RECENT EVENTS AT NLU

November 8, 2021 - Veterans Appreciation Dinner NLU hosted a special dinner to honor our veteran and military-connected students, staff and community partners. Guests enjoyed a delicious four-course meal prepared and served by Kendall College students and faculty. Speakers included Stacey Dixon, Director of the Veterans and Military Program, and NLU President Nivine Megahed, who thanked veterans for their bravery and service. This dinner was the first of several events during a week-long appreciation of our veteran and military-connected students that included candlelight vigils at our Chicago and Wheeling campuses. December 3, 2021 - Day of Service NLU was delighted to welcome six volunteers from McKinsey & Company’s Chicago office who joined us for their company-wide Day of Service. Fueled by breakfast pastries from Kendall College, these volunteers helped assemble medical supply kits for students in NLU’s Accelerate U medical assistant certification program. In just 90 minutes, our intrepid volunteers assembled 70 intricate kits, saving NLU staff many hours of time! Each kit contains a stethoscope, thermometer, surgical gloves and other medical supplies, which students use during their six-month certification program.

December 10, 2021 - Toys For Tots Each year, the Veterans and Military Program (VMP) at NLU supports the U.S. Marine Corps Toys for Tots Drive, which provides toys and holiday joy to children in need. This year, VMP worked with NLU staff, faculty and students to collect and donate 225 toys for the drive at our campuses or through our Amazon wish list!

Helping Vets one click at a time

Alum helps veterans express emotions, prevent suicides

Click. Robert Perez, a military veteran, takes a gorgeous photo of a river flanked with trees. Click. He takes another of the neat rows of a mid-summer cornfield. Click. And a photo of the faithful brown dog following him around, tongue hanging out.

He’s participating in the PhotoVoice project, which encourages veterans to bond by capturing photo images that have meaning for them.

Cari Stevenson, Ph.D., a 2017 graduate of NLU’s Community Psychology program, had obtained a “Making Connections” grant from the Movember Foundation, which primarily works to improve men’s health and well-being. Stevenson is a professor of psychology at Kankakee Community College and co-advisor of KCC’s veterans’ group. She also teaches I/O Psychology and Human Resources Management at NLU as an adjunct professor.

One of the student veterans she taught at KCC, Pedro Santos, liked photography, and she introduced him to Movember’s PhotoVoice project. He enlisted other male veterans from the school, and they decided to plan and execute the “mission” of PhotoVoice together, in the same style of planning and executing missions together they had learned in the military.

“The photos they took in PhotoVoice became a catalyst for incredible, meaningful dialogue that this (veterans) group usually doesn’t have,” Stevenson said. “Veterans don’t usually sit down and talk about their feelings. So the project opened up a lot of doors for them.”

Stevenson feels that dialogue and mutual support is important for veterans. The latest research indicates about 22 veterans commit suicide every day; having meaningful connections and conversations with supportive friends, especially fellow veterans, helps them process their experiences in a healthier way.

The Movember Foundation funded the production of a video on the project, which also features NLU’s Brad Olson, Ph.D., co-director of the Community Psychology program.