The junior from Cicero, Illinois, is self-assured as he describes choosing to come to the small liberal arts college his brother graduated from, noting his brother allowed him to make his own path, and his supportive family back home. “My mom makes it a point not to call me first,” he adds, “because she says that she doesn’t want to accidentally bother me if I’m doing homework or if I’m in class.”

Tellez says he soon found his support system on campus. Shannon Killday, an IC staff member in the Center for Career Readiness and Experiential Learning, provided some of the support and guidance he needed as a first-generation student — such as explaining to him how to manage assignments early.

“She basically just kind of adopted me right when I came in,” he said. “Her son and I were next-door neighbors our first year and she took all of us in.”

In Assistant Professor of Biology Miranda Karban’s lab and during other hands-on learning experiences, Tellez has been discovering his academic interests and a career path. He said Karban’s research focus on human anatomy and forensic anthropology have “been really helpful for me, because without her, I don’t know where I’d be right now, really.”

IC’s size has allowed Tellez to have one-on-one conversations with faculty and to do student-faculty research. He said those connections to faculty helped him discover his interests, guide him away from his weaknesses and open doors.

“When I first got here, I really didn’t know what my future career was going to be,” he said. “But, working alongside Dr. Karban, I’ve been able to realize that I like the forensic side of criminal justice and I would like to pursue this some more, specifically with either police work or crime scene investigation.”

Tellez went through a workshop at the Texas State University Forensic Anthropology Research Facility — also known as the “body farm” — last summer and his research has included creating a portfolio for one of the skeletons in the anatomy lab in Parker Science Building.

He uses forensic anthropology methods to uncover attributes of the skeleton, such as whether it was a male or female. Working with faculty and doing research were intimidating for him at first.

“But the more I started talking to professors, the more I realized they’re normal people. They’re just like you and me,” Tellez said. “And, thankfully, by talking to them and showing my interests, they were able to give me these opportunities to do the research with them and I’ve learned so much from doing these research projects. I appreciate every second that they’ve been able to invest in me.”

Tellez is not alone in finding that relationships with faculty are a central part of his Illinois College experience. Working with faculty who make students excited about learning also helps to prepare them for success after. The Inspiring Achievement Campaign aims to add $4 million for faculty support, directly increasing the opportunity for the College to hire and retain outstanding faculty, increasing the College’s visibility through teaching and scholarship, and creating contemporary academic programs.

Not to mention exciting students about learning. Tellez said — once he was past being intimidated — student-faculty research was fun. Not only did IC’s small class sizes create opportunities for him to connect with his professors, but it allowed them to connect with him. He said the small gestures and conversations on a bad day were sometimes what he needed to distract him from being away from home or to show him that he can do what he came to IC to do.

“Professors, faculty, really care who you are,” he said.