Registration begins for Fall 2008 courses
April 22
Open House for Prospective PACE Education students at Parkland College
April 24
Open House for Prospective PACE Education students at Capital Area Career Center, Springfield
April 25
Alpha Sigma Lambda Honor Society Induction
April 29
5th Anniversary Celebration Reception for first PACE graduates and PACE faculty
May 6
Open House for Prospective PACE students- Decatur
May 16
PACE Commencement Dinner for graduating seniors
Announcement of PACE Outstanding Faculty and Graduate Awards
May 17
PACE Commencement Ceremony
May 26
Millikin campus closed for Memorial Day
June 3
Open House for Prospective PACE students – Decatur (Tentative)
June 13
Admission deadline for Fall 2008
June 21
Orientation for new PACE students
June 25
Orientation for new PACE students
July 7 (week of)
Fall semester begins for PACE students
Pam Jones: A credit to the PACE program
Pam Jones is pursuing a degree in the same field she would have picked had she attended college right after high school. . . she’s just doing it a bit later. For Pam, it all added up to a degree in Accounting, and the PACE program offered her the opportunity to complete her degree while continuing to work.
Like many adult students, Pam chose marriage and a family after high school. As her family got older, Pam went to work at Zexel Corporation in the machining department. Thirteen years later, the Zexel facility was closed and Pam faced an uncertain future. Some of her co-workers were hired at other factories locally because of their strong skill sets in machining, but Pam took advantage of the chance to pursue higher education through a grant offered to displaced workers through Workforce Investment Solutions. She enrolled at Richland Community College in 2002 in the Accounting program and received her associate’s degree and was named Outstanding Accounting Graduate in 2004.
Pam had heard that the PACE program at Millikin was planning to offer an evening accounting degree completion program, but the start date was uncertain. Eventually she applied at Eastern Illinois University for a weekend degree completion program (not in accounting), but soon got a call that the PACE program was ready to take students in the fall of 2006. Pam enrolled in the PACE Accounting program and is scheduled to graduate in the Spring of 2009.
Pam isn’t the only numbers person in her family to attend Millikin. One of her sons, Matt Simpson, is a senior math major, attending on an honors scholarship. There might be a little friendly academic competition in the family as both Pam and Matt have earned high honors. Pam admits she’s enjoyed receiving advice from Matt regarding courses and faculty. Matt will graduate this spring and is interested in a career in finance and banking.
Outside of PACE, Pam enjoys spending time with her supportive husband, Kevin, and their blended family which includes Pam’s two sons and Kevin’s daughter and two sons currently serving in the military. Pam is the office manager for Sandra Ware, CPA. With her graduation date just a year away, Pam is considering her next step. She thinks she may be interested in working for a larger corporation in town, or possibly a larger accounting firm. She definitely will complete the additional 30 hours needed to sit for the CPA exam.
Pam is pro-PACE and thinks it’s a wonderful program for both working and non-working adults. She enjoys taking classes with other adults and appreciates that her colleagues are serious about learning and have a purpose for being in the program.
What’s left on the “balance sheet of life” for Pam? Well, she wouldn’t mind a little time to catch up on her reading and sewing Raggedy Ann and Andy dolls for family members, but for now she’s focused on finishing her accounting degree.