Illinois Central College

« Back to Recent News

Illinois Central College Celebrates Exceptionality During Community College Month

East Peoria, IL (04/01/2022) — Illinois Central College joins 47 other community colleges throughout the state and hundreds more across the country in celebrating April as Community College Month.

Community College Month is a month-long grassroots education and stigma-busting campaign coordinated by the Association of Community College Trustees (ACCT). The primary goals of Community College Month are to improve awareness of the economic, academic, and equity advantages of attending community colleges, and to bust longtime stigmas wrongly associated with public two-year colleges.

"The past year has proven beyond a doubt that our college is vital to our region and state," said Illinois Central College President Dr. Sheila Quirk-Bailey. "Community College Month is an opportunity to reach out and demonstrate why community colleges should be the first choice for many collegegoers. They are first-class institutions, with amazing faculty and staff, that are vital to our local and state economies."

Two public events will take place during the month - the ICC Open House on Tuesday, April 5 (icc.edu/openhouse) and a Campus Visit Day on Friday, April 22 (icc.edu/visit). Internally, employees will celebrate at the annual Employee Recognition program, have the opportunity for free professional headshots, and enjoy giveaways throughout the month. Students on each campus are encouraged to participate in a post-it comment wall, displaying messages about what makes ICC special.

A proclamation recognizing April as Illinois Central College Month will be read by Peoria Mayor Dr. Rita Ali at the April 12 city council meeting. "I am proud to publicly declare April as Illinois Central College Month in the Peoria region," said Peoria Mayor and former ICC Vice President of Workforce and Diversity Dr. Rita Ali. "ICC provides opportunities to all students and is an engine of economic opportunity and growth."

Illinois Central College was designed to guarantee access to affordable, high-quality higher education for all people. Today, ICC continues to embrace its founding principles and prides itself on its ability to serve a demographically and socioeconomically diverse student population.

The College provides a total economic output of almost $82 million and offers over 150 different programs of study. ICC has the lowest tuition rate in the greater Peoria region and serves all, or parts of 10 counties in Central Illinois: Bureau, Livingston, Logan, Marshall, Mason, McLean, Peoria, Stark, Tazewell, and Woodford counties.

The Illinois Community College System is the third largest in the nation. According to the Illinois Community College Board, Illinois community colleges educate 60 percent of students enrolled in higher education.

To learn more about Community College Month, visit acct.org/ccmonth.

###

Illinois Central College is a two-year community college with campuses in East Peoria, Peoria, and Pekin, Illinois providing a high-quality, affordable education to prepare students to enter the workforce or to transfer to a four-year college or university. For more information on ICC, visit icc.edu.

Media Attachments

Copyright © 2025 Merit Pages, Inc. • All Rights Reserved. • Terms of Service • Privacy Policy • Opt Out