The University of Chicago
Our Commitment
At the University of Chicago, we believe that all students should have access to higher education opportunities no matter their background, geographic location, or ability to pay. UChicago knows that students from rural and small-town contexts bring valuable experiences and viewpoints to a college community. However, students from rural and small-town communities are often faced with unique barriers to college admissions because of their geographic isolation. The UChicago Empower access initiative was designed to address the challenges faced by first-generation, low-income, and rural and small-town students. Thanks to a generous donation from Trott Family Philanthropies, UChicago created the Emerging Rural Leaders Program in 2019 to reduce the barriers to college that rural students and families face by offering college admissions programming on-campus and in local communities, providing mentoring and support systems for high school and college students, and updating financial aid policies and scholarships to enable more rural students to pursue higher education at UChicago. By collaborating with Network members and leveraging existing resources and infrastructure created by the Empower Initiative, the STARS College Network at UChicago will enhance and expand the college access work that began with the Emerging Rural Leaders program in 2019.
Learn more about The University of Chicago's Rural and Small Town Programming
Learn more about The University of Chicago's Admissions
View news coverage on The University of Chicago's participation in STARS
The University of Chicago Events
STARS Near You
STARS in Columbus, MS
August 27th 2025, 5:00 pm CDT
Join 20+ colleges and universities from the STARS College Network for an evening all about college! We’ll have a 45 minute information session on topics including application review, financial aid, and how to prepare for the college application process. Afterwards, you’ll have time to browse a mini-college fair of participating institutions from across the country!
Host: Amherst College, Auburn University, Brown University, California Institute of Technology (Caltech), Case Western Reserve University, Colby College, Columbia University in the City of New York, Dartmouth College, Duke, Georgia Tech, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Notre Dame, The Ohio State University, The University of Alabama, University of Arkansas, SMU, The University of Chicago, University of Southern California, Vanderbilt University, Yale UniversitySTARS Near You
STARS in Lake Tahoe
September 25th 2025, 6:30 pm PDT
Join 10+ colleges and universities from the STARS College Network for an evening all about college! We’ll have a 45 minute information session on topics including application review, financial aid, and how to prepare for the college application process. Afterwards, you’ll have time to browse a mini-college fair of participating institutions from across the country!
Host: Brown University, Berkeley, Case Western Reserve University, Northwestern University, Notre Dame, Stanford University, University of Southern California, The University of Chicago, Vanderbilt UniversitySTARS Near You
STARS in Fargo, ND
September 29th 2025, 6:00 pm CDT
Join 15+ colleges and universities from the STARS College Network for an evening all about college! We’ll have a 45 minute information session on topics including application review, financial aid, and how to prepare for the college application process. Afterwards, you’ll have time to browse a mini-college fair of participating institutions from across the country!
Host: Amherst College, Brown University, California Institute of Technology (Caltech), Case Western Reserve University, Colby College, Columbia University in the City of New York, Dartmouth College, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Stanford University, Northwestern University, The University of Alabama, The University of Chicago, The University of Iowa, University of Maryland College Park, Notre Dame, University of Southern California, Vanderbilt University, Washington University in St. Louis, Yale UniversitySTARS Near You
STARS in Sioux Falls, SD
September 30th 2025, 6:00 pm CDT
Join 15+ colleges and universities from the STARS College Network for an evening all about college! We’ll have a 45 minute information session on topics including application review, financial aid, and how to prepare for the college application process. Afterwards, you’ll have time to browse a mini-college fair of participating institutions from across the country!
Host: Amherst College, Brown University, California Institute of Technology (Caltech), Case Western Reserve University, Colby College, Columbia University in the City of New York, Dartmouth College, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Stanford University, Northwestern University, The University of Alabama, The University of Chicago, The University of Iowa, University of Maryland College Park, Notre Dame, University of Southern California, Vanderbilt University, Washington University in St. Louis, Yale UniversityVirtual Event
STARS Virtual College Fair
October 7th 2025, 7:00 pm CDT
Join all 32 STARS Network partner colleges and universities to discover the exceptional opportunities all of our schools have to offer through a virtual college fair!
Host: Amherst College, Auburn University, Berkeley, Brown University, California Institute of Technology (Caltech), Case Western Reserve University, Colby College, Columbia University in the City of New York, Dartmouth College, Duke, Georgia Tech, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Northwestern University, Notre Dame, SMU, Spelman College, Stanford University, The Ohio State University, The University of Alabama, The University of Iowa, University of Arkansas, University of Denver, University of South Carolina, University of Southern California, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Vanderbilt University, Washington University in St. Louis, Yale University, The University of Chicago, The University of Texas at Austin, University of Maryland College Park, University of Arizona