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Chicago

Opened in 1990, our Chicago office provides professional development and resources to more than 5,761 educators.

@FacingCHI
Office

Since the Chicago office opened in 1990, more than 5,761 local educators have participated in Facing History's professional development programs. These teachers annually reach over 372,800 middle and high school students in over 727 public, religious, and independent schools in the Chicago metropolitan area.

Our training enables students to deepen their knowledge of history, their understanding of the origins of hatred and violence, and their ability to relate history to their own lives. A strong alliance with Chicago Public Schools and growing partnerships with suburban, religious, and charter schools enables us to have critical and significant impact.

See more of our work in our Chicago Regional Profile

Address

2 North LaSalle Street
Suite 2300
Chicago, IL 60602
United States

Contact

[email protected]
312-726-4500

Inside a Chicago Facing History Classroom

The walls of Jenna Forton’s classroom are filled with student-driven classroom contracts, identity charts, and a student-made “People Make Choices, Choices Make History” poster. Jenna came to Facing History this summer as a 7th/8th-grade social studies teacher at Ravenswood Elementary, a new Facing History Partner School. After attending two seminars, her classes are already filled with vibrant connections to Facing History ideas. 

She introduced her students to Facing History's Bullying and Ostracism case study, which sparked a thought-provoking classroom-wide discussion to the question "Are events such as these inevitable?"

Her students will soon begin to explore Facing History units on Holocaust and Human Behavior, the Reconstruction Era in the United States, the American Civil Rights Era, and Immigration. 

Events

Upcoming Events

2016

September

  • 26
    Teaching the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
    Online Workshop
    Online

    Teaching the Universal Declaration of Human Rights

    The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) is an international and aspirational document created by Eleanor Roosevelt, and many others, in the aftermath of World War II and the Holocaust. This online workshop will prepare you to bring this history into your classroom.
    9.26.16 - 9.30.16
    Event

  • 30
    An Introduction to Facing History and Ourselves
    Workshop
    Illinois
    $110.00

    Find details on how to register or pay for Facing History professional development, payment options, help with costs, refunds, and the Facing History Educator Network.

    An Introduction to Facing History and Ourselves Resources and Pedagogy

    This interactive workshop will introduce teachers to Facing History resources and pedagogy by using nonfiction texts that focus on themes of identity, membership, and choosing to participate. Workshop sessions are designed to engage teachers in activities that will provide an introduction to these ideas for use at the beginning and throughout the school year.
    9.30.16
    8:30 am - 3:30 pm
    Wells Community Academy High School
    936 N Ashland Ave
    Chicago, IL 60622

October

  • 5
    Fostering Civil Discourse
    Webinar
    Online

    Fostering Civil Discourse: A Webinar for Educators

    In this webinar, Senior Associate for Program Staff Development Jocelyn Stanton will model strategies designed to help you navigate these challenging times and support your students to develop effective skills for civic participation.
    10.5.16
    3:00 pm - 4:00 pm
    Event

  • 6
    Teaching the Reconstruction Era
    Online Course
    Online
    $350.00

    Find details on how to register or pay for Facing History professional development, payment options, help with costs, refunds, and the Facing History Educator Network.

    The Reconstruction Era and the Fragility of Democracy

    How does society rebuild after extraordinary division and trauma, when the ideals and values of democracy are most vulnerable? This online course explores the Reconstruction Era in the United States and the construction of American identity.
    10.6.16 - 11.16.16

  • 6
    Teaching To Kill a Mockingbird
    Online Course
    Online
    $50.00

    Find details on how to register or pay for Facing History professional development, payment options, help with costs, refunds, and the Facing History Educator Network.

    A New Approach to Teaching To Kill a Mockingbird

    This online course introduces Facing History’s newest resource, Teaching Mockingbird, which incorporates civic education into ELA curricula through the exploration of themes such as identity, difference, race, justice, and how individuals and communities define their responsibilities toward other members of their communities.

    10.6.16 - 11.9.16

  • 6
    Election Year Civics: Teaching Current & Controversial Issue
    Workshop
    Illinois
    $110.00

    Find details on how to register or pay for Facing History professional development, payment options, help with costs, refunds, and the Facing History Educator Network.

    Election Year Civics: Teaching Current & Controversial Issues

    This interactive workshop will focus on building knowledge, skills, and dispositions to help teachers encourage students to choose to participate while meeting the Illinois statewide civics mandate. 
    10.6.16
    8:30 am - 3:30 pm
    Wells Community Academy High School
    936 N Ashland Ave
    Chicago, IL 60622

  • 7
    Facing Ferguson: News Literacy in a Digital Age
    Workshop
    Illinois
    $110.00

    Find details on how to register or pay for Facing History professional development, payment options, help with costs, refunds, and the Facing History Educator Network.

    Facing Ferguson: News Literacy in a Digital Age

    The shooting of Michael Brown and the protests that followed became a flashpoint for the discussion about race, policing, and justice. Using the information aftermath of Ferguson and a new unit co-created by Facing History and Ourselves and the News Literacy Project, this workshop will examine how implicit biases shape our understanding of the world, and how news literacy skills and concepts can help students find reliable information to make decisions, take action, and become effective civic participants in today’s complex information landscape.
    10.7.16
    8:30 am - 3:30 pm
    Wells Community Academy High School
    936 N Ashland Ave
    Chicago, IL 60622

  • 13
    Holocaust and Human Behavior in Jewish Settings
    Online Course
    Online
    $50.00

    Find details on how to register or pay for Facing History professional development, payment options, help with costs, refunds, and the Facing History Educator Network.

    Holocaust and Human Behavior for Educators in a Jewish Setting

    Grounded in the study of Jewish ethics and values, this online course examines the range of choices that led to the failure of democracy in Germany and ultimately to the persecution of millions of Jews and other targeted groups. Participants will investigate the connection between Jewish history and identity, the moral questions inherent in everyday life, and how we as individuals and members of groups can make a difference in the world today.
    10.13.16 - 12.7.16

  • 13
    Holocaust and Human Behavior
    Online Course
    Online
    $350.00

    Find details on how to register or pay for Facing History professional development, payment options, help with costs, refunds, and the Facing History Educator Network.

    Holocaust and Human Behavior

    How is history shaped by hatred, indifference, and denial? How is it shaped by caring, compassion, and responsibility? In this online course, we will examine the range of choices that led to the failure of democracy in Germany and ultimately to the persecution of millions of Jews and other targeted groups. Participants will investigate the complexities of human behavior, judgment, memory, and how we as individuals and members of groups can make a difference in the world today.
    10.13.16 - 12.7.16

  • 13
    Choices in Little Rock
    Online Course
    Online
    $350.00

    Find details on how to register or pay for Facing History professional development, payment options, help with costs, refunds, and the Facing History Educator Network.

    Choices in Little Rock: An Approach to Teaching the Civil Rights Movement

    In 1957, nine black teenagers faced angry mobs in their attempt to desegregate Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas. In this online course we will examine this pivotal moment in the U.S. history and explore ways to engage students in the issues raised by the American civil rights movement and their implications today.
    10.13.16 - 11.30.16

  • 19
    Immigration in a Changing World
    Seminar
    Illinois
    $330.00

    Find details on how to register or pay for Facing History professional development, payment options, help with costs, refunds, and the Facing History Educator Network.

    Immigration in a Changing World: Identity, Citizenship, and Belonging

    What does it mean to be an American? Who may become an American? In this seminar, participants will explore these questions as they consider the history and contemporary realities of immigration in the United States. We will consider how the choices and actions of immigrants have shaped ideas about freedom and democracy and influenced what it means to be American.
     
    10.19.16 - 10.21.16
    8:30 am - 3:30 pm
    Instituto Health Sciences Academy
    2520 S Western Ave
    Chicago, IL 60608

  • 19
    Fostering Civil Discourse
    Webinar
    Online

    Fostering Civil Discourse: A Webinar for Educators

    In this webinar, Emily Weisberg, Program Associate, Jewish Education will model strategies designed to help you navigate these challenging times and support your students to develop effective skills for civic participation.

    10.19.16
    3:00 pm - 4:00 pm
    Event

November

  • 13
    Face the Future
    Community Event
    Online

    Face the Future: A Game About the Future of Empathy

    Facing History and Institute for the Future will pioneer an online game for social change that will convene students, educators, and community members from around the world to imagine what a better future might look like in 2026. The game will take place November 13–14, 2016.

    11.13.16 - 11.14.16
    6:00 pm - 11:59 pm
    Event

December

  • 1
    A New Approach to Teaching To Kill a Mockingbird
    Workshop
    Illinois
    $20.00

    Find details on how to register or pay for Facing History professional development, payment options, help with costs, refunds, and the Facing History Educator Network.

    A New Approach to Teaching To Kill a Mockingbird

    This workshop introduces Facing History's new resource, Teaching Mockingbird, which incorporates civic education, ethical reflection, and historical context into a literary exploration of Harper Lee's beloved novel.
    12.1.16 - 12.2.16
    8:30 am - 3:30 pm
    Wells Community Academy High School
    936 N Ashland Ave
    Chicago, IL 60622

  • 5
    Resistance During the Holocaust
    Online Workshop
    Online
    JPEF/“A Partisan’s Memoir,” Second Story Press, p.139

    Resistance During the Holocaust: An Exploration of the Jewish Partisans

    Join us for a three-day online workshop to explore our new unit, “Resistance During the Holocaust: An Exploration of the Jewish Partisans.”  This resource, created in partnership with Jewish Partisan Educational Foundation, helps counter the portrayal that Jews were helpless victims, lacking the courage or means to fight back. 
    12.5.16 - 12.7.16
    Event

  • 8
    Using Facing History to Teach Civics #CivicsIsBack
    Workshop
    Illinois
    $110.00

    Find details on how to register or pay for Facing History professional development, payment options, help with costs, refunds, and the Facing History Educator Network.

    Using Facing History to Teach Civics #CivicsIsBack

    This interactive workshop will focus on building knowledge, skills and dispositions to help teachers encourage students to choose to participate.
    12.8.16
    8:30 am - 3:30 pm
    South Shore International College Preparatory High School
    1955 E 75th St
    Chicago, IL 60649

  • 14
    Genocide, Mass Violence, and Human Behavior
    Seminar
    Illinois
    $330.00

    Find details on how to register or pay for Facing History professional development, payment options, help with costs, refunds, and the Facing History Educator Network.

    Genocide, Mass Violence, and Human Behavior

    Using a range of Facing History resources, we will examine the choices individuals and groups make in the midst of war and issues of judgment and accountability during episodes of collective violence and in their aftermath.

    12.14.16 - 12.16.16
    8:30 am - 3:30 pm
    Wells Community Academy High School
    936 N Ashland Ave
    Chicago, IL 60622
2017

January

  • 19
    Choices in Little Rock
    Workshop
    Illinois
    $220.00

    Find details on how to register or pay for Facing History professional development, payment options, help with costs, refunds, and the Facing History Educator Network.

    Choices in Little Rock: An Approach to Teaching the Civil Rights Movement

    This workshop explores the desegregation of Central High School in 1957, a defining moment in the U.S. Civil Rights Movement.

     

    1.19.17 - 1.20.17
    8:30 am - 3:30 pm
    National Teachers Academy
    National Teachers Academy
    55 W Cermak Rd
    Chicago, IL 60616

  • 23
    Facing Ferguson: News Literacy in a Digital Age
    Online Workshop
    Online

    Facing Ferguson: News Literacy in a Digital Age

    The shooting of Michael Brown and the protests that followed became a flashpoint for the discussion about race, policing, and justice. Using the information aftermath of Ferguson and a new unit co-created by Facing History and Ourselves and the News Literacy Project, this workshop will examine how implicit biases shape our understanding of the world, and how news literacy skills and concepts can help students find reliable information to make decisions, take action, and become effective civic participants in today’s complex information landscape.

    1.23.17 - 1.25.17
    Event

  • 25
    Using Music to Explore History: The Stax Records Story
    Workshop
    Illinois
    $0.00

    Find details on how to register or pay for Facing History professional development, payment options, help with costs, refunds, and the Facing History Educator Network.

    Using Music to Explore History: The Stax Records Story

    What is the role music can play in shaping the way we see ourselves and others? What can we learn about the past by focusing on music? This workshop explores these questions and others, as well as the relationship between music and social change through five classic soul songs during their recording at Stax Records in Memphis, Tennessee, during the Civil Rights Movement. The stories of the artists, the music, and the lyrics provide a window into the ways that music can inspire social change.

     

    1.25.17
    3:00 pm - 7:30 pm
    Wells Community Academy High School
    Chicago, IL 60622

  • 26
    Teaching the Reconstruction Era
    Workshop
    Illinois
    $220.00

    Find details on how to register or pay for Facing History professional development, payment options, help with costs, refunds, and the Facing History Educator Network.

    The Reconstruction Era and the Fragility of Democracy

    This workshop explores the Reconstruction Era in the United States and the construction of American identity.

     

    1.26.17 - 1.27.17
    8:30 am - 3:30 pm
    Wells Community Academy High School
    936 N Ashland Ave
    Chicago, IL 60622

February

  • 15
    Holocaust and Human Behavior
    Seminar
    Illinois
    $330.00

    Find details on how to register or pay for Facing History professional development, payment options, help with costs, refunds, and the Facing History Educator Network.

    Holocaust and Human Behavior

    Using Facing History’s interdisciplinary approach to citizenship education, we will examine the range of choices that led to the failure of democracy in Germany and ultimately to the persecution of millions of Jews and other targeted groups. 
    2.15.17 - 2.17.17
    8:30 am - 3:30 pm
    Wells Community Academy High School
    936 N Ashland Ave
    Chicago, IL 60622

March

  • 9
    Facing Ferguson: News Literacy in a Digital Age
    Workshop
    Illinois
    $110.00

    Find details on how to register or pay for Facing History professional development, payment options, help with costs, refunds, and the Facing History Educator Network.

    Facing Ferguson: News Literacy in a Digital Age

    The shooting of Michael Brown and the protests that followed became a flashpoint for the discussion about race, policing, and justice. Using the information aftermath of Ferguson and a new unit co-created by Facing History and Ourselves and the News Literacy Project, this workshop will examine how implicit biases shape our understanding of the world, and how news literacy skills and concepts can help students find reliable information to make decisions, take action, and become effective civic participants in today’s complex information landscape.
    3.9.17
    8:30 am - 3:30 pm
    National Teachers Academy
    55 W Cermak Rd
    Chicago, IL 60616

DePaul University and Facing History Celebrate Collaboration

DePaul is incorporating Facing History’s resources, materials, and classroom strategies on civic engagement throughout programs for working and aspiring teachers in DePaul’s College of Education.

Learn more

News

Acclaimed Photojournalist Lynsey Addario to Headline Community Conversations 10th Anniversary Event in Chicago
October 16, 2015

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Caitlin Jagodzinski │ The Silverman Group, Inc. 
312.932.9950 │ [email protected]

Participating Schools

Facing History and Ourselves is actively used in history, literature, interdisciplinary, government, and specially designed Facing History electives. In addition to being incorporated into K-12 schools, Facing History is also taught in colleges and universities. Our program associates work with educators to help them use these materials in the most appropriate ways.

Give a gift to support our program.

About Facing History

Any Questions?: How Facing History and Ourselves Works

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Videos

Celebrate 25 Years of Facing History in Chicago
Rory Muchow's Facing History Classroom
Iyonna M. at the 2015 Chicago Benefit Dinner

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