Faculty Accomplishments

At HWC, our faculty go above and beyond to support our students. We are proud of their accomplishments and their professional development.

January.2022

  • HWC Professor Paul Wandless has a solo show in the Tom Thomas Gallery at Indiana University-East.  It runs January 10 – February 23. He will also give a closing lecture at the university on the February 23rd in the gallery on its last day for viewing. He will have 26 works in the show. It’s a mix of clay prints, linocut prints on paper, stone sculpture and clay sculpture.
  • Since the pandemic began, HWC Librarian, Todd Heldt, has published poetry/fiction in Claw and Blossom, The Freshwater Review, Rubbertop Review, Kallisto Gaia, The Chaffin Journal, Beatific, Broadkill Review, Welter, Barstow and Grand, Lily Poetry Review, and The Dunes Review.  His poem "The Barrelman" won the 2021 Rose Warner Prize for Poetry.

December.2021 



  • City Colleges of Chicago Veteran Services has been selected as the” 2021 Lou Lowenkron Commitment to Veterans Excellence Award” recipient. This award is presented annually by Dixon Center for Military and Veterans Services to recognize an individual or organization for their support of veterans and their families in higher education, certification, licensing, or training. 
  • ​This award is named in honor of US Army veteran, philanthropist, and business leader, Lou Lowenkron. Lou’s life of service, philanthropy and leadership is making a positive difference in the lives of untold numbers of people across the country, especially veterans and their families. It is an honor for City Colleges of Chicago Veteran Services to be recognized by the Dixon Center for Military and Veteran Services for their work. 





September.2021  



  • Professor LaNisha Thompson (Math Department) received a one million dollar subaward from Northeastern Illinois University (NEIU) as part of a larger grant from the Department of Education HSI STEM and Articulation Program Assistance.
  • Professor Paul Wandless (Art Department) was invited to the exhibition "Clay National XV: Narrative Figure" at the Carbondale Clay Center in Carbondale, CO, to display his work. The jurors invited four nationally recognized clay artists who are known for using the figure narratively in their work. The rest of the work in the show was juried from applicants from across the U.S.  



August.2021   





  • Professor Paul Wandless gave a 1-week workshop at Arrowmont School of Art and Craft in Craft from Aug 8 to Aug 13, in Gatlinburg, TN. The workshop was titled, Mold Making: Ceramics and Mixed Media. It introduced students to basic mold making, modeling, and casting. The focus was on making small molds and sprigs using a variety of approaches. During class, participants created plaster molds, bisque molds, and rubber latex molds for use with clay. Then, they used silicone rubber molds made to cast non-clay materials. Positives were created with clay, plasticine, chipboard, and found objects appropriate for the different mold-making materials.  





April.2021   





  • ​2021 LUMINARY AWARDS RECIPIENTS: 
    • ​Student recipient: Corey Hogan
    • Faculty recipient: Rachel Sledd Iannantuoni​    



March.2021      









 February.2021      





  • The Illinois Community College Board (ICCB) Career and Technical Education (CTE) publication recognized Professor Ivanhoe Tejeda for facilitating and establishing the Architecture Fellow Program in collaboration with the Chicago Architecture Center (CAC). Go here to read more.   



December.2020    





  • Dr. Asif Wilson, Associate Dean of Instruction, was selected as one of ten award recipients for the nationally recognized Outstanding First-Year Student Advocates Award by the National Resource Center for The First-Year Experience and Students in Transition. In addition, Asif was recognized at the Center’s 40th Annual Conference on The First-Year Experience this week!      
  • ​Ellen Goldberg, HWC Director of Transfer Center, has been selected as one of three NISTSTransfer Champion -​ Catalyst Award Winners for 2021. The Catalyst Award recognizes professionals who are game-changers in the transfer field and have worked overtime to make a significant impact at the institutional, regional, and state levels. Awardees demonstrate leadership, appropriate risk-taking, and disrupting of the status quo, along with using relevant research and theoretical frameworks to develop programs and services for transfer students. In addition, they ensure the sustainability of initiatives by developing staff and using data to make improvements.​
Novemeber.2020 

  • Bank of America has awarded the College a $1 million grant to increase job opportunities, close the wealth gap, and enhance professional career tracks for black and Latinx communities. HWC is selected as the first educational institution in Illinois to receive a grant through this program. The College will partner with Catalyte, a local tech firm, to provide students with computer programming training as part of the grant. The program will also develop students’ skills and enhance other industry partnerships for the College’s cybersecurity, software development, and business curriculum. Moreover, the program hopes to expand student participation in existing workforce pathways and placement services offered through our Center of Excellence in Business, under the leadership of the Vice President of Academic and Student Affairs, Shang-Kwei Wang.
  • HWC was awarded the Illinois Humanities Grant for $12,500. In partnership with DePaul University, under the leadership of Associate Dean Dr. Asif Wilson, the team will explore formerly incarcerated college students’ experiences at community college through Participatory Action (PAR) research.             
October.2020       
  • Galina Shevchenko, Assistant Professor in the Art & Architecture Department, will be featured in an exclusive broadcast at the Pushkin Museum of Fine arts in Moscow through their  "100 Ways to Live a Minute", a Digital Exchange project.
  • Professor Dr. Farahnaz Movahedzadeh, from our Biology Department, was recently appointed as a faculty member at the University of Illinois’ Honors College.​ 

August.2020

  • Chicago Loop Alliance selected Jacqueline Cunningham, ESL Professor and Co-Chairperson for English Language Learning and World Languages, as the September Loop Employee of the Month! Check out her incredible story here​. 
  • Congratulations to Marcy Rae Henry, Associate Professor of Humanities and Fine Arts, who received the 2020 Pushcart Prize nomination for her work. According to their website, "The Pushcart Prize: Best of the Small Presses series, published every year since 1976, is the most honored literary project in America."