Editor’s Note: This is the first of two stories detailing Annie Jones’ experience and post-graduation journey.
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Annie Jones, a 2017 University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign graduate, described herself as somebody who tries to care about other people.
“I feel like that's what has driven where I've gone career wise, and in my interpersonal life as well,” Jones said. “My friendships are super important to me, community is super important to me, so I try to incorporate why these things are important to me through my work as much as possible.”
Jones will return to her alma mater and share more about who she is and why she does what she does during the first-ever International Young Humanitarian Speaker Series from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Nov. 21 inside Suite 213 at the Women’s Resources Center (WRC).
Illinois International and the WRC are hosting this new Fireside Chat.
Jones will also share how her involvement on campus as a First Year Consent and Relationship Education (FYCARE) Facilitator at the WRC helped position her for her career as a quality assurance specialist at No Means No Worldwide, an international non-governmental organization dedicated to ending sexual and gender-based violence against women and children globally.
Who is Annie Jones?
Jones is from Chicago and still lives on the North Side near Uptown.
She said she decided to go to Illinois when she was a senior in high school and her decision was guided by all the opportunities the university offered.
“I’m grateful for what I got out of my university experience,” Jones said. “Illinois was life changing, I mean my current roommate is somebody I met my first week at (Illinois). We lived in the same dorm…it changed my life in every way,” Jones said.
Overall, Jones said she’s grateful for the opportunities she received, but she said she never imagined she would be giving back to Illinois by sharing her story and giving advice to students who were just like her.
What About Advice for Students?
Jones said the number one piece of advice she could give a college student is to identify one to three professors that they genuinely like and connect with and to get to know them.
“You want to connect with them and work with them because their experience will help guide you,” she said.
Jones also said, ahead of her Fireside Chat, that it’s OK if a student doesn’t know what they want to do for a career when they start college.
“I also don't know what I want to do,” she joked. “But you just take one step towards a direction in which you think you might want to go, and I think that can be as simple as finding something that you really enjoy doing like volunteering or just reaching out to professors or organizations because you may meet someone who says something that will help you figure it out.”
Where to Register
To learn more about Jones and her story and experience at No Means No Worldwide, register for the fireside chat at go.illinois.edu/chatwithannie.
More Information about the Award
Do you know someone deserving of the Charles C. Stewart International Young Humanitarian Award? Nominations are accepting on a rolling basis and can be submitted via the Illinois International website.
Help support the Charles C. Stewart Young Humanitarian Award today by giving a tax-deductible donation online by searching “Charles Stewart Young Humanitarian Award Fund – 11770004.” Gifts may be matched based on your employer’s contributions.
Analicia Haynes is the storyteller and social media specialist at Illinois International and can be reached at ahayn2@illinois.edu.