ComEd Fills Tuition Gap for 10 Local Engineering Students Pursuing STEM Careers

Illinois Tech and UIC students are latest group of ComEd Scholars to receive financial support, mentoring and internship opportunities

To promote equity in higher education and STEM, and a workforce that reflects the diverse communities it serves, ComEd will provide scholarships that fill the tuition gap not covered by financial aid to 10 Chicagoland students pursuing engineering. These students make up the 2021 ComEd Scholars class and attend Illinois Institute of Technology (Illinois Tech) and University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC).

“ComEd is proud to help deserving students from underserved communities achieve their higher education goals,” said Michelle Blaise, ComEd’s senior vice president of technical services and an Illinois Tech mechanical engineering alumna. “The past year has been incredibly difficult. We hope that our support can enable these wonderful students and leaders of the future to receive the education necessary to create innovative change in their fields and inspire their communities and future generations to come.”

The ComEd Scholars program, now in its third year, provides scholarships to students pursuing degrees in STEM that cover education-related costs that exceed financial aid. ComEd Scholars are also granted the opportunity to interview for internships at ComEd and its parent company, Exelon, and are encouraged to participate in a mentorship program with ComEd engineers. Since the inception of the ComEd Scholars program in 2019, 22 students have been awarded support.

To be eligible for the program, students must be recommended by their respective schools. Each school’s financial aid office, in partnership with academic advisors and ComEd, then identifies high-performing students facing financial burdens to continuing the student’s education. Prospective recipients then submit a personal statement, financial-aid application and school transcripts.

“For the third year in a row, ComEd continues to expand educational access and opportunities for students eager to impact the future and advance technology for all,” said Raj Echambadi, president of Illinois Tech. “ComEd’s substantial commitment will allow these Illinois Tech scholars to serve as purpose-driven innovators and, ultimately, the tech leaders of the future.”

“ComEd’s long term commitment to UIC students and their academic endeavors, particularly through these unprecedented times, exemplifies what it means to create equitable pathways for the next generation of leaders and change makers in the field of engineering,” added UIC CHANCE Director Kendal Parker.

The 2021 ComEd Scholars are:

• Eduardo David Calix-Ortiz – a third-year student from Chicago’s Gage Park neighborhood, pursuing a degree in electrical engineering and computer engineering at Illinois Tech.
• Joshua Coburn – a second-year student from Chicago’s Edgewater neighborhood, pursuing a degree in mechanical engineering at Illinois Tech.
• Joshua Evan Campbell – a second-year student from Chicago’s Jeffery Manor neighborhood, pursuing a degree in computer engineering at UIC.
• Leah Davis – a first-year student from Chicago’s Near West Side neighborhood, pursuing a degree in civil engineering at UIC.
• Chenille Lawrence – a second-year student from Chicago’s Bronzeville neighborhood, pursuing a degree in computer science at UIC.
• Camren McGee – a second-year student from Chicago’s South Shore neighborhood, pursuing a degree in industrial engineering at UIC.
• Rashaun Muhammad – a third-year student from Dolton, Ill., pursuing a degree in industrial engineering at UIC.
• Ramon Orozco – a third-year student from Lyons, Ill., pursuing a degree in civil engineering at UIC.
• Cristobal Soto – a first-year student from Maywood, Ill., pursuing a degree in mechanical engineering at UIC.
• Juliana Soto – a first-year student from Maywood, Ill., pursuing a degree in mechanical engineering at UIC.

ComEd is a unit of Chicago-based Exelon Corporation (NASDAQ: EXC), a Fortune 100 energy company with approximately 10 million electricity and natural gas customers – the largest number of customers in the U.S. ComEd powers the lives of more than 4 million customers across northern Illinois, or 70 percent of the state’s population. For more information visit ComEd.com and connect with the company on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.

Located in the heart of one of the world’s great cities, the University of Illinois Chicago is the city’s largest university and only public research institution. Its 16 academic colleges serve more than 34,000 undergraduate, graduate and professional students. UIC is recognized as one of the most ethnically rich and culturally diverse campuses in the nation, a leader in providing access to underrepresented students. With one of the largest colleges of medicine in the nation, and colleges of dentistry, pharmacy, public health, nursing, social work, and applied health sciences, UIC is the state’s principal educator of health professionals and a major healthcare provider to underserved communities. UIC students become professionals in fields ranging from law and business to engineering, education, liberal arts and sciences, urban planning, and social work, as well as architecture, design and the arts. UIC is an integral part of the educational, technological, and cultural fabric of one of the world’s greatest cities.

Illinois Institute of Technology, also known as Illinois Tech, is a private, technology-focused research university. Illinois Tech is the only university of its kind in Chicago, and its Chicago location offers students access to the world-class resources of a great global metropolis. It offers undergraduate and graduate degrees in engineering, computing, architecture, business, design, science and human sciences, and law. One of 22 institutions that comprise the Association of Independent Technological Universities, Illinois Tech provides an exceptional education centered on active learning, and its graduates lead the state and much of the nation in economic prosperity. Illinois Tech uniquely prepares students to succeed in professions that require technological sophistication, an innovative mindset, and an entrepreneurial spirit. Visit iit.edu.

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