The Michael L. Jeffries, Sr. Center for Access and Academic Success (Jeffries Center) has been called by many names. In the late 1960s, it was known as the Special Education Opportunities Program (SEOP). The SEOP, based in the Office of Admissions at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, provided support services to a cohort of students enrolled at Illinois in 1968. The SEOP’s services were designed to enhance the academic achievements, personal development and graduation rates of 565 undergraduate students, known as “Project 500.”
“The foundation on which we stand is [Project 500].” said Jazmine E. Thompson who serves as the Director of Advising and Mentoring, one of the center’s academic service programs and is one of the Associate Directors of the Jeffries Center. “Our center is free for students, and any student can benefit from the center.”
"A Constant Legacy"
This is the spirit of the Jeffries Center: one of communal care and a welcoming space for all students at the U. of I. For 36 years, the center was known as the Office of Minority Student Affairs (OMSA), and in 2024, the organization was renamed in tribute to Michael L. Jeffries, Sr., the center’s longest serving director. Over time, the Jeffries Center has continued to build on its foundation of academic access and interpersonal success. Their services are not static and have evolved to meet students’ needs.
To date, the Jeffries Center’s comprehensive services include advising and mentoring, tutoring and academic services, First-Generation Student Initiatives and four federal TRIO programs [i.e., Ronald E. Post-Baccalaureate Achievement Program (McNair Scholars), Student Support Services, Talent Search and Upward Bound].
“The Jeffries Center’s constant legacy is that we want to provide the space for students from all economic backgrounds to know that Illinois is a place that they can come and see themselves,” said Kimberly Alexander-Brown, J.D., Acting Assistant Vice Chancellor, Student Success, Inclusion & Belonging, Executive Director of the Jeffries Center and Director of TRIO Programs.
“Delivering On That Promise”
In Fall 2024, a record-breaking 37,140 undergraduate students were enrolled at Illinois. More than 1 in 5 students in this cohort identify as first-generation, and they comprise approximately 22 percent of all first-year students in the Class of 2028. This growing demographic of students is not homogenous. They study, work and learn in every college and academic unit on campus. The overarching commonality is this—any student whose parents or guardians did not complete a four-year college degree program is considered a first-generation student.
Designated as a First Gen Forward institution in 2022, a First Scholars Institution in 2023 and a First Gen Forward Network Champion in 2025, the U. of I. has taken steps to expand the resources, experiences and visibility for first-gen students on campus, guided by insights from members of the First Gen Campus Steering Committee. In Fall 2023, Jennifer Mendez was hired as the inaugural director of First-Generation Student Initiatives (FGSI), a unit that serves all First-Gen students on campus and housed within the Jeffries Center’s academic service programs.
“What the formation of the First-Generation Student Initiatives unit does—it allows Illinois students to see themselves within that movement,” said Alexander-Brown. “It helps educate our faculty, staff and students about what this attribute means. What people don’t really understand is that these individuals are trailblazers.”
Mendez, a U. of I. alum who also identifies as First-Gen, is no stranger to creating new opportunities and pathways for others to follow. In spring 2025, twenty first-gen students embarked on a study abroad program to Panama, an experience created in partnership with the College of Agricultural Consumer and Environmental Sciences, Illinois Abroad and Global Exchange and Scholar Support Programs.
For almost all of the students on this trip, it was their first time traveling outside of the country.
Other initiatives include the “Proud to be First-Generation” event series, which offers intentional, in-person program options each semester where students can meet and build community. First-Gen students can also participate in the First-Generation Research Scholars Program, a partnership with the Office of Undergraduate Research. This mentorship is not limited to formal spaces—all individuals who identify as First-Gen are encouraged to join the first-gen campus directory, a centralized online space for the U. of I. community.
Mendez offers some practical advice for those at Illinois looking for ways to support the First-Gen experience. “Do what you say you’re going to do, and whatever you promote, you deliver on that,” she said. “That’s how you build trust because [the students] know that they can rely on you, that you are a person who cares about their success. You’re not just saying it, but you’re delivering on that promise.”
“A Huge Safety Net”
The Jeffries Center occupies a distinct space on the U. of I. campus. It is a physical place where students can participate in mentoring, coaching and advising as well as tutoring and academic support, and it is also an environment where they can expand their horizons, discover their voice and find a sense of belonging.
“We are in a space where we want to help everyone that walks through our door,” said Brian Becker, Assistant Director for Events, Outreach and Digital Strategy. “And that’s absolutely what we will do.”
This unwavering support is deeply felt by students.
“It is a safe space for students, which I couldn’t really find outside of the cultural centers,” said alumna Kennedy Campbell, who was a former Jeffries Center Advising and Mentoring student. “That is a huge safety net that students are either unaware of, or they haven’t really considered.”
Campbell graduated from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in 2023 with a degree in interdisciplinary health sciences from the College of Applied Health Sciences and is currently pursuing her M.S. in Community Health at Illinois.
As a First-Gen student, Campbell met with an advising and mentoring staff member early on in her college career to create a four-year plan. During her second year on campus, Campbell was part of the Jeffries Center ambassadors program, an experience designed to equip involved student leaders to build technical, professional and advocacy skills. She used those learnings to co-create the registered student organization, “Mentors in Medicine,” an organization that still exists today.
During Campbell’s summer internship application process, two staff members each wrote recommendation letters to thirteen prospective employers. When the Amazon Prime® show “The College Tour” set its sights on featuring the student experience at the U. of I., staff members encouraged Campbell to audition. She is one of the eleven students featured in the episode, which aired in 2021.
“The University of Illinois does not promote mediocrity. The bare minimum is not going to fly here,” Campbell said. “The Jeffries Center is teaching students, empowering them to become better versions of themselves. All the resources they give students—it’s unmatched, really. All the staff and student support staff work so hard. It’s refreshing to see someone who loves the work they do and working with students. Because students can tell.”
Dayna Le, an alumna and former Jeffries Center TRIO Student Support Services (SSS) student, shared a similar assessment.
“I always felt comforted at the Jeffries Center,” Le explained. “The Jeffries Center definitely included everybody, and that made me feel comfortable.”
Le, who graduated from the U. of I. in 2024 with a B.A. in Studio Art, is currently working on an M.S. in Business Management in the Gies College of Business. Her undergraduate coursework took six years, and she emphasized the continued mentorship and support that continued from her first day at the Student Support Services (SSS) orientation through graduation day—and beyond.
Like Campbell, Le was also involved with the Jeffries Center ambassadors’ program, and she is still proud to belong to this group in a different capacity.
“I'm still an ambassador for the Jeffries Center,” said Le. “It's time for me to lead by stepping back and letting the undergrads get that experience that I had.”
“They All Have An Opportunity To Change”
The Jeffries Center also provides support services for pre-college students in middle and high school who are interested in post-secondary education through TRIO Talent Search and TRIO Upward Bound.
Talent Search, funded by the U.S. Department of Education, has been on campus since 2011, and its purpose is to identify and assist eligible students—and their families–in Champaign, Decatur and Urbana who have the potential to succeed in a college or university setting.
Curtis Blanden, Sr., Senior Assistant Director, has been involved with Talent Search since 2012. Over the past thirteen years, he has worked with over 6,500 students, ages 11 to 27, who have applied and been accepted into the program.
The scope of his role has ranged widely: from assisting students with college admissions and financial aid applications, to coordinating site visits to college campuses, cultural events and academic programs and above all, providing a supportive, non-judgmental space for students navigating challenges.
“I always tell my students: ‘You may not get what I’m saying now. I just hope you get it at some point,’” Blanden, Sr. said. “Even if somebody else says the same thing as me. It doesn't matter if it’s my voice. I just want you to get it.”
Ninety-seven percent of students who participate in Talent Search graduate from high school and 72 percent enroll in a college or university program. Throughout it all, Blanden Sr. has stayed the course, continuing to show up for his students. He emphasized that they make their own choices. Even with the inevitable rough days, the good ones outweigh the bad. There's never a day on the job that Blanden, Sr. regrets.
“These students remain a part of you. You know, the ones that you really make an impact on,” Blanden, Sr. said. “You can see the transition and change in some students. Not saying it changes all students, but they all have that opportunity to change.”
"There Is A Place For You"
For Courtney Bishop, who served as the Assistant Director of TRIO Upward Bound, creating opportunities for students is not something that happens overnight. (Bishop currently serves as the Assistant Director for Advising and Mentoring.) During academic year 2024-2025, she and the Upward Bound team advocated to have a weekly presence in the local schools, so students can have more access to the people and resources they need.
“We’re here, and we are a part of the Champaign-Urbana community. We have been for a long time,” said Bishop. “Upward Bound has been part of the University of Illinois since 1966. We are in the business of helping high school students enroll in college and graduate from college, and we have a lot of different tools and resources that can assist students along the way.”
For the past 59 years, Upward Bound has been committed to providing students with quality academic, cultural and career related activities to equip them to successfully finish high school, enroll in an accredited college or university and graduate with a baccalaureate degree. Eighty-eight percent of Upward Bound students attend college immediately following their high school graduation, and 89 percent persist and graduate in their proposed year.
Upward Bound provides visits for students to several public and private institutions across the United States, and the program also offers financial aid and scholarship support, including tutoring in select subjects (i.e., math, English, science and foreign language courses) and test preparation for the SAT and ACT. Each year, the Upward Bound team designs year-round programming with summer programs facilitated by the Jeffries Center full-time staff members and student ambassadors, like Dayna Le.
Many of these offerings are located on the U. of I.’s campus, an intentional decision by Upward Bound staff members. Once students are in the collegiate environment, they can more readily envision college as a space where they can thrive.
“There is a place for you on a college campus that is there to support you, guide you, motivate you and help you,” Bishop emphasized.
“Nobody’s Going To Judge You”
In academic year 2023-2024, the Tutoring and Academic Services unit in the Jeffries Center served 503 unique students, held 3,866 tutoring sessions, and facilitated 5,473 hours of tutoring for Illinois students. These multimodal sessions are held in person and online, but the feature that defines in-person tutoring sessions at the Jeffries Center is that they are conducted by U. of I. students for their peers.
When training tutors, Grace Casillas, former Director of Tutoring and Academic Services and Associate Director of the Jeffries Center, aimed to shift the larger narrative around receiving tutoring—and in doing so, to remove the stigma associated with needing additional academic support services.
“Tutoring is where you come to make mistakes,” said Casillas. “Nobody’s going to judge you. I always tried to encourage students to come in because they’re going to have a chance to talk to a student who has already taken the course and been successful.”
Casillas, who was also a tutor as a sophomore during her time in college, greatly empathized with the student experience—both as a tutor and as a life-long learner.
“When you start out, you think that it’s about helping others, and it doesn’t take long before you realize how much it’s helping you,” said Casillas. “Tutoring is one of those jobs where you feel like you’re growing constantly.”
There is also growth on the horizon for Tutoring and Academic Services. Ronald Threadgill joined the team as an academic skills coordinator and created a series of workshops that focus on study skills, note taking, active listening and learning styles. In the fall 2025 semester, these workshop modules were offered as a course.
“What doesn’t change is the need to be nurtured and supported,” said Alexander-Brown. “To have staff members who are accessible. For students to be seen and valued and for us to create experiences for them to be enriched by—those are the constants. As long as that’s our true North Star, what strategies we use to get there may change, but that is the steady, global presence.”
Casillas, who worked at the Jeffries Center for most of her career, noted that the core elements of the profession remained.
“The biggest lesson I learned is that it doesn’t matter if you’re recognized for your work. If you enjoy it and feel like it’s doing something good, that’s enough,” said Casillas. “The Jeffries Center mission stayed the same. They still feel very connected to the students that they serve. They see themselves in their students.”
“I Am Team You”
The journey to and through the college experience is not without its challenges and stressors. For many students, this is likely the first time they have been far away from the people, environments, and support systems that have previously helped them navigate unfamiliar terrain. There are so many questions, including, perhaps the most pressing one. Who can I talk to about this?
That’s where Advising and Mentoring comes in. New, current or returning Jeffries Center students can schedule a meeting or drop in to meet with a Student Success Advisor (SSA). During these appointments, they talk about life, coursework and everything in between. If additional resources are needed, an SSA will connect students with departments on campus that can assist them directly. In academic year 2022-2023, 910 unique students were served, 1,140 one-on-one meetings were held, and there were 27,137 total points of contact between the Jeffries Center Advising and Mentoring team and students.
“I don’t want to mislead anyone to think that the Jeffries Center does this in a vacuum—that is absolutely not the case. We have so many partners in the division of Academic Affairs and Student Affairs,” said Alexander-Brown. “If we have a student who has experienced an issue or a stressor, we’ll connect them to a person in that office because that’s where the relationship building occurs.”
According to Jazmine Thompson, Director of Advising and Mentoring and Associate Director of the Jeffries Center, this type of relationship exists outside of familial and academic structures. While her team may have recommendations for students, there are no set expectations at the outset.
Thompson explained that students usually know exactly what they want, even if they haven’t come to a concrete decision yet. Equally important, they know that the Advising and Mentoring team is in their corner.
“That is our buy-in with students. I’m on your team. Whoever the student is: I am team you,” Thompson said. “Whatever your goals are, and however we can make that happen, let’s make that happen. That’s our foundation for mentoring, just making sure students know that we are on their side.”
Through her work, Thompson wants students to become confident: asking questions, seeking out information on their own behalf, and ultimately, continuing to thrive on the U. of I. campus.
“We have been a place of helping people discover who they are and what they can do to develop those skills and talents,” Alexander-Brown said. “If we’re lucky, they come back to campus and share that knowledge, their time, their talent with our current students to show them: ‘Hey, I was in your shoes. I’ve done this before. You can do it, too, and this is how.’”
