DCFS Scholarship Program applications accepted until March 31

CHICAGO – The Illinois Department of Children and Family Services is currently accepting applications for the 2021 DCFS Scholarship Program. Through the program, 53 academic scholarships will be awarded to current and former youth in care for the upcoming school year, with four awards reserved for the children of veterans.

Scholarship recipients receive up to five consecutive years of tuition and academic fee waivers to be used at participating Illinois state community colleges and universities, a monthly grant of $1,235 to offset other expenses and a medical card. On average, the department receives 200 application packets each year, and has awarded over 1,400 scholarships since the program began in 1971.

“It is imperative that every youth in our care has the tools they need to succeed,” said Illinois DCFS Acting Director Marc D. Smith. “These scholarships give our youth the ability to concentrate on their studies and prepare for their futures without the stress of worrying about how they are going to pay for school.”

The DCFS Scholarship Program is open to youth who have an open DCFS case, whose cases were closed through adoption or guardianship or who aged out of care at 18 or older. Youth who are at least 16 years old and not yet 21 on March 31 may apply.

“The information I received from the DCFS Scholarship Program about buying books, school contacts and job opportunities made my transition to college life much easier,” said Maya, a 2020 scholarship recipient. “I am very grateful to have been selected as a recipient of the scholarship award. With this scholarship I don’t have to worry about trying to manage a lot of work hours and my school schedule. The scholarship allows me to focus on my classes and study time and has made me more financially responsible. I review my expenses, pay my bills on time and balance my monthly budget.”

Scholarship recipients are selected based on their scholastic record and aptitude, community and extracurricular activities, three letters of recommendation from non-relatives and a written statement illustrating their purpose for higher education. Due to pandemic-related limited availability of ACT and SAT testing sites, ACT and SAT test scores will not be considered for any applicants in the 2021 selection process.

Applications are available at any DCFS regional office and on the DCFS website: www2.illinois.gov/dcfs (Form CFS 438 under DCFS Features on the homepage). Students or caregivers may call the DCFS Office of Education and Transition Services at 217-557-2689 with questions about the application process or for more information.

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Scammers pose as ComEd or other service workers to lure residents outside, while accomplices enter empty homes to steal possessions

CHICAGO (Jan. 28, 2021) – With people spending more time at home because of the COVID- 19 pandemic, imposters are taking advantage of residents who may be alone to rob them of their possessions and financial information. These imposters can show up at small businesses as well as homes.

In this latest scam, an individual may pose as an employee from ComEd, another utility or a tree service company. They will lure the resident or small-business owner outside to discuss work that they claim needs to be completed. While the individual is outside, an accomplice will enter the home or business to steal valuables and documents containing the individual’s personal or financial information.

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The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) is making the following recommendations for those schools returning to in-person learning following remote operation during the first semester, from the winter or spring breaks, after summer vacation, or any other time a building has been vacated and persons return to the building. As buildings are vacated or unoccupied, drinking water is often left to sit stagnant in the building’s plumbing system. This may cause increased concentrations of metals, such as lead or copper, in the building’s drinking water and may promote the growth of harmful pathogens, such as Legionella, within a building’s plumbing system.
Public Act 099-0922 took effect Jan. 17, 2017, and required all Illinois schools constructed on or before Jan. 1, 2000, to test all “sources of potable water” for lead and submit the results to IDPH by Dec. 31, 2018. This Act also directed IDPH to determine if it is necessary and appropriate, to protect public health, to require schools constructed in whole or in part after Jan. 1, 2000, to conduct testing for lead from sources of potable water.

With this in mind, IDPH is providing a memorandum with recommendations for all schools constructed in whole or in part before Jan. 4, 2014, to sample “all sources of potable water” (225 ILCS 320/35.5) for lead in water and providing other IDPH recommendations to improve water quality at Illinois’ schools. For further questions, please contact IDPH, Plumbing and Water Quality Program, Division of Environmental Health at (217) 524-0791, or visit the IDPH website.

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