CHANCE sparks connection for student leaders
For Aaron Tillery and Haniyyah Thomas, 2025 is a year of milestones and celebration. The couple married in March, Thomas graduated from UIC in May, and Tillery is set to graduate in December.
Their story is one of CHANCE — capital letters intentional, Tillery says — sparked by the lure of free pizza, shared photos of NBA legend Michael Jordan and a campus program that has supported them throughout college.
Thomas and Tillery met through UIC’s CHANCE Program, an academic support program to help students meet their academic, career and personal goals.
Thomas learned about the program before coming to UIC through a family connection to CHANCE founder Phyllis Hayes, who now works in external engagement in the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Health Affairs.
Tillery got involved a few months into his first year at UIC after former program director Kendal Parker, who’s now working in UIC Advancement, approached him in the Inner Circle in Student Center East with an offer of free pizza and conversation.
“I’ll never turn down free pizza,” Tillery said with a laugh. “He told me about the things CHANCE does and provides, and it really sounded like something I wanted to be part of.”
Thomas and Tillery didn’t meet until several months later, when they both volunteered with CHANCE at a scholarship event attended by Michael Jordan. Thomas’ phone was broken at the time, so she asked Tillery to send her the photos he took of Jordan.
“Aaron was just really nice and going out of his way to make me feel comfortable because I wasn’t as close with all the other CHANCE students,” she said. “He made me feel very welcome.”
They reconnected a few weeks later at a CHANCE summer leadership program.
“That’s where we actually became friends, and where I met virtually all of my friends,” Thomas said.
They started dating in January 2023, were engaged in August 2024 and married on March 22, right before UIC’s spring break.
“I don’t know if I ever pictured going back and forth between submitting papers, then also making sure I have flowers ordered and going to dress fittings,” Thomas said.
“I actually had an exam the Friday before the wedding,” Tillery added.
Their wedding guests even included UIC staff and administrators who supported the couple during their time at UIC.
“That’s something I think is really special,” Tillery said.
“Very authentic relationships have been developed as a result of being involved with CHANCE, not just academic resources,” Thomas added.
CHANCE creates community on campus
The couple credits CHANCE with setting them up for success at UIC, including with opportunities to earn scholarships and learn about internships and careers.
“There have been so many resources that I’ve been able to learn from to help navigate my way around on campus,” Tillery said. “On top of that, the community there is very great. Nobody is trying to overlook you — they always have somebody there that’s able to help and really be encouraging.”
UIC’s CHANCE Program, which is celebrating its 20th year this fall, was designed to help increase recruitment, retention and graduation rates of underrepresented students at UIC. The program helps prospective students learn about UIC and supports current students with academic help, health and wellness programs, cultural enrichment and service opportunities, said Khalilah Young, CHANCE director.
Most of all, they build community.
“We want our students to be service-minded as well as have a checkpoint or family on campus,” Young said. “We are a place for students to have a voice, build community and find a sense of belonging on campus.”
Thomas said this support was invaluable.
“It’s just really amazing what having people who are rooting for you and supporting you, how that can completely change your trajectory,” Thomas added. “Being connected with CHANCE helped me build all of these relationships and gave me opportunities outside of campus.”
“That’s why CHANCE is here – to help students hone in on what we see or what they may not know that they have,” Young said. “A passion can blossom into something more.”
Leaving their mark at UIC
Tillery and Thomas both established themselves as leaders on campus. Thomas, an Honors College student, graduated May 9 from the College of Urban Planning and Public Affairs with a bachelor’s degree in public policy. At UIC, she founded the Black Student Coalition and a campus ministry program; chaired the National Residence Hall Honorary society; received an Obama-Chesky Scholarship for Public Service; and was a student ambassador in the College of Urban Planning and Public Affairs, working with Dean Stacey Swearingen White.
Thomas found her first undergraduate job at an afterschool program through CHANCE, which sparked her interest in a career in education. “I started to switch my focus toward designing better educational programs and making sure that public funding for education programs was used better,” Thomas said.
“I love the courses I’ve taken in CUPPA, and Dean White, who also came to our wedding, is one of the most supportive administrators I’ve ever met,” Thomas said. “On every level, I have so much gratitude for UIC, and I feel like I’m well-equipped for what’s next.”
A member of the 2025 Teach for America cohort, she will start teaching special education in a Chicago high school this summer and begin a master’s degree program in teaching.
Tillery, who is set to graduate from the College of Engineering with a bachelor’s degree in computer engineering this December, has been a ComEd scholar, part of the CHANCE Program’s STEM Academy, vice president of the National Society of Black Engineers, and a peer success coach for the Academic Center for Excellence. He plans to pursue a master’s degree in finance after graduation.
“I feel like my whole journey at UIC has just been a service,” Tillery said. “I think the journey that I really admire looking back on is just how much I wanted to leave UIC better than when I came in.”
Young said they’ve done just that, and she hopes they will continue to support future students as CHANCE alums.
“They live a life of wanting to give back,” she said. “I want them to just remember that the door doesn’t close behind you, and to enjoy the fruits of their labor, because they’ve worked really hard for it.”
