Kishwaukee College will be holding a Homeschool Visit Day on Wednesday, August 10, from 8:30a.m. – 11:30a.m. in the Student Center. Families who homeschool are invited to learn more about the College’s programs and resources as well as opportunities like Dual Credit. Pictured are, L to R, Preston Turner, Rochelle, and Matthew Simonson, DeKalb. Both are Kish students who were homeschooled. Preston is returning to Kish for his second year this fall and Matthew graduated in May and is planning to attend Columbia College in Chicago to study film production.
Kishwaukee College is holding a Homeschool Visit Day on Wednesday, August 10, from 8:30a.m. – 11:30a.m. in the Student Center on campus. The event is free and open to the public. Michelle Rothmeyer, Director of Admissions, Registration, and Records at Kishwaukee College, said, “We have been a successful choice for homeschool students in our district for many years and have recently experienced an increase in homeschool students enrolling at Kishwaukee. We thought we would give our local homeschool families an opportunity to visit campus in a more formal group experience to see firsthand what Kish has to offer.”
The Homeschool Visit Day begins with check-in from 8:30 – 9:00a.m. and will include a welcome address by Dr. Laurie Borowicz, President of Kishwaukee College; information on programs and resources available at Kishwaukee; Dual Credit options; a Student Panel; and a campus tour. Preston Turner, Rochelle, is a homeschool student who just completed his first year at Kish. “I really chose Kish because it seemed like the most practical and affordable option,” he said. “I really wasn’t interested in joining clubs or anything but I still met a lot of people in my classes. You meet someone in a class and then see them in the cafeteria and meet the other people they are sitting with and before you know it, you get to know a lot of people. I think I pretty much got to know everybody from Shabbona who goes to Kish!”
Matthew Simonson, DeKalb, is a homeschool student who graduated summa cum laude from Kishwaukee in May and plans to attend Columbia College in Chicago to study film. "Kish was the perfect ‘stepping stone’ for me to transition from my homeschool into postsecondary education. I clicked really well with the vast majority of my instructors, several of whom had significant, previous experience dealing with homeschoolers.”
Preston found the academics challenging but not overwhelming. “I think that what surprised me was that I could still kind of study at my own pace,” he explained. “You are still in control of your own learning, more than you think. And it was a very personal experience – a small environment and the teachers know you.”
Matthew discovered extracurricular activities. “One of my favorite things about Kish was how many extracurricular opportunities were available to me. I have so many great memories from my experiences on The Kaleidoscope [student newspaper], the debate team, and Kish's chapter of Phi Theta Kappa — each of which served as a venue for me to take my social skills to a whole new level,” he said. “The team-building skills I learned from those experiences are probably the most valuable thing that I got from my education.’
Preston discovered another aspect of the Kish experience: support services. “For an orientation class assignment, I went to the Learning Skills Center’s Writing Lab,” he said. “I ended up staying over an hour. I wasn’t used to going to someone outside of class for tutoring or help with a paper. What I liked was that the focus was on how to be better.”
Preston’s Mom, Nicole Turner, who developed the homeschool curricula for her family, is a Kish alum. “I knew from my own experiences that going to Kish wasn’t going to be a lecture hall but be personal. Of course some things had changed since I had been there – like online registration. But everyone was so helpful whenever we had questions. It has just really been great.”
Matthew summed up his experience, “Kish served an integral role in preparing me to transition into an environment like Columbia, even though I didn’t know it at the time. It was definitely the best way for me to start my college education!”
For more information on the Kishwaukee College Homeschool Visit Day, visit www.kishwaukeecollege.edu/homeschool or contact Admissions, Registration, and Records at 815-825-9375 or at arr@kishwaukeecollege.edu.
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