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Twelve CPS students just got a $10,000 scholarship boost—thanks to Rahm Emanuel, his wife, and a trailblazing admiral.
CHICAGO – A group of Chicago Public Schools students in Junior ROTC programs received a major boost Monday, thanks to a new scholarship funded by former Mayor Rahm Emanuel and his wife, Amy Rule.
What we know:
Twelve CPS students are the first recipients of the Lisa Franchetti ROTC Scholarship, an award created through a $120,000 annual gift from Emanuel and Rule. Each student will receive a $10,000 scholarship for college, with an additional $2,500 per year if they remain enrolled in ROTC.
The scholarship is named in honor of Admiral Lisa Franchetti, the first woman and first ROTC graduate to become Chief of Naval Operations and to serve on the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
Franchetti, reflecting on her career, told the students: "Looking back 40 years later, I can honestly say it was the journey of a lifetime. One that opened doors to leadership opportunities and experiences I never could have dreamed of."
Emanuel emphasized the values behind the scholarship, telling students, "You don't just talk about what rights you have. You talk about and exemplify the responsibilities and thats what the ROTC program, when you put it all together, what it really is."
What they’re saying:
Emanuel said the scholarship was also a response to Franchetti’s recent dismissal by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.
"That’s not the way to end somebody’s 40-year career," Emanuel said. "This was my way of making sure that—that wasn't the last chapter and the last way it was written."
Emanuel also linked the effort to his broader concerns about equity and opportunity: "A lot of kids have gotten the shaft from the system… the American Dream is unaffordable and inaccessible and that’s unacceptable."
The Source: FOX 32’s Dawn Hasbrouck reported on this story.
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