Align4edu

Alignment Collaborative for Education - ACE

Education

Please join us on Giving Tuesday…

Please join us on Giving Tuesday to grow the more than 6,000 students served in 2022 to over 8,000 students by 2023.

“The hands-on experience of getting to create our own project and doing activities that are practiced in the real world was a truly rewarding experience.”

– Emily Gilmore, intern, Bartlett High School

“Today was very fun. It gave me some experiences I would never usually get.”

– Kunal Modi, Explore, Eastview Middle School

Invest in Alignment to prepare students to graduate academic and career ready. Our future workforce depends on it.

“I learned to seek good opportunities that will allow me to combine something that I’m good at with something I really care about. ”

– Anaid Braun, intern, South Elgin High School

“Overall the internship was a future changing experience.”

– Andrew Calles Cortez, intern, Larkin High School

To see our impact, view our Annual Report
To make an impact, Donate Today

Alignment Announces its 2022-23 Executive Committee

We are proud to announce our 2022-2023 Executive Committee. Bill Wright will be serving as Governing Board Chair and Sara Sabo will be serving as Operating Board Chair.

Alignment Collaborative For Education
2022-2023 Executive Committee

Bill Wright
President and Chair
Managing Director
The Overture Group

Jeni Lyon
Vice-Chair, Resource Development
President and CEO
Hampton, Lenzini & Renwick

Corey Dixon
Secretary
Senior Assistant Director
Kane County Sheriff’s Office

Peter Sikorski
Treasurer
Chief Financial Officer
Western Smokehouse Partners

Pam Cumpata
Resource Development
Community Volunteer

Bill Hoffer
Resource Development 
Chairman
Hoffer Plastics Corporation

Sara Sabo
Operating Board Chair
Deputy Director
Gail Borden Public Library

Tony Sanders
Superintendent
School District U-46

Nancy Coleman
Executive Director
Alignment Collaborative for Education

Post Secondary Senior Day Highlights

More than 25 universities, colleges, and organizations joined Alignment and School District U-46 to feature its first Senior Post Secondary Virtual Day on October 12. There were 750 individual seniors that attended the event participating in more than 2,100 sessions with university and college admissions staff and visiting faculty along with receiving assistance with FAFSA, future employment opportunities, military service, and NCAA eligibility.

Seniors had the opportunity to have visits with some of the most competitive post secondary institutions of their choice before applications are due November 1. Sessions were also offered on FAFSA and NCAA Academic Eligibility. For students that are undecided about their interest in post secondary colleges and universities, sessions were also facilitated by the Illinois Department of Employment Security (IDES) about the current labor market, hiring projections within the local community, and tips on how to best access job openings and navigate the application process.

Michele Chapman, U-46 Director of Post Secondary Success, described the day as “a great opportunity for some seniors to help finalize their search prior to November 1st and for other seniors to begin the planning of their post secondary plans after graduation. The goal was to try to reach as many seniors as possible with sessions that met their future academic and career preparation needs. We thank Alignment for partnering with us to provide all U-46 seniors this experience.”

Students and parents also had the opportunity following the virtual event to visit Elgin Community College’s Post Secondary Fair held that evening to further visit with college and university representatives that they met during the day.

Thank you to the following colleges, universities, and organizations for partnering with Alignment and U-46 to offer the Senior Post Secondary Day:

Aurora University
Bradley University
DePaul University
Elgin Community College
Elmhurst University
Harper College
Honest Game – NCAA Academic Eligibility
Illinois Department of Employment Security
Illinois State University
Judson University
Lewis University
Loyola University
Marquette University
Milwaukee School of Engineering
North Central College

Northern Illinois University
Purdue University
Roosevelt University
Southern Illinois University
Universal Technical Institute
University of Dayton
University of Illinois Chicago
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
University of Iowa
University of Missouri
University of Wisconsin Milwaukee
University of Wisconsin Whitewater
U.S. Armed Forces
Valparaiso University
Western Illinois University

Magnet School Accreditation and Educational Pathways Prepare Students for Success

Magnet School Accreditation and Educational Pathways Prepare Students for Success

Bartlett, Larkin, and Streamwood High Schools are now nationally certified magnet schools! The certification is another way in which School District U-46 continues to prepare students for success after high school, either in a career or at university.

In addition to the magnet school curriculum, U-46 has partnered with Alignment to enhance their educational pathways for students not part of an academy. Through the educational pathway program, Alignment placed students from all five high schools in summer internship programs throughout the community. The internships offered real-world experience in many different industry clusters.

For eighth graders, their first educational pathway opportunity will be Explore 2022, taking place October 6 at the NOW Arena. Explore is a career showcase that gives students the opportunity to experience a variety of career paths, while also showing them the connection between academics and available career paths.

For the full article, click here

Alignment hosts Senior Job Fair for Career and Technical Education Students

As the school year comes to a close, students in the graduating classes have been working to solidify their post-secondary plans.

Over 750 graduating students enrolled in career and technical education (CTE) courses from School District U-46 attended a job fair hosted by Alignment Collaborative for Education on April 27 at South Elgin High School and on April 28 at Elgin High School.

Career clusters highlighted at the job fair included automotive, business, culinary, education, health care, manufacturing, and welding.

Nancy Coleman, executive director for Alignment, said, “The purpose of this event is to prepare students as they exit their high school experience to enter the workforce. Thank you to the employers and sponsors for investing in our youth.”

Eighty employers from the area with available job openings met with students to discuss their interests and available roles within their organizations. As they visited the exhibitors, students were able to receive information and the next steps to apply for open positions.

“This was a wonderful experience for the kids to see multiple opportunities available to them,” said Kellie Mowers, a teacher at Elgin High School. “You can tell the employers are sincerely looking to hire the students.”

Participating businesses found value in the job fair as well. “Thank you to U-46 for setting up this event,” said Caleb Arteta, general manager at Nick’s Pizza & Pub in Elgin. “Programs like this have opened up many doors of opportunity. As an Elgin High grad, I am very happy to share what events and programs like this can do for everyone.”

Representatives from Elgin Community College, Judson University and Northern Illinois University were also on hand to meet with students interested in pursuing post-secondary education offerings.

Alignment, in partnership with School District U-46 and Northern Kane County Region 110 CTE Programs, will continue to plan similar events and its previously held resume workshop to help students prepare and explore the opportunities available to them within their own community.

Sponsors for the Senior Job Fair included: Advocate Sherman Hospital, American Honda Finance Corporation, City of Elgin, Elgin Community College, Grand Victoria Foundation, Hampton, Lenzini and Renwick, Inc., Hoffer Foundation, IHC Construction, ITW Shakeproof Automotive, Nicor, and School District U-46.

Thank You to Our Job Fair Sponsors

Advocate Sherman Hospital
American Honda Finance Corporation
City of Elgin
Elgin Community College
Grand Victoria Foundation
Hampton, Lenzini and Renwick
Hoffer Foundation
IHC Construction
ITW Shakeproof Automotive
Nicor
School District U-46

Thank you Business and Community Partners

Automotive
Biggers Chevrolet
Local 701
Rosen Hyundai
Standard Equipment
Business
Elgin State Bank
John B. Sanfilippo & Son, Inc.
KCT Credit Union
LSI
Manpower
Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater
Chicago
Nicor
Zurich Insurance
Culinary
Advocate Sherman Hospital
Andy’s Frozen Custard
Chick-Fil-A
Culvers
Elgin Community College Culinary Program
Nick’s Pizza & Pub
St. Joseph Hospital
U-46 Food Services

Education
Boys and Girls Club of Elgin
City of Elgin
ECC – Early Education Program
ECC – Secondary Education Program
Judson University
Northern Illinois University
Streamwood Park District
School District U-46
The Learning Tree
Health Care
Advocate Sherman Hospital
Bella Terra Streamwood
Elgin Community College – Dental Assisting, Medical Assisting and Ophthalmic Technician Programs
Heritage Health
Highland Oaks
St. Joseph Hospital
Symphony of Hanover Park

Manufacturing/Welding
Custom Aluminum
ECC Apprenticeships
Electriflex
Elgin Sweeper
ESM
Hoffer Plastics
ITW Shakeproof
Manpower
Mapei
Nicor
NTA Precision Axle Corporation
NTN Bearing Corporation
Tech Weld

Image Gallery

Alignment Partners with Hoffer Plastics to Promote Manufacturing Careers

Alignment Partners with Hoffer Plastics to Promote Manufacturing Careers
Hoffer Plastics in South Elgin has been working with local schools to change the perception of the manufacturing industry with students who might be considering a career in industry. At right is 12-year employee Adam Vanmeter. (Photo courtesy of Hoffer Plastics/ Nick Allexon Photography)

The Alignment Collaborative for Education and Hoffer Plastics partnered to introduce high school counselors across School District U-46 to careers in manufacturing as part of the January counselor field trip to study the fields of automotive, manufacturing, and welding. As a result of that January visit, high school counselors and students from Larkin High School have participated in subsequent visits to learn about the various career available in the manufacturing industry, pay and benefits associated with these positions, and opportunities for advancement. Thank you to Hoffer Plastics for making this opportunity possible!

Read the Daily Herald article by Gregg Voss that features Hoffer Plastics’ “Break the Mold” initiative, working with high school counselors and students to change the perception of the manufacturing industry.