Emanuel, CME Group Present New Scholarships ​

From the Office of the Mayor: Mayor Rahm Emanuel, City Colleges of Chicago Chancellor Juan Salgado and CME Group’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Terry Duffy honored 25 Chicago Star Scholar graduates with transfer scholarships that will support them in continuing towards a four-year degree. Students have obtained an associate degree from the City Colleges of Chicago (CCC), and will continue on to earn a bachelor’s degree in a STEM-related pathway.

“Today, in the City of Chicago, high school graduation is no longer the last stop on a student’s educational journey,” said Mayor Emanuel. “I want to thank CME Group for stepping up and investing in Chicago’s hard working Star Scholars, who can now access four-year college degrees and the career opportunities that come with it.”

Mayor Rahm Emanuel created the Star Scholarship program in 2014 to ensure that more students can access a viable pathway to college regardless of financial means by rewarding Chicago Public School (CPS) students with an opportunity to pursue a degree or certificate at CCC at no cost. To become a Star Scholar, students must graduate with a GPA of 3.0 or higher, demonstrate "completion ready ability" with an ACT math and English score of 17, and they must enroll in one of CCC's structured, relevant pathways.

CME Group, the world's leading and most diverse derivatives marketplace, is the first corporate partner to support the inaugural group of Star Scholar graduates with financial assistance. CME Group will provide 25 students with $5,000 scholarships to continue their education at one of the 15 Chicago Star Partnership colleges or universities. Four scholarship recipients will also be selected to participate in a summer internship at CME Group or a CME Group clearing firm. CME Group has been a long-serving partner with the mayor’s office, having provided high-achieving CPS students with scholarship awards since 1986 and awarding more than $2 million to nearly 2,000 students.

“We are proud to support the Mayor’s Chicago Star Scholarship and the opportunities it provides for our city’s hardworking and high-achieving CPS graduates,” said CME Group Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Terry Duffy. “The program is testament to the strength of not only our city’s schools, but our talented students—and investing to enable them to continue their education today will only increase the vitality of our future business community tomorrow.”

Working with CCC, CME Group selected 25 students from a pool of 100 qualified candidates from the first class of graduating Star Scholars. The scholarship will help to ensure a successful transition for students to four-year programs in the fall. To be eligible for the CME Group Award for Star Scholars Achievement, students needed to graduate with a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or above and a major in math, computer science, information technology, finance or economics.

This new partnership is the latest in a series of efforts by the administration to coordinate across CPS and CCC to make college more affordable and attainable for students citywide. With more students today graduating from high school in the City of Chicago than ever before, and with hundreds of Star Scholars expected to graduate this year alone, increasing access to college programs that will prepare students to seize the jobs of the 21st century workforce is critical.

The Chicago Star Scholarship program is helping more than 2,000 Chicago Public School (CPS) graduates attend college tuition-free this fall. Star Scholars are diverse, representing more than 100 CPS high schools. Star Scholars have shown higher academic performances, including significantly higher GPAs, suggesting that students enrolled in this program are highly likely to persist in their coursework toward a degree.

For more information on the Chicago Star Scholarship at City Colleges of Chicago, visit www.ccc.edu/starscholarship. For more information on the CME Group STAR Partnership Mayor Award or the CME Group Center for Innovation, please visit CME Group’s website.

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