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20 events found.

Talks and Gatherings

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  • May 2024

  • Sat 4
    May 4, 2024 @ 12:30 pm - 1:00 pm

    Call to Peace

    • Online Events
    • Talks and Gatherings
    The Peace School 3121 N. Lincoln Avenue, Chicago, IL

    Let's send love, harmony and peace to humanity, nature and all living things. The Call to Peace is a call and response: "Peace in..." all countries, from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe. […]

  • Sat 4
    May 4, 2024 @ 2:00 pm - 4:00 pm

    K-experience: Celebrate Korean Children’s Day 2024 ‘Byeol-ju Bu-jeon (The Rabbit’s Liver)’

    • Music, Film, and Theater
    • Talks and Gatherings
    Korean Cultural Center of Chicago 9925 Capitol Dr, Wheeling, IL, United States

    The Children’s Day event will focus on introducing a well-known folk tale as the main theme. For our celebration on May 4th, we have chosen ‘Byeol-ju Bu-jeon (The Rabbit’s Liver)’ […]

    $10
  • Wed 8
    May 8, 2024 @ 6:00 pm - 7:30 pm

    Carlos Moreno on the Livable City

    • Talks and Gatherings
    Chicago Architecture Center 111 E Wacker Dr, Chicago, IL, United States

    A special program featuring Professor Carlos Moreno, the man who coined the term 15-Minute City to describe an urbanist movement that encourages walkable, accessible and dynamic neighborhoods. During the Pandemic, […]

    Free
  • Sat 11
    May 11, 2024 @ 10:30 am - 11:30 am

    Scottish American History Forum

    • Talks and Gatherings
    Chicago Scots 2800 Des Plaines Ave, North Riverside, IL, United States

    Date: May 11 | 10:00 am - 11:30 pm Location: Topic: Robert Burns: As He Sees Us and We See Him Presenter: Gus Noble OBE, President, Chicago Scots and Caledonia […]

  • Thu 16
    May 16, 2024 @ 11:30 am - 1:30 pm

    Rebranding Focus Group: Members/Partners

    • Talks and Gatherings
    Mitchell Museum of the American Indian 3001 central street, Evanston, IL, United States

    As the Mitchell Museum continues the next steps in our community-driven rebranding journey, we will host a series of hybrid focus groups to seek valuable input from the Native community, […]

  • Thu 16
    May 16, 2024 @ 6:00 pm - 7:30 pm

    2024 Pritzker Architecture Prize Laureate Lecture

    • Talks and Gatherings
    S. R. Crown Hall (IIT College of Architecture) 3360 S State St, Chicago

    The Pritzker Architecture Prize and the Illinois Institute of Technology's College of Architecture present "Community: The Architect as Catalyst for Change," the 2024 Laureate Lecture and Panel Discussion, in partnership […]

    Free
  • Thu 16
    May 16, 2024 @ 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm

    Cranes & Cocktails

    • Food and Drink
    • Talks and Gatherings
    Artifact Events 4325 North Ravenswood Ave,, Chicago, IL, United States

    Mark your calendars for the 2024 Cranes & Cocktails on Thursday, May 16 at Artifact Events from 6:30 to 8:30 pm. What sushi will you choose to eat? Don’t miss this […]

  • Thu 16
    May 16, 2024 @ 6:30 pm - 9:30 pm

    On-Site Commemoration: Echoes of Remembrance – The Holocaust in Thessaloniki

    • Exhibitions and Gallery Events
    • Talks and Gatherings
    Illinois Holocaust Museum 9603 Woods Drive, Skokie, IL, United States

    From the city’s ancient founding until the Second World War, Thessaloniki (Salonika), Greece was home to a large and thriving Jewish community. In 1943, from March to August, approximately 46,000 […]

  • Fri 17
    May 17, 2024 @ 7:30 pm - May 18, 2024 @ 12:00 am Stammtisch Open Haus, Every 3rd Friday

    Stammtisch Open Haus, Every 3rd Friday

    • Food and Drink
    • Talks and Gatherings
    DANK Haus German American Cultural Center 4740 N. Western Ave., Chicago, IL, United States

    Feiern Sie mit uns! Our monthly Open Haus Stammtisch is a great way to meet new friends and enjoy a little Gemütlichkeit over some delicious German food and drink! Theme […]

  • Sat 18
    May 18, 2024 @ 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm

    44th Gwangju People’s Uprising Commemoration

    • Talks and Gatherings
    HANA Center 4300 N. California Ave, Chicago, IL, United States

    Please join us at HANA’s Northwest Center on Saturday, May 18th from 6 - 7pm to honor the Gwangju People's Uprising. This is also our May Membership Meeting which is […]

  • Thu 23
    May 23, 2024 @ 5:30 pm - 8:30 pm

    Chicago Reflected: A Book Talk and River Cruise with Author Ryan Chester

    • Talks and Gatherings
    Chicago Architecture Center 111 E Wacker Dr, Chicago, IL, United States

    Step into the world of Architect Ryan Chester, whose passion for the city's beauty led him to embark on an awe-inspiring project in March 2020. With nothing but a pen […]

    $59
  • Sat 25
    May 25, 2024 @ 1:30 pm - 4:30 pm

    “一家之主”:女性,母性,依属&自主 “Reclaim”: Womanhood, Motherhood, and In/Dependence – Movie Screening and Discussion with KAN-WIN

    • Music, Film, and Theater
    • Talks and Gatherings
    3500 S Morgan Street 3500 S Morgan St 3F, Chicago, IL, United States

    Please note that this event is in Mandarin 本次活动将全程使用中文进行。 This event includes a movie screening followed by a discussion about the movie. Centering on a woman in her late 50s/early […]

    RSVP for Free at our Website
  • Tue 28
    May 28, 2024 @ 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm

    5 Types of German Genealogy Documents – Webinar

    • Online Events
    • Talks and Gatherings
    • Workshops and Classes
    Zoom

      5 Types of German Genealogy Documents Presented by Katherine Schober in partnership with the German American Heritage Center & Museum Tuesday, May 28th | 6 PM CST What kind […]

  • Fri 31
    May 31, 2024 @ 6:00 pm - 7:30 pm

    South Asians On The Mic (Vol. 2)

    • Talks and Gatherings
    South Asia Institute 1925 South Michigan Avenue, Chicago, IL, United States

    After the tremendous success of our first event, South Asia Institute is back with the second event in our bi-monthly open series, South Asians On The Mic, on Friday, May […]

  • Fri 31
    May 31, 2024 @ 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm

    Haitian Heritage Month Sip, Shop & Workshop

    • Talks and Gatherings
    • Workshops and Classes
    Haitian American Museum of Chicago 4410 N Clark St, Chicago, United States

    HAMOC is hosting a celebration for Haitian Heritage Month, as well as the May birthdays of staff, volunteers, and friends of the museum on May 31st, 2024 from 6pm to […]

  • June 2024

  • Sun 2
    June 2, 2024 @ 3:00 pm - 5:00 pm

    An Afternoon of Friendship

    • Dance
    • Food and Drink
    • Music, Film, and Theater
    • Talks and Gatherings
    Kalapriya Studio 2101 S. Wabash Ave., Chicago, United States

    Please join the Kalapriya board and staff on Sunday, June 2 from 3:00-5:00PM for an afternoon of friendship at our downtown Chicago studio. Enjoy Indian classical dance performances, relish Indian […]

  • Sat 8
    June 8, 2024 @ 11:00 am - 7:00 pm

    Piyesta Pinoy (Philippine Fest)

    • Cultural Festivals and Fairs
    • Music, Film, and Theater
    • Talks and Gatherings
    Roger C. Claar Performing Arts Center 375 W Briarcliff Rd, Bolingbrook, IL, United States

    In celebration of the 126th Independence Day of the Philippines, the Philippine American Cultural Foundation (PACF) and the Filipino American Historical Society of Chicago (FAHSC) in partnership with the Village […]

    FREE Admission
  • Wed 12
    June 12, 2024 @ 6:00 pm - 7:30 pm

    Issues in Focus: Two Stadium Do-Overs for Chicago

    • Sporting Events
    • Talks and Gatherings
    Chicago Architecture Center 111 E Wacker Dr, Chicago, IL, United States

    A pair of stadium proposals from the Bears and White Sox have ushered in supersized dreams for Chicago’s Museum Campus and The 78 megadevelopment site. Are these plans pointing the […]

    Free
  • Thu 13
    June 13, 2024 @ 6:00 pm - 8:30 pm

    Peace Day

    • Cultural Festivals and Fairs
    • Talks and Gatherings
    The Peace School 3121 N. Lincoln Avenue, Chicago, IL

    IN THE LANGUAGES OF THE WORLD... Our voices will carry the energy of love, light and peace to humanity, nature and all living things. Don't miss this very special Call […]

  • Fri 14
    June 14, 2024 @ 7:00 pm - 8:30 pm

    “BELIEVE IN UKRAINE” Film and Q&A Discussion

    • Music, Film, and Theater
    • Talks and Gatherings
    2249 West Superior Street, Chicago, IL 60612 2249 West Superior Street, Chicago, IL, United States

    52-minute presentation the BELIEVE IN UKRAINE SHORT FILM PROGRAM featuring 10 Ukrainian-centered narratives specific to this moment in Ukraine's history by filmmakers whose pre-ward lives differ little from our own. […]

    $10
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J. Gibran Villalobos

Board Member

J. Gibran Villalobos is an arts administrator, educator, and cultural worker. He has served as Senior Program Officer for the Institute of Museum and Library Services, as the Interim Executive Director of the Chicago Artists Coalition, and faculty lecturer at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Previously, he has held posts as Assistant Curator at the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago, Partnerships and Community Engagement Manager for the Chicago Architecture Biennial, Cultural Liaison for the Chicago Park District, and Curator-in-Residence for the Chicago Cultural Center. In 2016 he attended the Advocacy Leadership Institute and was invited to the White House Office of Public Engagement, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the Congressional Hispanic Caucus to speak to issues affecting Latinos in Chicago. In 2017 he launched an inaugural summit of Latinx artists and administrators across the U.S; for this project he was awarded the Act Up Award by the Chicago Community Trust. His work has been presented at the Fabrica de Arte Cubano during the 2017 Havana Biennial. In 2019 he was an inaugural recipient of the Field Foundation’s Leaders for a New Chicago Award as well as the Americans for the Arts 2019 Leaders of Color Fellowship. In 2020, he joined the Civic Leadership Academy at the University of Chicago Harris School of Public Policy where he worked with government and nonprofit sector participants to think about effective policy for Chicago’s cultural industries. He helped establish the Auxiliary Board at the National Museum of Mexican Art. He has taught graduate and undergraduate courses at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago in the Department of Arts Administration & Policy.

Gibran holds a BA in Art History and a BS in Public Relations from Northern Arizona University and an MA in Arts Administration & Policy and MA in Modern Art History & Theory from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.

He has contributed to exhibitions such as Direct Message, presenting the artwork of Chicago artistic collectives and their relation to language and civic engagement. As part of an international project, he has convened the MCA Chicago with the Tate Modern, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Queens Museum and other institutions to create dialogue on civic engagement within contemporary art institutions. He has written catalog entries for Iñigo Manglano-Ovalle, Rodrigo Lara Zendejas, and Jeremiah Hulsebos-Spofford. In 2021, he is contributing to the upcoming retrospective on the work by artist Andrea Bowers focusing on the activism and archives of Emma Lozano. He is curator of the symposium Fractures: Creating Around Devastation focusing on water ecology, civic engagement, activism, and architecture.

Loreal Robertson

Board Member

Loreal Robertson is a native Chicagoan who recently returned home in 2021 where she began working at the University of Chicago. In her role she oversees and monitors a range of programs, services, and resources to support the retention, wellness, belonging, and success of graduate students. Additionally, her role includes informing strategic priorities, diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, professional development, student advancement and the support of students who may be experiencing financial academic, or personal challenges, including students with disabilities and international students.

Loreal has over 10 years of experience in higher education and student affairs. In 2021 she received the Inclusion and Diversity Champion Award from Texas A&M University-Kingsville (TAMUK), where she was previously employed. Loreal’s personal and professional philosophy is creating and promoting spaces and opportunities where everyone can see themselves as part of an experience and feels represented.

Loreal holds a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism from the University of Arkansas, a Master of Arts in Educational Administration from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and a Doctorate in Educational Leadership from TAMUK.

Loreal is a financial and active member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc, an avid reader, and enjoys traveling with family and friends.

Warren Frank

Treasurer

Warren Frank is a retired CPA and CFO, and current Adjunct Professor at Columbia College.

Warren worked at such CPA firms as KPMG, PwC, and Deloitte, and Not For Profit organizations as National Association of Realtors, Chicago Associations of Realtors, Anixter Center, and Chinese American Service League.

Warren is a Chicago resident in the Lakeview neighborhood. He attended Loyola University of Chicago for his bachelor degree and Northwestern University for his master degree.

Colleen McGaughey

Board Member

Colleen McGaughey (she/her) is the director of development at the National Public Housing Museum, where she leads the strategic direction of the museum’s fundraising efforts with a focus on creative and community-centric approaches.

Mario Longoni

Board Member

Mario Longoni is a cultural anthropologist (“Lead Environmental Social Scientist”) in the Keller Science Action Center at the Field Museum. For over 20 years, he has worked with individuals and organizations to surface and activate cultural and natural assets (specific strengths and characteristics) to help communities meet the challenges they face.

Rob Fojtik

Board Member
Rob Fojtik is Vice President for Neighborhood Strategy at Choose Chicago, the city’s official tourism and convention promotion bureau. In this capacity, Rob oversees efforts to promote and support Chicago’s 77 neighborhoods to visitors from near and far. Programs include the award-winning Neighborhood Content Creator program that leverages resident-made digital content, and Chicago Alfresco, a $2.5 million placemaking initiative created in partnership with the Chicago Department of Transportation to transform public spaces into community plazas for outdoor enjoyment.

Before coming to Choose Chicago, Rob was a Senior Advisor to Mayor Lightfoot on economic development and international relations at City Hall, as well as LGTBQ+ affairs and the expanded outdoor dining program. In this role, he also worked to recommend and place over 150 civic leaders and residents onto City boards and commissions. Prior to government service in the Lightfoot administration, Rob ran her winning campaign in the crowded 2019 Chicago mayoral race as Chief of Staff. In past lives, Rob has worked as a public affairs manager for a Fortune 500 company downtown; had misadventures in management consulting, art sales, and personal cheffing; and spent time in Washington DC working for former Secretary of Defense William Cohen. Rob also served a one-year appointment at the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Terrorism and Financial Intelligence as a policy advisor on Central and Eastern Europe. In this role, he was part of the NSC’s interagency process to develop a comprehensive sanctions regime on Russia as a consequence of its 2014 invasion of Crimea and Eastern Ukraine.

After receiving his BA in Slavic Languages and Literature at Northwestern University, Rob lived and worked in the Czech Republic teaching English and tending bar before moving to Washington, D.C. to pursue a MA from the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service Center for Eurasian, Russian, and East European Studies (CERES). He enjoys cooking, learning foreign languages, hiking with his partner and their dog, and visiting Chicago’s many neighborhoods.

Paul Durica

Board Member

Dr. Paul Durica is the Director of Exhibitions at the Chicago History Museums and worked in a similar capacity at The Newberry Library. From 2015-2020, he served as the Director of Programs and Exhibitions with Illinois Humanities, the state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Prior to that he drew upon his work as a writer, researcher, and teacher to produce a series of free and interactive talks, walks, and reenactments focused on narratives from Chicago’s past that resonate with its present.

These public history programs led to collaborations with cultural institutions in the city such as the Jane Addams Hull-House Museum, Chicago History Museum, Newberry Library, Chicago Architecture Foundation, Museum of Contemporary Art, and the Chicago Cultural Center among others.

Each program made use of both his original research and the skills of the arts organizations, community groups, local businesses, and publications that acted as my partners. Some of these programs, such as the full-scale reenactment of the Haymarket Affair in 2011, involved recruiting and directing over 300 volunteers and 1,000 participants.

To produce these programs successfully, he wrote grants; managed budgets; generated web content; worked closely with program partners of varying sizes and resources; and identified, engaged, and sustained a diverse multi-generational audience.

Lynessa Rico

Board Member

Dr. Lynessa M. Rico is the Associate Chair of the Business Psychology Department at the The Chicago School of Professional Psychology Chicago campus. She is also a business mentor at 1871.

Lynessa is a results-driven Strategic Consultant with over 25 years of experience enabling leaders to meet strategic business objectives by identifying and aligning business growth opportunities with strategic direction of culturally diverse organizations. By leveraging her strategic experience in identifying and impacting business growth opportunities and maximizing profits in retail firms and higher education institutions, Lynessa leads workshops focused on the creative mindset, women’s entrepreneurship, emotional intelligence, and the value and application of design thinking within entrepreneurship education and entrepreneurial ecosystems. Her services also include consulting with and educating leadership on emotional intelligence, the power of design thinking and the creative mindset, and leadership styles to support inclusive, creative workplaces. She has presented to leadership and innovation teams in small, mid-size, and Fortune 500 companies.

Lynessa received her undergraduate degrees in Marketing and Management from Wichita State University. She then went on to earn a master’s degree in Business Administration from Wichita State University with a focus in Entrepreneurship and Innovation. After earning her master’s degree, Lynessa received her doctorate in Business Psychology from The Chicago School of Professional Psychology where she successfully completed her dissertation titled, “The Relationship Between Personality Types and Color Preference for Color Combinations.” Her current research interests include women’s entrepreneurship, design thinking, creativity, emotional intelligence, and entrepreneurship self-efficacy.

Outside of work and research, Lynessa enjoys mentoring start-ups and judging pitch competitions. Lynessa currently resides in Chicago, Illinois with her four cats. She is an avid long-distance runner, having completed 5 full marathons (and counting), and enjoys watching musical theater.

Briana Thomas

Board Member

Briana Thomas is the Museum Associate at the Abrahamic Center for Cultural Education (a core member of the Chicago Cultural Alliance). She wears many hats including developing exhibition content, facilitating community programs (children and adults), liaising with visitor artists, and other responsibilities. Her previous experience in the nonprofit space includes her tenure as the Financial Empowerment Coordinator at AMERICORPS Sharing Life Center as well as engaging with the public at the Dallas Arboretum. Her past professional experience has remained rooted in marginalized communities. It is their needs, discourse and histories that she has routinely been tasked with protecting and showcasing in the face of poor infrastructure, and willing ignorance. Creating safe spaces is an ancestral practice she has inherited.