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1
HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, On February 6, 1865, when the Illinois General
3Assembly granted the charter that established the college,
4Lincoln College was the first institution named for Abraham
5Lincoln and the only one so named during his lifetime, a fact
6he learned shortly before his untimely death; and
 
7    WHEREAS, In the 2019-2020 academic year, Lincoln College
8had an enrollment of 1,234 students and an average tuition and
9fees of $19,400; the average cost for room and board and extra
10expenses was estimated to be $11,361 in the years of
112020-2021; and
 
12    WHEREAS, Of the 1,234 students attending Lincoln College,
13844, or 68%, were MAP-eligible, and 769, or 62%, were
14Pell-eligible, indicating that a clear majority of the
15students attending Lincoln College demonstrated the need for
16financial assistance; and
 
17    WHEREAS, A total of 60% of Lincoln College students are
18part of a minority group, which are traditionally
19underrepresented at higher education institutions in this
20State; and
 
21    WHEREAS, On March 30, 2022, Lincoln College notified the

 

 

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1Illinois Board of Higher Education and the Higher Learning
2Commission of permanent closure effective May 13, 2022, 44
3days after the announcement; and
 
4    WHEREAS, Lincoln College was a victim of a cyberattack in
5December 2021 that thwarted admissions activities and hindered
6access to all institutional data, creating an unclear picture
7of Fall 2022 enrollment projections; all systems required for
8recruitment, retention, and fundraising efforts were
9inoperable; fortunately, no personal identifying information
10was exposed; once fully restored in March 2022, the
11projections displayed significant enrollment shortfalls,
12requiring a transformational donation or partnership to
13sustain Lincoln College beyond the current semester; and
 
14    WHEREAS, Students were notified that all credits earned at
15Lincoln College are valid and remain valid even after closure;
16the Higher Learning Commission regionally accredited Lincoln
17College, and credits will be considered for transfer by any
18other regionally accredited institution; therefore, be it
 
19    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE
20HUNDRED SECOND GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, THE
21SENATE CONCURRING HEREIN, that we urge every public and
22private university and community college in this State to
23extend their application deadlines for students currently

 

 

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1enrolled at Lincoln College who are unable to continue their
2education at their institution due to circumstances beyond
3their control; and be it further
 
4    RESOLVED, That we urge every public and private university
5and community college in this State to honor the credits
6earned by students from Lincoln College and have those credits
7be transferred accordingly; and be it further
 
8    RESOLVED, That we urge Lincoln College to waive transcript
9fees from students currently enrolled; and be it further
 
10    RESOLVED, That we urge all Illinois public and private
11universities and community colleges to attend Lincoln
12College's student transfer fair on April 14 to assist its
13students in finding another college to attend; and be it
14further
 
15    RESOLVED, That we urge all Illinois public and private
16universities and community colleges to waive the application
17fees for students of Lincoln College; and be it further
 
18    RESOLVED, That we urge all Illinois public and private
19universities and community colleges to attempt to match or
20exceed the financial award letters, including scholarships, of
21Lincoln College students; and be it further
 

 

 

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1    RESOLVED, That we encourage the Illinois Department of
2Employment Security and the Illinois Department of Commerce
3and Economic Opportunity to work with the displaced Lincoln
4College employees to ease their financial hardships and
5support their attempts to find new employment; and be it
6further
 
7    RESOLVED, That we will continue striving to provide better
8protections for Illinois' higher education students in the
9unfortunate event of a closure of an institution of higher
10learning in the State and to help provide a smooth transition
11for students and a path to continue pursue higher education in
12Illinois.