Governor Rauner Announces Top Students to be Honored by The Lincoln Academy of Illinois

SPRINGFIELD - Governor Bruce Rauner announced today the 2016 outstanding college students who will be honored by the Lincoln Academy of Illinois. The Academy will recognize these students during the annual Student Laureate Convocation at 11 a.m. Saturday, November 12 at the Old State Capitol in Springfield.

"President Lincoln's legacy is a reminder of the power of public service and civic engagement here in Illinois and across the country," said Governor Rauner. "The students chosen to receive this honor have exemplified the principles and ideals of the greatest Illinoisan through their hard work and dedication to their schools and communities."

The Lincoln Academy's Abraham Lincoln Civic Engagement Awards are presented for excellence in curricular and extracurricular activities to seniors from each of the state's four-year, degree-granting colleges and universities, and one student from the community colleges in Illinois. At the Student Laureate Convocation, each student will receive a Student Laureate Medallion, along with a $1,000 educational grant and a certificate of achievement. This is the 42nd year Lincoln Academy has celebrated students' excellence in Illinois.

Student Laureate Rachel Hile-Broad of the University of Chicago will speak on behalf of all the Laureates. The invocation will be delivered by Eric Fulcomer, President of Rockford University, and the benediction will be delivered by Eureka College President Jamel Santa Cruze Wright. The Sangamon Woodwind Consort will provide music, and a luncheon at the Abraham Lincoln Hotel will follow the Student Laureate Convocation.

The Lincoln Academy, unique among the 50 states, was established more than 50 years ago to honor distinguished citizens with the state's highest award, the Order of Lincoln. The 53rd Annual Convocation and Investiture of Laureates of The Lincoln Academy of Illinois will take place Saturday, May 6, 2017 at the Chicago History Museum.