The Columbia Chronicle

06/07/2024

Shane van Gisbergen wins The Loop Xfinity Series Race as NASCAR returns to Chicago

Under clear skies, the NASCAR Chicago Street Race returned for a second year this weekend, with more viewing spots for fans and modifications to street closures.   Shane van Gisbergen, No. 97, won the The Loop 110 Xfinity Series Race, a 50-lap event that was shortened last year because of lightning...

06/07/2024

NASCAR Village offers public race weekend experience without having to pay

Fans crowded Butler Field, the location of NASCAR Village, on Saturday, July 6, as Chicago’s race weekend kicked off under blue skies.   It was a big difference from the soggy mess of NASCAR’s inaugural racing weekend last year.   NASCAR Village is a free area within the grounds of NASCAR Chic...

02/07/2024

Columbia students launch print publication, family-friendly activities within the ‘NASCAR Tracks’ app for this year’s Chicago street race

For a second year in a row, the NASCAR Chicago Street Race will take place in the South Loop, with much of the race happening in and around Columbia’s urban campus on Saturday, July 6 and Sunday, July 7. The course map details street closures around East Jackson Drive, DuSable Lake Shore Drive, So...

01/07/2024

Last day: Kwang-Wu Kim departs Columbia after 11 years as president, CEO

Today is Kwang-Wu Kim’s last day as president and CEO of Columbia College.   Kim has led the college since July 1, 2013. Kim, a native of Chicago, came to Columbia from Arizona State University, where he served as dean and director of the Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts.   On Valenti...

30/06/2024

‘Pride is Power’: Thousands gather at Chicago’s 53rd annual Pride Parade

Gleeful cheers and lively music boomed through Lakeview as the Chicago Pride Parade passed through a sea of colorfully dressed celebrants on Sunday, June 30. The 53rd annual Chicago Pride Parade kicked off at 11 a.m. at the intersection of Sheridan and Broadway and moved through Lakeview, ending in....

30/06/2024

Families and individuals celebrate, educate at Navy Pier Pride

On Saturday, June 29, families and other supporters of the LGBTQIA+ community filed into Navy Pier Pride to see various live performances from a drag storytime to the Lakeside Pride Marching Band. The free event included “live music, educational programs, performances from local LGBTQIA+ artists, ...

29/06/2024

Columbia, Second City continue Comedy Studies summer semester 'abroad' program

Aidy Bryant, Gary Richardson, Molly Kearny, and most recently, Asha Ward, a Columbia Chicago Alumni. What do these comedians have in common? Besides having worked for Saturday Night Live, they are all alumni of Comedy Studies, a course made available through both Columbia Chicago and The Second City...

28/06/2024

Columbia’s first LGBTQ+ social health equality class runs this summer during Pride Month

Columbia offered a new “LGBTQ+ Social Health Equality” course for the first time this summer as part of the Summer Social Justice Institute. The class, created and taught by Derick D. Jones Jr., assistant professor in the Science and Mathematics Department, focused on the stories of people withi...

26/06/2024

Columbia faculty, students create free online textbook about writing

Columbia is replacing its first-year writing textbook with a free open source resource developed by a group of faculty, librarians, students and others. “Authoring Culture: The Foundations of Twenty-first Century Writing” will be published on LibreTexts Aug. 15. The text will replace the “Key ...

20/06/2024

Associate professor who helped build Columbia’s creative writing program dies at 56

Don De Grazia, associate professor in the English and Creative Writing Department died on June 13 at 56 years old.   De Grazia, who was also a Columbia alum, helped build the creative writing program and served as coordinator. He was the author of the novel “American Skin.”   His stories also ...

20/06/2024

Exclusive: Forced out of job after nearly 35 years, Columbia librarian remains hopeful college will survive financial challenges

Kim Hale only knew three things about Columbia College Chicago before going for her first interview for an acquisitions librarian position in 1989: the name of the college, the address and the interlibrary loan number.   “I had interviewed at other places, but Columbia was just special,” Hale s...

18/06/2024

College expects slightly more students to return this fall for their sophomore year than in the past

Students who started their first year in Fall 2023 amidst the disruption of the part-time faculty strike will return to Columbia at higher rates this fall than the previous year.   The college is projecting that 65.1% of first-year students that started in Fall 2023 will remain at Columbia for Fall...

17/06/2024

Dozens of Columbia College Chicago faculty are undergoing training this summer to gain a three-year certification in mental health first aid.

Columbia is offering faculty training for certification in mental health first aid with a one-day online course through the National Council for Mental Wellbeing. Faculty who complete the course are awarded a three-year certification.   Susan Kerns, the associate provost of faculty research develop...

14/06/2024

Breaking: Columbia to create new center for student services at 33 E. Ida B. Wells

Columbia is creating a new center for student services in the 33 E. Ida B. Wells building, combining the tutoring and advising centers and the Student Persistence office on the first floor near the Wabash Street entrance.   The office of Student Persistence and Academic Advising will move from 623 ...

12/06/2024

DEI course requirements, approval process could change as curriculum is streamlined, reports Samantha Ho

The college has nearly tripled the number of DEI courses it offers since the first DEI-designated classes were created in 2019.   Columbia had 44 different DEI-designated courses in Fall 2019 and offered 31 of them to students, said Steven Corey, dean of the School of Liberal Arts and Sciences. Now...

07/06/2024

Art vendors honor Puerto Rican heritage at 2024 ‘Fiestas Patronales Puertorriqueñas

The line to enter the annual Chicago Puerto Rican Festival stretched for a block, with parents and children holding hands, teenagers sharing laughs and adults wearing Puerto Rican flags on their backs.   The festival, also recognized as ‘Fiestas Patronales Puertorriqueñas,’ returned to the Hum...

06/06/2024

Columbia to integrate virtual mental health provider TimelyCare alongside existing Counseling Service resources, providing 24/7 access to mental health care

Columbia will be partnering with TimelyCare, a virtual health care provider, to aid the Counseling Services and provide 24/7 assistance to students ahead of the fall semester.   The college will offer a combination of services from both the four in-person therapists who currently work in Counseling...

04/06/2024

Op-Ed: Layoff process ‘dehumanizing’ for staff at college

Four of five staff therapist positions were eliminated this past week, despite a recent issue of the Chronicle about the dire need for mental health support (especially identity-affirming therapy) for Columbia students, and amid rising su***de rates and a global adolescent mental health crisis. Coun...

31/05/2024

Columbia continues to face decline in enrollment amid financial aid delays

As expected, the college is on track to have fewer students in Fall 2024, although it’s still unclear just how much enrollment will drop.   Deposits from first-year and transfer students increased just slightly in May from the previous month, although first-year deposits are still down 46% compar...

31/05/2024

Exclusive: College lays off 70 staff across the college to help close the financial deficit, including four therapists in the Counseling Center

The college laid off 70 people on Thursday, May 30, including four therapists in the Counseling Center, four librarians, two academic advisors and nine staff in the tutoring center. Six people who work in student financial aid also lost their jobs.   Although the layoffs had been expected, the staf...

28/05/2024

Los fanáticos se disfrutan a Sueños a pesar de la interrupción del clima

A las cuatro de la tarde, miles de personas corrían por las puertas abiertas después de esperar cuatro horas en línea a Grant Park, para ver a sus artistas favoritos a Sueños.   El segundo día del festival de música latina fue programado para empezar al mediodía, como el día anterior, pero ...

28/05/2024

Vendedores y bailadores comparten su cultura a Sueños

En el calor de 70 grados, Edwin Mijares y Vanessa Rivera terminaron su baile mexicano calientes, debajo de capas de ropa tradicional.   Los bailarines del Ballet Folklórico de Chicago habían estado practicando por meses, para realizar bailes de estados diferentes de México en la intersección de...

25/05/2024

CTA offers harm-reduction kits in Narcan vending machines to assist with opioid crisis

The opioid crisis has become a significant public health concern in Chicago, and like many other urban centers, the number of opioid overdoses in public spaces is on the rise. To combat the issue, the Chicago Department of Public Health has partnered with The West Side Opioid Task Force and the Chic...

22/05/2024

Full-time faculty, senior administrators disagree on whether board’s decision to declare ‘adverse circumstance’ ended tenure at college

The day after the Board of Trustees voted to approve President and CEO Kwang-Wu Kim’s massive cost-cutting measures to address the $38 million deficit, full-time faculty had their first chance to ask senior administrators about the timeline for the changes and how they will be impacted by the boar...

21/05/2024

Breaking: Columbia’s Board of Trustees voted in favor of President and CEO Kwang-Wu Kim’s recommendations to restructure the colleges, including reducing the core curriculum from 42 to 30 credits and making $18 million in cuts for the next fiscal year.

Columbia’s Board of Trustees voted in favor of President and CEO Kwang-Wu Kim’s recommendations to restructure the colleges, including reducing the core curriculum from 42 to 30 credits and making $18 million in cuts for the next fiscal year.   After resuming discussions that began just before ...

15/05/2024

Vivian Maier Inspired Photo Walk

On Saturday, May 18 (rain or shine), APA Chicago facilitates a Vivian Maier-inspired photo walk to promote community engagement, mentorship, and collaboration. Utilizing 5-6 different foundational photography techniques employed by Vivian Maier, photographers retrace Maier’s steps on the streets of Chicago, creating their own unique interpretations of this historical influence. This themed walking tour is an excellent mentorship opportunity for photographers seeking guidance and collaboration. The walk would conclude with a group editing session and a sharing of one another’s work.

Date, Location & Tickets
Date: Sat., May 18 from 9:00 AM–5:00 PM
Location: Columbia College Chicago, 33 E. Ida B. Wells Drive, 2nd floor, Chicago, IL 60605
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/vivian-maier-inspired-photo-walk-tickets-897228303007?utm-campaign=social&utm-content=attendeeshare&utm-medium=discovery&utm-term=listing&utm-source=cp&aff=ebdsshcopyurl

15/05/2024

Sin Título extends their brand from T-shirt slogans to mental health events

MENTAL HEALTH ISSUE The bookshelves at the 18th Street Casa de Cultura are filled with colorful books in Spanish and English. People file into the space, where they snack on cookies and popcorn, examine the tote bags, posters and artist-made shirts laid out on a table and stop by the build-your-own....

15/05/2024

Break Time

MENTAL HEALTH ISSUE Related

15/05/2024

Una comunidad de mujeres ayuda encontrar el amor propio, salud mental

EDICIÓN DE LA SALUD MENTAL Cuando Cescilia West tenía 19 años de edad, llegó a este país por primera vez a visitar a su hermana. Desde entonces, se enamoró de la “Ciudad de los Vientos” y decidió que Chicago sería su nuevo hogar y ya no, su natal Mérida, Venezuela. Fue aquí, donde ha r...

15/05/2024

Emotional support humans: How people are addressing the mental health of pets

MENTAL HEALTH ISSUE Bear, an Australian shepherd, sits patiently on the cold lobby tile at the veterinarian’s office. This is one of his weekly visits to Jennifer Merleau, who ushers him into an exam room and feeds him treats. Today, she is able to give him a vaccine. Six months ago, Bear snapped ...