CME Group Foundation Awards $360k in Scholarships to First Generation College Students in Illinois

• More than $4.3 million in scholarships granted since 2019

CHICAGO, Aug. 14, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- CME Group Foundation today announced that 18 low-income, first-generation college students who are majoring in finance, technology and related fields have each been awarded up to $20,000 in scholarships, which are renewable for three years.

Since its launch in 2019, the program has awarded more than $4.3 million in scholarships to 123 students at 12 partner colleges and universities in the United States.

"We applaud this year's CME Group Foundation scholars for their hard work and dedication, and we are honored to support students in Illinois as they pursue their degrees," said Terry Duffy, CME Group Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. "We are extremely pleased to invest in these future professionals and help them access the education they need to build their careers in finance and technology."

"The University of Illinois Chicago is proud to be a part of the CME Group Foundation Scholars program and the educational resources and career opportunities it provides to students," said Marie Lynn Miranda, University of Illinois Chicago Chancellor. "At UIC, we are committed to providing the broadest access to the highest levels of educational, research and clinical excellence. We are grateful to the CME Group Foundation for its support of our students and for helping us advance our mission."

This year's recipients of the CME Group Foundation Scholarship include:

• Cindy Ambriz, Illinois Institute of Technology
• Mateusz Boksa, DePaul University
• Leslye Carrasco, University of Illinois at Chicago
• Reena Das, Illinois Institute of Technology
• Hafsa Feroz, DePaul University
• Francisco Gomez, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
• Abby Hernandez, University of Illinois at Chicago
• Diana Kopestynska, Loyola University Chicago
• Filip Lipovski, DePaul University
• Yvette Mensah, Loyola University Chicago
• Valeria Pintor, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
• Tereza Progri, University of Illinois at Chicago
• Melise Sever, Stevens Institute of Technology
• Iman Sheikh, University of Illinois at Chicago
• Miya Shlapak, Loyola University Chicago
• Muskaan Thapar, Stevens Institute of Technology
• David Valverio, University of Illinois at Chicago
• Edgardo Ventura, Illinois Institute of Technology

Scholarship partner colleges and universities are:

• Chicago State University
• DePaul University
• Illinois Institute of Technology
• Loyola University Chicago
• National Louis University
• Northern Illinois University
• Southern Illinois University-Carbondale
• St. Xavier University
• Stevens Institute of Technology
• University of Illinois at Chicago
• University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
• Wilbur Wright College

Today, CME Group executives will host a Day of Recognition and Market Education for those receiving scholarships. Students will learn more about internship and career opportunities available at CME Group and in the financial services industry. 

For more information on CME Group Foundation scholarships, visit www.cmegroupfoundation.org. 

About CME Group Foundation

CME Group Foundation helps today's students keep pace with dramatically evolving technology, creating a workforce for the future that is equipped with the skills to meet tomorrow's global challenges. By bringing together the brightest minds in education to prepare students for kindergarten, provide robust opportunities in computer science, and support them with college and career success, we are sparking system-wide change that benefits all students, from cradle to career, with a focus on those who are typically underrepresented in the STEM fields. They will shape the future of the world's most important industries, including our own, so we give them the tools they need to achieve their full potential.

About CME Group

As the world's leading derivatives marketplace, CME Group (www.cmegroup.com) enables clients to trade futures, options, cash and OTC markets, optimize portfolios, and analyze data – empowering market participants worldwide to efficiently manage risk and capture opportunities. CME Group exchanges offer the widest range of global benchmark products across all major asset classes based on interest rates, equity indexes, foreign exchange, energy, agricultural products and metals.  The company offers futures and options on futures trading through the CME Globex platform, fixed income trading via BrokerTec and foreign exchange trading on the EBS platform.  In addition, it operates one of the world's leading central counterparty clearing providers, CME Clearing. 

CME Group, the Globe logo, CME, Chicago Mercantile Exchange, Globex, and E-mini are trademarks of Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc.  CBOT and Chicago Board of Trade are trademarks of Board of Trade of the City of Chicago, Inc.  NYMEX, New York Mercantile Exchange and ClearPort are trademarks of New York Mercantile Exchange, Inc.  COMEX is a trademark of Commodity Exchange, Inc. BrokerTec is a trademark of BrokerTec Americas LLC and EBS is a trademark of EBS Group LTD. The S&P 500 Index is a product of S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC ("S&P DJI"). "S&P®", "S&P 500®", "SPY®", "SPX®", US 500 and The 500 are trademarks of Standard & Poor's Financial Services LLC; Dow Jones®, DJIA® and Dow Jones Industrial Average are service and/or trademarks of Dow Jones Trademark Holdings LLC. These trademarks have been licensed for use by Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc. Futures contracts based on the S&P 500 Index are not sponsored, endorsed, marketed, or promoted by S&P DJI, and S&P DJI makes no representation regarding the advisability of investing in such products. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

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