Chicago Youth Initiating Change

The 2010 CYIC Social Justice Student Expo was a Success!

2010-04-18T20:39:00.032-05:00

At this year's Social Justice Student Expo, hundreds of students got together to network, present workshops & projects, create art, perform and work together to collectively plan for action around the issues facing us every day:

School Closings
Raids & Deportations
Militarization of Schools
Transportation Cuts
Community Violence

The 1/2 Pint Poetics Poetry Slam also took place and blew away the crowd. Thanks to all volunteers and youth who helped put these events together!

What is the Social Justice Student Expo?

2009-11-20T11:00:00.005-06:00

PURPOSE of the Social Justice Expo
Organized by Chicago Youth Initiating Change (CYIC) and the Collaborative for Equity and Justice in Education (CEJE), students, teachers, community members, and university faculty from diverse backgrounds and institutions work side-by-side to create an educational space where students from different high schools engage in a social justice expo that allows them to teach and learn from one other on social justice issues.

CYIC hopes to develop meaningful curricular development, support local level teachers, and include organized student presentations and action opportunities in classroom curricula. The Annual Social Justice Student Exposition offers opportunities for student-centered social justice learning, presenting, and action.

What takes place at the Social Justice Student Exposition?

The Social Justice Student Exposition is set up like a science or history fair, only students (with support from their teachers) present social justice work that they have done in their classrooms, after-school programs, or community youth organizations. For example, students may present research projects that they conducted in their classrooms on equity in education, gentrification, or environmental racism. Students may also present their work organizing in their schools or communities on issues such as the Iraq War and military recruitment, school closings, or affordable housing. Students who attend this event get an opportunity to investigate social justice projects of their peers, participate in student-led workshops, have a voice in shaping curriculum that will impact their lives in the future, and enjoy a talent show to close out the exposition.

Click here to download the CYIC Classroom Action Guide.

Get involved with Planning for this year!

The CYIC Steering Committee meets every other Monday at the UIC campus (CYIC Calendar) If you would like to be part of the committee, please contact:

info@cyicexpo.org

Teachers and students are welcome to participate in meetings and volunteer. Everyone is encouraged to sign up a group, have a table at the fair, and/or present a workshop!

CYIC Social Justice Student Expo 2010

2009-01-11T02:19:00.047-06:00

Thursday, May 20
Truman College 1145 W. Wilson, Chicago
9-3:30pm

At this year's Social Justice Student Expo students will be addressing many issues, including:

School Closings
Raids & Deportations
Militarization of Schools
Transportation Cuts
Community Violence

We're also voting on a Youth Bill of Rights!

MISSION of the Social Justice Expo

Organized by Chicago Youth Initiating Change (CYIC) and the Collaborative for Equity and Justice in Education (CEJE), students, teachers, community members, and university faculty from diverse backgrounds and institutions work side-by-side to create an educational space where students from different high schools engage in a social justice expo that allows them to teach and learn from one other on social justice issues.

CYIC hopes to develop meaningful curricular development, support local level teachers, and include organized student presentations and action opportunities in classroom curricula. The Annual Social Justice Student Exposition offers opportunities for student-centered social justice learning, presenting, and action.

What takes place at the Social Justice Student Exposition?

The Social Justice Student Exposition is set up like a science or history fair, only students (with support from their teachers) present social justice work that they have done in their classrooms, after-school programs, or community youth organizations. For example, students may present research projects that they conducted in their classrooms on equity in education, gentrification, or environmental racism. Students may also present their work organizing in their schools or communities on issues such as the Iraq War and military recruitment, school closings, or affordable housing. Students who attend this event get an opportunity to investigate social justice projects of their peers, participate in student-led workshops, have a voice in shaping curriculum that will impact their lives in the future, and enjoy a talent show to close out the exposition.

Click here to view all the Photos from last year's Expo!

Click here to download the CYIC Classroom Action Guide.

Get involved with Planning for this year!

The CYIC Steering Committee meets every other Monday at the UIC campus (CYIC Calendar) If you would like to be part of the committee, please contact:

info@cyicexpo.org.

Teachers and students are welcome to participate in meetings and volunteer. Everyone is encouraged to sign up a group, have a table at the fair, and/or present a workshop!

About CYIC

2008-03-11T00:54:00.015-05:00

Chicago Youth Initiating Change (CYIC) is a grassroots organization that brings together youth and teachers from diverse racial, economic and geographic backgrounds to create an educational space to explore social justice issues and carry out social justice initiatives. CYIC is a student and teacher led organization comprised of a wide array of Chicago area public, private, alternative, and charter school members.

We meet bi-monthly to share stories, organize and support social justice-based campaigns, & events, schedule school exchanges and plan the annual CYIC Social Justice Student Expo.

Organized in partnership with the Collaborative for Equity and Justice in Education (CEJE), the CYIC Social Justice Student Expo brings together students, teachers, community members, and university faculty from diverse backgrounds and institutions to convene an event & educational space that that allows participants to teach and learn from one other on social justice issues. Media from past Expos can be found here.

CYIC hopes to develop meaningful curricular development, support local level teachers & students and include organized student presentations and action opportunities in classroom curricula. The Annual Social Justice Student Exposition offers opportunities for student-centered social justice learning, collaboration, and action.

Our Mission

Chicago Youth Initiating Change is a student-led organization that will ensure every school is designed to provide every student with a relevant and challenging education that prepares us to reach our greatest potential and face the real world. We, the students, with help from our teachers, families and friends, will identify systemic inequalities, injustices, and inefficiencies in our schools and communities and push to resolve them through constructive means. Ultimately, we seek the knowledge and skills necessary to achieve the things we want and need to combat the forces that jeopardize our futures and our communities. We will carry out our mission by launching and participating in student mobilizations, events, projects, curriculum, and campaigns that allow us to grow productively by changing what harms our future within our city and throughout the world. We are CYIC!

Our Goals

CYIC will produce a comprehensive student, teacher, and community plan to improve ourselves, our schools, and our communities – and take action to implement it.
CYIC will organize and participate in events and actions that unite students, teachers and supporters and culminate in the annual Social Justice Student Expo.
CYIC will critique our current learning and fight for student-inspired curriculum that challenges and motivates us to think critically, be literate, and solve real-world problems.
CYIC will coordinate an independent democratic student leadership structure inclusive of all schools city-wide to work diligently towards our mission and goals.
CYIC will break down historical segregation to foster cross-school and cross-cultural relationships that create powerful student movements for social justice.

CYIC Classroom Action Guide

2007-03-02T23:37:00.013-06:00

Preview the Classroom Action Guide

Download

Sign Up for the Workshops You Want!

2006-05-04T03:50:00.008-05:00

Workshop Registration is now closed :(

Please contact info@cyicexpo.org to find out how you can get involved with
Chicago Youth Initiating Change!

Get Involved!

2006-03-17T00:04:00.012-06:00

CYIC Steering Committee Meetings
The CYIC Steering Committee meets every other Monday at the UIC campus (Calendar). Students and teachers come together to discuss school issues, present on their projects, and plan for the Annual Social Justice Student Exposition.

If you would like to volunteer and get involved with a great group of students and teachers, contact Anton at antonmiglietta@sbcglobal.net.

If you'd like to be on the listserv to join the community and receive postings on Chicago educational justice related events, subscribe here:

listserv.cyicexpo.org

Teachers and students are welcome to participate at the meetings. We are always looking for volunteers!

Videos

2006-03-11T03:00:00.004-06:00

Upcoming Events

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Previous Events

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CYIC Social Justice Student Expo 2008
Took place May 23, 2008 at the University of Illinois at Chicago

Click Here to View Photos from the 2008 Expo