In collaboration with City Colleges of Chicago, Hilco invests in the future of Chicago’s Little Village with Hilco Scholars program.
HINA (Servicio Empresarial)
Chicago.- Members of the Hilco Global and Hilco Redevelopment Partners executive teams, along with Deputy Mayor Samir Mayekar, officially present the first class of Hilco Scholars with their scholarship to the City Colleges of Chicago. Pictured from left to right: Nicholas Pullara, Jeremy J. Grey, Andrea Carlos, Gary C. Epstein, Rodolfo “Rudy” Cordero, Roberto Perez, Alfredo Rosado, and Deputy Mayor Samir Mayekar.
CHICAGO, August XX, 2019 – Today, Hilco Global announced the recipients of its inaugural Hilco Global Scholarship Program to Little Village residents Andrea Carlos and Rodolfo Cordero.
Hilco Scholars, which began accepting submissions in May 2019, recognizes two qualified students per year who are residents of the Little Village neighborhood in Chicago and are pursuing an associate degree program at one of the seven City Colleges of Chicago. The scholarship award, representing a total investment of more than $18,000 with each two-year award cycle, can be used for education-related expenses including tuition, fees, books, tools, equipment and materials that are required for students to successfully complete their degree.
Jeffrey Hecktman, CEO and Chairman of Hilco Global explained, “As a company with strong roots in Chicago, we have a deep commitment to leverage our resources to make a difference in the lives of our city’s future leaders. We are proud to recognize our first class of Hilco Scholars and look forward to continuing to give back to the community in many ways well into the future.”
Andrea Carlos is a rising sophomore at City Colleges of Chicago’s Harold Washington campus pursuing an associate degree in computer science. Andrea developed an interest in game design as a high school student and was encouraged by her teachers to explore local and regional computer programming competitions which led to her academic pursuits. Following graduation, Andrea hopes to work as a software engineer.
Rodolfo “Rudy” Cordero is a rising sophomore at City Colleges of Chicago’s Harold Washington campus interested in pursuing a career focused on computer and data science. With nearly a decade of professional experience in supplier relations, Rudy is returning to academia with an interest in artificial intelligence and how to best maximize asset capabilities for construction companies and efficiencies at construction sites.
“Receiving the Hilco Scholars award allows me to focus more on school and explore different subjects beyond my major requirements, like music and philosophy,” said Andrea Carlos. “I don’t like to sit still and love learning new things. I can’t wait to continue my education and am grateful for the opportunity to expand my studies.”
Extending beyond the classroom, Hilco Scholars recipients also have the opportunity to gain valuable hands-on experience through paid-internship programs at Hilco Global leading to possible future employment.
“I found out about the Hilco Scholars program through the City Colleges of Chicago website and was excited that a company was focused on promoting students with a such a specific background, one that doesn’t traditionally have the resources to succeed academically,” said Rudy Cordero. “I’m a non-traditional student and take my education seriously. To have Hilco’s support makes me feel amazing and incredibly fortunate.”
In 2018, Hilco Redevelopment Partners, a division of Hilco Global, purchased the former Crawford Power Generating Station site in Little Village with a vision to redevelop it into a state-of-the-art sustainable development bringing jobs, economic and community benefits. The development is on target to be completed by fall 2020.
Since first announcing this project, Hilco Redevelopment Partners has had the opportunity to meet and work alongside several local groups and organizations, immersing themselves in the community and forging strong partnerships. In June, though the company’s charitable organization Hilco Helps, the company had the opportunity to donate thousands of books to Chicago Public Schools as part of their Summer Reading Initiative. Last December, Hilco Helps hosted toy giveaway at Ortiz Elementary School in Little Village donating over 2,500 toys to local families.
“Over the past year, we’ve had the privilege of getting to know the Little Village community and we know firsthand the quality of talent represented by the local workforce. We want to invest, build and retain that talent in our Chicago community,” said Roberto Perez, President, and CEO of Hilco
Redevelopment Partners. “We are thrilled to present this scholarship to Mr. Cordero and Ms. Carlos and look forward to seeing were their studies take them.”
Hilco Scholars will be awarded on an annual basis and is renewable for up to two years, provided that the students continue to remain in good academic standing and meet eligibility criteria.
“We appreciate that Hilco has recognized our students’ talent and is helping two of our scholars realize their academic goals,” said Juan Salgado, City Colleges of Chicago Chancellor. “Congratulations to this year’s scholarship winners – Andrea and Rudy — we look forward to celebrating your achievements.”
Hilco Scholars will open its application in May 2020 to award two new scholarship and internship opportunities for Little Village students for the fall 2020 semester. Stay tuned to www.ccc.edu/hilco for program updates.
About Hilco Global: Hilco Global (www.hilcoglobal.com) is a privately held diversified financial services company and the world’s preeminent authority on maximizing the value of assets for both healthy and distressed companies. Hilco Global operates as a holding company comprised of over twenty specialized business units that work to help companies understand the value of their assets and then monetize that value. Hilco Global has a 30-year track record of acting as an advisor, agent, investor and/or principal in any transaction. Hilco Global works to deliver the best possible result by aligning interests with clients and providing them strategic insight, advice, and, in many instances, the capital required to complete the deal. Hilco Global is based in Northbrook, Illinois and has 600 professionals operating on five continents.
