Northeastern Illinois University Remembers The Chicago Teachers College

[Gardenia C. Hung]

In 1867, the first experimental Teacher Training School was established in Blue Island, Illinois by the Cook County Commissioners who appropriated the money for 32 students.
Three years later, on September 21, 1870, the Normal School opened its new building in Englewood, Illinois.
The City of Chicago sponsored the Normal School which became the Chicago Normal School.
In 1938, the Normal School was renamed the Chicago Teachers College, the only tuition-free, four-year degree-granting institution in the city, conferring the Bachelor of Education degree at the time.
Two years later, the North Central Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools fully accredited the Chicago Teachers College in 1940.
The Board of Education expanded its services by establishing two branches of the Chicago Teachers College on the north side, in order to accommodate overcrowding in the schools in 1949.
“What happened to the Chicago Teachers College in 1952?” In sixty-one year, they have come a long way from the two north side branches at Foreman High School and Sabin which were closed after a new facility was built at the existing NEIU Campus on St. Louis Avenue. The Chicago Teachers College Alumni are now retired octogenarians and nonagenarians from the schools around the world.
In the year 2013, Northeastern Illinois University welcomes Alumni to the NEIU Reunion and a special “Welcome Home Luncheon” for the Chicago Teachers College Alumni on Friday, October 18th. The 2013 NEIU Alumni Reunion includes a Medallion Ceremony for the Diamond Alumni of the Class of 1952 and Golden Alumni of the Class of 1962 during the afternoon on campus. On Saturday, October 19, NEIU Alumni and Friends will be welcomed for a brunch and a general meeting. “Tour Your New Campus” is arranged for all guests, visitors, and friends at Northeastern Illinois University. The NEIU Alumni Association encourages everyone to learn more about the University’s great achievements and its progress throughout the years to grow and enhance its programs for the benefit of all students.
Thirty-five years ago, I was sent to Northeastern Illinois University by my Father, Mr. Roberto Hung J.D. who insisted that I should become a teacher at the Illinois State College which was a member of the Board of Governors of State Colleges and Universities. Since my Father worked in Skokie at the Felt-Products Corporation known for manufacturing gaskets in the automobile industry, his co-workers and friends highly recommended Northeastern Illinois University as a good choice for an Illinois State University in 1977. Felt-Pro Corporation rewarded employees like my father who had a high school graduate with High Honors in the family with $1,000 for college tuition at the Illinois State institution of higher education. In addition, Felt-Products supported employees educational goals for their children with the Mecklenburger Scholarship which subsidized tuition for one semester during the university’s academic year. I only received the Mecklenburger Scholarship in 1977 and 1980 from the Felt-Products Corporation in Skokie, Illinois while my Father was an employee there. The fifth year of college at NEIU, I was granted an Illinois Guaranteed Loan to complete my college studies. The Illinois Guaranteed Loan for college tuition was paid in full during 1983 while I worked for Holy Cross High School for Boys, a Christian Brothers School in River Grove, Illinois USA.
I attended Northeastern Illinois University in the Fall of 1977 and continued my college studies there for the next five (5) years, until I completed the Student Teaching curriculum at NEIU in December 1982 with a Bachelor of Arts in Education, French, Spanish, and English. I am a graduate NEIU Alumni from the Class of 1982.
Since NEIU changed control and management to an independent Board of Trustees from the Board of Governors of State Colleges and Universities in 1996, Northeastern Illinois University has developed the campus facility and expanded its services as an Illinois institution of higher learning locally, nationwide and around the world for the 21st century.