Initiative Category: Special Education

A Bachelor’s Degree from Trinity Christian College prepares students to flourish in their careers and vocations. And our graduates are well-prepared. According to data from Trinity’s Cooper Center for Vocation and Career Development, 97.7 percent of the graduates in the Class of 2021 are employed or in graduate school. That far surpasses the nationwide average of 82.4 percent. 

Each year, Trinity seeks career outcome data from new alumni. For 2020-’21 degree conferrals, 82.1% of graduates are employed, 15.1% are enrolled in graduate school, and one is serving the United States in the military.  

“We are excited to see our students successfully launch into their life after Trinity and continue to make meaningful contributions in the world,” said Director of Vocation and Career Development Jeff Timmer. “This metric is just one way that Trinity demonstrates how it prepares students for positive engagement in their communities and for contributions to the Kingdom.” 

Companies that employ recent Trinity graduates include Amazon, BDO USA, Chicago Public Schools, La Rabida Children’s Hospital, Northwestern Memorial Hospital, and Topel Forman. 

The class of 2021 has a range of job titles, reflecting the diversity and depth of Trinity’s liberal arts education: medical surgical/oncological nurse; special education teacher; art therapist; communications coordinator; graphic designer; tax associate; internal events coordinator; pastor; business analyst; baseball coach; police officer; and occupational therapy technician, among others. 

Trinity graduates are also pursing further education at the graduate level at institutions such as Duke Divinity School, John Marshall Law School, Northwestern University, Rush University, and University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.  

Avery Johnson ’21, is currently attending Duke Divinity School in Durham, N.C., and she cited the support she received from Trinity in helping her on her journey.  “I couldn’t have gotten this far without the help of the Trinity’s staff and professors,” said Johnson, who double majored in Biblical Studies and Communication Arts at Trinity and plans to become an ordained minister. 

For more information about Trinity’s 98% placement rate, visit Trinity’s Cooper Center for Vocation & Career Development. 

When students graduate from Trinity with a special education degree, they have been prepared to cultivate relational peace, educational equity, and justice for all children and to impact the mind, body, and soul of each student through excellence in teaching.

Recently, College Factual ranked Trinity’s special education program as a “Best Value” college for 2022. “What our value rankings try to identify is when you are truly going to get a higher quality of education than what you will pay for, based on what comparable institutions are charging,” according to the organization.

College Factual also honored several other education degree programs at Trinity, including:

–Education

–English Education

–Mathematics Education

–Chemistry Education

–Arts Education

Trinity’s bachelor’s and master’s degrees in psychology and clinical mental health counseling were also highly ranked.

To determine its rankings, College Factual analyzed almost 5,000 colleges and universities in the United States. Schools were assessed across 1,784 different majors & concentrations, 60+ different and four degree levels to come up with what amounts to over 800,000 distinct lists to help students find the best-fit college for them.

An education from Trinity Christian College doesn’t just change lives—our graduates go on to change the world. And the life-changing value of a Trinity education has once again been recognized by U.S. New and World Report, which named Trinity to several of its “best” lists for 2022, including among the Top 20 Regional Colleges Midwest and #15 for social mobility. And in U.S. News’ inaugural ranking, Trinity’s nursing program has been ranked among the top 300 of all undergraduate nursing programs in the United States. 

U.S. News uses multiple criteria for its highly regarded rankings. To be named among the “Best Colleges,” Trinity was rated for its graduation and retention rates; social mobility; academic reputation; student selectivity; financial resources; alumni giving; and graduate debt, among other factors. 

“I am confident that, under the tutelage of a talented and dedicated faculty, Trinity students work hard and learn well as they prepare for a lifetime of opportunity and service,” said President Kurt D. Dykstra. “While no one set of data can measure that kind of transformative experience in full, it is gratifying to, once again, be recognized by U.S. News & World Report as a top college in the Midwest.” 

Trinity’s performance on social mobility deserved its own category, according to U.S. News, which looked at Trinity’s ability to enroll and graduate students from less-advantaged backgrounds. U.S. News also recognized Trinity’s undergraduate nursing program. (see “U.S. News Recognizes BSN Program among Best in Country”) 

“We are honored and excited to be recognized as an institution that excels at making a college education possible for students from all backgrounds,” said Provost Aaron Kuecker, Ph.D. “This recognition is the result of the significant dedication of an excellent faculty and staff – but, most truly, it is a recognition of the hard work, dedication, and amazing gifts of Trinity’s students. It is such a privilege to serve the students who come to Trinity to learn, to be challenged, to be transformed, and to discover the joy of their vocation.”  

Along with the U.S. News rankings, Trinity is frequently recognized by many organizations for preparing students for a world that needs them. The College’s honors include being named a “College of Distinction;” routinely ranked the best BSN programs in the state of Illinois; part of the “National Strength and Conditioning Association Education Recognition Program;” and a “best value” among special education programs. 

The value of Trinity’s special education teaching programs is nearly impossible to quantify: Our special education majors go on to change the lives of students by cultivating relational peace, educational equity, and justice for all children and impacting the mind, body, and soul of each student through excellence in teaching.

So, the College is particularly pleased to see the value of our undergraduate and graduate degrees in special education recognized by Grad Degree Search. According to the rankings organization, Trinity has been recognized in several categories, including among the top 10 in the Great Lakes Region for both types of degrees! Our bachelor’s and master’s degrees were also honored with a top-50 rankings nationwide.

— 7th in Best Value Special Education Master’s Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region Ranking

—9th in Best Value Special Education Schools in the Great Lakes Region Ranking

— 44th in Best Value Special Education Master’s Degree Schools Ranking

— 49th in Best Value Special Education Schools Ranking

“When determining this ranking, we place a high emphasis on the school’s quality as well as its sticker price,” Grad Degree Search noted. “Even though a college may be affordable, it may not offer value.”

Trinity brings value in many ways, according to Christine Scholma ’04, assistant professor of special education and co-director of the Center for SPED. “One of the added values of Trinity’s special education program includes a variety of partnerships with local schools,” said Scholma. “Through these partnerships, students with disabilities come to campus to learn alongside Trinity special education majors. Prospective teachers get the opportunity to apply what they are learning in class by teaching local students about community living.”

Continuing a years – long tradition of excellence and recognition, Trinity Christian College has been named among the “Best Colleges” by U.S. News & World Report for 2021.  Trinity was ranked 21st among  Midwestern regional colleges in this year’s survey. Trinity was also named a “Best Value” college and a “Top Performer on Social Mobility.”

“At Trinity Christian College, our community is focused on providing a rigorous, life-changing education, and our graduates go on to find success in their careers and vocations,” said Trinity’s President Kurt D. Dykstra. “We are pleased that U.S. News & World Report has once again recognized how Trinity prepares our students to change the world.”

Said Provost Aaron J. Kuecker, Ph.D., “We are proud of the excellent academic programs that are supported by Trinity’s world class faculty. Rankings like these are a recognition of the top quality, whole-person vision of education that we pursue at Trinity.”

Trinity is frequently recognized for its high academic standards. The College’s honors include being named a “College of Distinction,” a “Best BSN Program in Illinois,” and a “National Strength and Conditioning Association Education Recognition Program,” among others. Trinity, which is a university partner with 1871, the world’s top university-affiliated startup incubator located in downtown Chicago, also has a world-class business department that recently led the State of Illinois with both the highest pass rates and average scores on the most recent certified public accounting (CPA) exam. The Trinity Athletics Department was also recently listed among the Champions of Character Five-Star institutions by the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA).

The U.S. News rankings are based on qualitative and quantitative information in several categories, including peer assessments, graduation rates, social mobility, and faculty information. The “Best Value” ranking is determined by a school’s academic quality and the net cost of attendance for a student who received the average level of need-based financial aid. The “Social Mobility” ranking is based on how successful a college is at advancing social mobility by enrolling and graduating large proportions of disadvantaged students awarded with Pell Grants.

Having received both her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Trinity, Jenna Young ’11, MA ’18 has taken what she learned in the classroom to follow God’s call in her life professionally. And with Trinity being her first Christian school experience, she clearly saw God use her professors and classmates to encourage her to make a difference in the world.

In 2011, Jenna received her B.A. in special education. From day one of class, Jenna requested to be a student teacher at Elim Christian School – a nationally recognized school for students ages 3-22 who have intellectual and/or physical disabilities. Elim is just minutes away from Trinity in Crestwood, Ill. Her strong desire to work with students with special needs motivated her to achieve her goal of having her own classroom. Not only did she intern at Elim, she also taught there for eight years following graduation.

During these formative years in Jenna’s career, Elim brought in a new profession of people, known as Board Certified Behavior Analysts (or BCBA). These leaders would come into the classroom and offer guidance on how to work with students with behavioral challenges. Unfamiliar with this profession at first, Jenna grew to love the role and decided to pursue an advanced degree. After some research, she discoveed that Trinity’s was the only program in the state of Illinois to offer a master’s in Special Education: Learning Behavior Specialist II that included the course sequence so she could become a BCBA.

After working through the two-year program, which included being observed during a 1,500-hour period, Jenna received her certification in 2018. Dr. Sara Baillie, Associate Professor of Special Education, not only taught Jenna in the classroom, but was also Jenna’s supervisor. “I felt extremely fortunate that part of Trinity’s curriculum – to no expense outside of my tuition – included my professor coming to see me in the workplace to give me corrective feedback,” Jenna said.

Today, Jenna is stretching herself professionally by working with a different group of clients: adults with mental health issues. “I work on decreasing their physical aggression and elopement behaviors and increasing the behaviors we want to see more of like cooperation, staying on task, and asking clarifying questions.”

In the midst of Jenna’s schooling, she and her husband walked through the journey of adoption. In God’s perfect timing, Jenna and her husband received the call that they had been matched with a child in China the same weekend she graduated with her master’s degree. “It was so special to be able to celebrate with our families on the same day as graduation.” They were blessed to take their son home in February 2019.

Feeling supported by Trinity faculty made a lasting impact. “My professors saw me as an individual. They would ask for adoption updates and they would initiate conversations and questions. I knew they were truly praying for the adoption process to go smoothly.”

Through each of her Trinity experiences, Jenna is able to clearly see how God shaped her to be an effective leader. “You are who God says you are; He will use you in your calling.” The world needs more incredible leaders like Jenna, and Trinity is proud to play a small part in helping her prepare to make an impact.