Annual Scholar Retreat Helps Students Start School Year Strong

August 28, 2025

To prepare for the upcoming school year, 25 of our Mercy Home scholars attended our annual Scholar Retreat, which provides an opportunity for inspiration, learning, and community building. 

Mercy Home scholars are former and transitioning residents who receive educational support from the Home, such as scholarships to attend high school, college, or post-graduate programs.

In the past, the retreat was held over two days at the LaSalle Manor in Plano, Ill.. The retreat was reformatted this year as a single day gathering held at the Robert R. McCormick Foundation offices in downtown Chicago. 

“Having the retreat held in a single day was great because it allowed us to be very intentional with the activities and presentations,” Rickey Miller, a care manager in Community Care, said. “It ended on a high note with food and the boat, making it a fun-filled Friday.”

The purpose of the Scholar Retreat is multifaceted. It is an opportunity to introduce new scholars to one another and to returning scholars, allowing all to build a community of support. That community includes both fellow scholars and the scholar team at Mercy Home. It also allows our Community Care and Education Resources teams to meet with the scholars in person to review program expectations and guidelines, as well as present information on key topics like executive-functioning skills, time management, prioritization, healthy relationships, and problem solving.

“There are so many aspects of a scholar’s life that can contribute to their academic performance,” Liz Kuhn Tomka, vice president of education and career resources at Mercy Home, said. “The scholarship team is familiar with some common challenges and barriers, and we want to help the scholars know how to navigate them [to] envision a successful school year and what can contribute to that success.”

This year’s retreat began in McCormick Foundation’s 43rd floor offices with a picturesque view of the city. After a welcome and introductions, the scholars participated in a number of informative and interactive sessions with topics like time management and student executive functioning, using career-based resources in college, and a preview of what this year’s high school scholar group will include. 

One of the sessions allowed the scholars to break into groups and prepare role-playing skits about difficulties they may run into during the school year. 

Participants also heard from a guest speaker, Elve Mitchell, who is the senior director of program operations at College Possible, a nonprofit organization that helps low-income and first-generation students attend college and navigate the experience successfully.

Mitchell shared his life story and the obstacles that he overcame to become a successful college graduate and professional. The scholars had the opportunity to ask questions and network with Mitchell, receiving encouragement and inspiration from him.

Between sessions, the scholars also participated in fun group-building activities and enjoyed snacks and lunch.

After wrapping up the sessions, the group headed over to the Chicago River to board a Shoreline architectural boat cruise followed by dinner. 

Fun activities like these allow our scholars to relax and spend time getting to know each other better. It contributed to a key function of the retreat: making sure our scholars know they have a supportive community behind them as they head back to school this fall.

“We want to build a community of support and relationships among the scholars and with the scholarship team,” Kuhn Tomka said. “We want to remind them that we believe in them and we’re here to help them if they’ve fallen, or we’re here if they need a cheerleader to celebrate.”

The retreat is not the only event Community Care holds for our scholars. Our high school group will begin meeting regularly in September and all our scholars will come together in January for a dinner to prepare for their spring semester of school. There will also be an end-of-the-school-year celebration in early summer next year.

We want to give a big thank you to Tim Knight, a Mercy Home Board of Directors member, and the Robert R. McCormick Foundation for hosting the retreat this year. Our scholars loved spending time in your beautiful office! 

Another thank you goes out to our friends at Shoreline Sightseeing for generously donating tickets for the architectural tour.

Mercy Home scholars are awarded a scholarship for their education. Scholars include Mercy Home residents who will be transitioning out of our care or former residents who have been involved with a care manager for at least six months. Applications are submitted in January and scholars hear back about the results in April. The scholars take out federal loans, but Mercy Home pays the remaining college tuition and sometimes even housing, as long as all requirements are met. As a bonus, scholars who earn Bs or better have their unsubsidized loan paid off at the end of the term.