The University of Illinois Alumni Association has named Michelle Tjelmeland, Ed.M. '00 EDU, the Diversity and Inclusion Award Recipient for its 2024 Alumni Awards.
After college, Tjelmeland became a school teacher but became profoundly deaf. She decided to go back to school and enrolled in the College of Education's Ed.M. program, where she explored the early connections between computers and education.
She founded a web design business, the non-profit Cochlear Implant Awareness Foundation, and District 23 Boutique in Springfield, IL, which supports the foundation.
Tjelmeland will be recognized along with other awardees at the UIAA's 2024 Alumni Awards Gala, which will be held on September 12 at Pear Tree Estate in Champaign.
