Category Archive

Urban Initiatives

  • Navigating Remote Learning — A Guide for Guardians

    As schools across the country transition from the physical classroom to virtual learning platforms, you may have heard of the following terminology: e-learning, online learning, remote learning, virtual learning, and distance learning.

    Navigating Remote Learning — A Guide for Guardians
  • Empower Sessions Activity Guide Week #1 — Fun & Well-Being

    This Empower Session focuses on the positive impacts of play. Play a balance challenge game that will get you active and smiling.Create and play your own memory game.Coach Eugene and Coach Reggie talk about the importance of play.Wrap up with some discussion questions to think about while you’re at home.

  • Our Response to COVID-19

    Starting March 17th, all Chicago Public Schools will be closed until March 30th to protect the safety, health and well-being of students, staff and other student support services.  As a result, all Urban Initiatives programming has been suspended until further notice as recommended by Chicago Public Schools. While we are saddened to be temporarily unable…

  • UI’s Keys to Goal Setting

    Goal-setting is a big deal at Urban Initiatives. From our internal operations to the curriculum we use with our participants, goal-setting is a skill that receives a lot of attention and we feel like we’ve gotten a pretty good sense of some of the best practices for setting goals to ensure success. We hope that…

    UI’s Keys to Goal Setting
  • The 2020 Soccer Ball!

    Urban Initiatives’ most anticipated event of the year—the 2020 Soccer Ball presented by Allstate & Storck- was a smashing success! Soccer Ball was an exciting evening of dancing, cocktails, hors d’oeuvres, and philanthropy. We celebrated our work, incredible partners, amazing awardees, and supportive community. 

    The 2020 Soccer Ball!
  • The Soccer Ball Award goes to …

    This year we are thrilled to honor Sodexo with the Soccer Ball award- given annually to an organization that has gone above and beyond in their support of Urban Initiatives. Read about their contributions to Urban Initiatives and how they are supporting the power of play in Chicago.

    The Soccer Ball Award goes to …
  • Introducing the Urban Initiatives Advisory Board!

    In 2020, Urban Initiatives will be launching a new board to stand alongside our other existing boards. This newly created Advisory Board is a unique place where key partners of UI are charged with advising, advocating for, and being ambassadors of our work. This dynamic group of influencers come from a wide range of backgrounds…

  • Our Unique Approach to Mentorship

    While the importance and impact of mentoring continues to echo around lunch tables, meetings rooms, and coffee shops, the methodologies of mentoring have evolved to fit the dynamism and demands of the world today. Now more than ever, mentoring is recognized as a critical driver of achievement and growth across sectors and contexts, prompting increasing…

    Our Unique Approach to Mentorship
  • Culture & Climate 2018-2019 Evaluation Results!

    One of Urban Initiatives’ six core values as an organization is impact. We engage in data-driven decision making to achieve positive outcomes, and each year we spend a great deal of time, effort, and resources evaluating each of our programs’ impact. By intentionally evaluating each program, we can effectively determine which of our program goals…

    Culture & Climate 2018-2019 Evaluation Results!
  • Fun — One of Our Six Organizational Values

    Fun is pretty universal, and the unifying power of having fun together is the foundation for our belief in the unifying power of sport and play. However, fun, sport, and play are all concepts that many see as belonging on a playground or in the realm of children, not in the workplace. For 16 years,…

    Fun — One of Our Six Organizational Values