CALUMET CITY

Donations needed for holiday food baskets

The Calumet City Cavaliers donated $500 to Health, Youth and Family Services for holiday food baskets.

The Department of Health, Youth and Family services at the Faith Bailey Health Center at 401 154th Place is accepting donations of nonperishable food for the needy. The health center is open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Mondays through Fridays. To find out how to give monetary donations toward the baskets, contact Health, Youth and Family Services at (708) 891-8170.

UNIVERSITY PARK

GSU continues push to help needy get degrees

Elaine P. Maimon, president of Governors State University, recently announced the GSU Promise, a commitment to provide a debt-free education to qualified low-income graduates from Illinois community colleges.

The initiative is designed to make a bachelor's degree attainable for many of the state's most overlooked and underserved students.

Governors State University is building an endowment to supplement funds available from federal and state sources to Illinois community college graduates living at or below the poverty level.

Fundraising already has exceeded the initial goal of $100,000. Additional contributions are being sought to secure an initial $1 million endowment to move the program forward and begin serving the needs of students.

For more information on how to help support the GSU Promise, call (708) 534-4105 or visit www.govst.edu/donate.

CHICAGO

State education board slates budget hearing

The Illinois State Board of Education's Finance and Audit Committee will host a Fiscal Year 2009 budget hearing Tuesday.

The public is invited to attend and anyone wanting to participate in the hearing can sign-in after arrival.

Anyone speaking is asked to provide 15 copies of all written testimony that is submitted.

The budget hearing is from 2 to 4 p.m. Tuesday in the James R. Thompson Center's ninth-floor conference room at 100 W. Randolph St.

For more information, call (217) 782-2221.