Starting 1915, a small group met for weekly worship and Bible study in a small residence in Chicago near 30th and Dearborn. Throughout the next couple decades, the modest congregation transitioned from…

After using a Sharpie to fill in the last bubble on his ballot, senior Xavier Nesbitt stuffs his paper ballot in a privacy sheet protector and hands it to a poll worker. After the poll worker shows him…

“And remember, everything dope in America comes from Chicago, the greatest city on Earth.”

Those who recognize this phrase from TikTok know it’s the trademark sign-off of Chicago urban historian…

He stands on the green, holding firmly onto his golf club. He looks off into the distance, directly at his goal: not only to score, but to prove to himself that he can. He swings, and the golf ball rolls…

The first time I was called the R-word was in second or third grade. 

At the time, I only had a vague understanding of what the word meant. I was struggling with several undiagnosed learning disabilities,…

In 1940, Gordon Parks moved to the South Side of Chicago, where he dedicated himself to accurately portraying the African American experience through photographs. He was the first Black photographer to…

A die clatters on a tabletop. Players hold their breath as numbers flicker across it, cheering when it stills: the wizard’s player rolled a high enough score to beat a hag! Someone clears their throat…

On an average school day, after school, sophomore Lisa Tao spends 30 minutes on TikTok, scrolling through countless videos. One video she comes across offers a video that suggests “The Bell Jar,” written…

In an arena full of sand, children engage in a series of activities like grooming, riding and exercises with horses. They begin by walking on the horses and are eager to embark on the next activities…

Almost a century ago, two teenagers murdered a little boy on the South Side. Their reason: to see if they could get away with it. Nathan Leopold and Richard Loeb, both precocious and affluent, spent months…

A school club has launched a social media account to raise awareness about issues around reporting sexual assault.

As part of the broader #WhyIDidntReport movement, Intersectional Feminism Club…

“Missouri teen shot by police was two days away from starting college.”

“Vigil For Mo. Teen Killed By Police Officer Spirals Into Violence”

These 2014 headlines plastered newspapers and radio…

As students weave through the school, backpacks bounce behind them, slung over one shoulder, worn low on the back, or over both shoulders. Struggling to stand up, students hunch over and lock together…

During Ramadan, junior Noori Zaki starts her morning around 5 a.m. She takes part in the first prayer of the morning, Fajr, with her family, before breaking fast. She goes to school, and abstains from…

It’s a sunny day, a slight breeze blows, and the turf field I’m standing on is near perfection. The referee blows his whistle and the game is on. I’m transported to another world as my teammates…

Through face-mask selfies at sleepovers and Glossier pink billboards that feature girls dripping serum under their eyes, the skin care phenomenon is a part of people’s daily lives. Such skin care products…

California activist Julia Bram remembers a day six years ago when her brother, Paul Kaufman, said he wanted to visit and tell her about his latest project. He came over with a well thought out, striking…

In the hour just before dawn, thoughts are still racing around in junior Anna Bohlen’s brain. With her eyes still wide open, she is on the verge of pulling an all-nighter because the supply of melatonin…

The stakes are high as the City Council works through the process to approve a new map for the city’s wards, made necessary every decade after the census to ensure wards have equal populations. Latino…

Ladies and gentlemen. Boys vs. girls. His or hers. Sitting at a desk in a school that emphasizes inclusion, transgender students say teachers regularly use terms that do not acknowledge their gender identity….

The Columbus Day parade took place downtown in the Loop, early afternoon of Monday, Oct. 11. Under overcast skies small crowds of people gathered behind barricades to watch floats, bands, and other…

Ninth graders Mateo Nacu and Milo Platz-Walker have traveled all over the country and the world. The two haven’t been dropping by far-flung locales like Scotland and Hawaii on a whim. They grew up on…

 Lee A. Holmes repeats the phrase for what might just be the hundredth time that day: “Would you like to purchase a copy of StreetWise?” 

People walk right past him. They pretend not to notice…

By springtime, Susan Augustine’s 20-by-30-foot garden will be filled with 300 bulbs of tulips and dozens of allium plus crocus and daffodil flowers. Since the pandemic, she has also added raised beds…

Peering through the windows at Virtue restaurant, the soft warm glow of orb lights illustrates the outline of magnolia flowers — a symbol of dignity and Southern hospitality — adorning the windows….

In July 2020, a single mother and eight children from the Congo began to settle into a small Hyde Park apartment. Contributing to the millions of people displaced from the Congo due to ongoing violence…

In 2001, Paul Sagan had only worked for a few years as chief operating officer then president at Akamai, a security and cloud service company. On Sept. 11 of that year, the company experienced trauma as…

Gage Park, a working-class neighborhood on the southwest side of Chicago that is six miles due west of the Laboratory Schools, is an area made up of a diverse Latinx community — old, young, undocumented,…

Community organizations demand reparations from University of Chicago

Since 1901, a bronze plaque hung in Hutchinson Commons on the University of Chicago campus, which honored the contributions…

English teacher Rachel Nielsen greets her class with music — sometimes overly loud music — streaming out through the Zoom. While some students roll their eyes, many nod their heads or mouth a few lyrics…

As the head designer of Leaders 1354, a Chicago-based sneaker shop, Ms. Ma is using her platform to lead by bridging the gap between Chicago’s Asian American and Black communities through streetwear…

The 2020s so far have paralleled the later years of the 1960s  — both are periods of racial inequality, newfound perspectives and social activism. Something especially positive about the ’60s was…

From warm apple turnovers to chocolate chip zucchini bread. Berry delight. Decadent snickerdoodle cake. Chocolate chip cookies made with brown butter.

Junior Chloe Ma has perfected her recipes for treats…

Click. “Joining breakout rooms. It may take a few moments.” 

The gallery of tired students and an even more exhausted teacher is replaced by a white box warning that this transition may “take…

Last June, the Illinois national guard was stationed outside my apartment complex, in anticipation of violence following Black Lives Matter protests. Having a Humvee and a group of armed National Guard…

With 77 neighborhoods, 234 square miles and more than 2.5 million residents, it is an ambitious task to tell the story of Chicago’s people. Award-winning Chicago documentarian Steve James set out to…

Isolated at home, teenagers and adults alike are bored and looking for excitement. For some U-High students, drugs and alcohol seem like the escape. Although teenage substance use is nothing new, the expected…

Starting from several small boxes of seemingly random parts from a multitude of brands, senior Sean Zhang tries to build his first computer. After hours of careful wiring, screwing and unscrewing parts…

Oddly enough, I was excited to take my first PSAT, but before we even got started, I was faced with a question that made my stomach drop. As I filled in the bubble on my Scantron indicating that I was…

At 5 a.m., on Nov. 30, Sophie Raphael opens the door to let out two energy-filled foster puppies, Starsky and Hutch. They run outside to play in the fresh snow for the first time in their lives. Sophie…

In 2017, Donald Trump announced he would like to be buried at the Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, New Jersey. After the statement was made, Indecline, an activist collective made up of anonymous…

U-High Midway · Winter Dining
While many restaurants only sat customers outside during the summer, colder temperatures begin to pose problems for Chicago’s dining scene. As the city heads into winter,…

An army of muted portraits of old white men stares blankly out from the walls above the stage. Below, the animated features of actress and writer Heidi Schreck light a dim Broadway stage. Ms. Schreck…

With most people on Zoom trying to get their internet connection to work, at least one teacher is also concerned with wearing outfits that he, his students and his co-workers can thoroughly appreciate. 
…

The moment October begins, it seems that the spooky season grips everyone and everything. Families dig out fake cobwebs, companies begin Halloween-themed ad campaigns and candy prices begin to skyrocket….

As a half Black, half Indian American woman, Kamala Harris has already made history as the 2020 Democratic vice presidential nominee. She is the first woman of color to run to be nominated for national…

When asked about their feelings in regard to the upcoming presidential election, seniors responded with adjectives like “worried,” “terrified” and “hopeful.” While these seniors are clearly…

Waves splash onto rocks, pooling into crevices that small groups of masked people jump over as they walk along the water. Further from the waterline, the rocks form stairs that hug the side of a large…

Sophomore Leila Garfinkel ended the weekend remembering police officers smiling while beating a woman. 

“They just started throwing some people to the ground, and there was this one woman right by…

COVID-19 breakouts and coronavirus-induced slowdowns at meat processing plants have significantly reduced meat supply and increased meat prices in the US, forcing some families to reshape and reflect upon…