditorium in the Holmes Student Center.

The evening will feature a keynote address by Illinois Senate President Emil Jones, an ardent supporter of public education at all levels. Since being elected to the State House in 1983, Jones has championed a number of key proposals that have increased per-pupil spending at schools throughout the state and has helped direct millions of state dollars to meet the needs of disadvantaged public school students.

Many of those students likely went on to benefit from the Deacon Davis CHANCE Program at NIU.

Created in 1968, its goal from the start has been to recruit, retain and graduate educationally disadvantaged students. In its first year, the program enrolled 50 inner-city participants. Today, that number is about 2,100 students per year. Those enrolled in the program receive academic assistance, financial aid counseling, academic skills training and other services to help them adjust to college.

During its 35-year history, CHANCE has opened the doors of campus to more than 15,000 students, thousands of whom graduated and have gone on to become doctors, lawyers, educators, engineers and other professionals making contributions to society.

The ceremony formalizing the re-naming of the program (which was first announced last spring) will be incorporated into the annual Student Achievement Awards Program, where all freshman CHANCE students who earned a 2.5 grade point average or higher in their first semester on campus will be recognized.

A reception will follow in the Regency Room.

1-26-04