The Field Experience (FE) Program exposes students to real-world environments where they explore their interests, apply what they’ve learned in the classroom, and expand their knowledge through firsthand interactions of local and global consequence.
Exploring the Chicago River with Urban Rivers
First-year students embarked on their first off-campus Field Experience of their GCE career, and it was definitely one for the books. The students are investigating the guiding question, “How is…
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Closing the Loop at Plant Chicago
First-year students in the Food For Thought and Food class embarked on a cross-curricular Field Experience to Plant Chicago. Education Manager, Rock Evans gave the students a tour of the…
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Tasting coffee’s origins with Metropolis Coffee!
The Food For Thought course re-directs our investigations from the interior of the self back into the world that formed our selves, with particular focus on the way our food…
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Discovering Found Object Puppetry with Rough House Theater
Throughout history and around the world, humans have used puppets to pass down stories, share cultural practices, and revolt against censorship. A Show of Hands is a course in which students…
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Investigating Budō with Jason Bender
Students in Who Am I? took a virtual introductory jiu-jitsu class with Jason Bender of Bender Fitness. While the study of martial arts might seem miles away from our course on…
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Light/No Light: Experimenting with Pinhole Cameras
The Juniors in Light, Sound, and Time investigated the guiding question: What would life look like without light?. They studied camera exposure to better understand how the human eye reacts…
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Discovering the Art of the Shadow with Manual Cinema
In this workshop, students in the A Show of Hands class explored the possibilities and craft of performant storytelling. Artists from Manual Cinema exposed the multitude of layers that go…
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Discovering a Community of Puppets at Nasty, Brutish & Short
The students in the A Show of Hands class are taking a deep dive into the world of puppetry. They are investigating how puppets have been used to pass down…
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Electrifying Bikes at Earth Rider Cycling
Juniors in Design & Engineering visited Earth Rider, a full-service, woman-owned bike shop to learn from store-owner and bike expert, Sharon. Sharon is a League Cycling Instructor and a certified…
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Experiencing Visual Rhetoric at the Living Memorial in Marquette Park
Juniors in the Rhetoric class have been pursuing the guiding question, How does rhetoric inspire and mobilize?. Specifically, students are asked to consider how original artwork can speak out on…
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Better Design with Greater Good Studio
Juniors in Design & Engineering are pursuing the guiding question, How does the design process impact product and experience?. The students are investigating the design of gardening tools, and the…
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Investigating the Language of Resistance with Ugo Okere
I first became aware of Ugo Okere when he was a candidate for Alderman in my Ward, the 40th. In the fall of 2018, Ugo ran as a very young (22)…
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Rapid Prototyping with The James Dyson Foundation
Students in Design & Engineering received a virtual visit from a couple of experts from the James Dyson Foundation. We have a longstanding partnership with the Dyson Foundation, and we…
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Physics in the Garden at Home Depot
Juniors in the Design & Engineering class talked to experts from the gardening department at Home Depot to investigate the physics of gardening tools. In the first unit of this…
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Carrying Water @ The Chicago River
Freshmen in the Water class visited the Chicago River to collect water. In the first unit of this STEAM course, students have been pursuing the guiding question, why is water…
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Exploring the Journey of Coffee with Metropolis Coffee
For the past two years, students in the Food For Thought class have visited the Metropolis Coffee Company’s roastery to learn about the life of the Coffee plant. They’ve toured…
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A Virtual Eat Your Neighborhood Tour with Dave Odd
The students in the Food For Thought class are investigating the guiding question, How are food systems shaped and how do they shape the world?. As a part of this…
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Examining Policy with Connie Jordan
Juniors are taking a course called Policy. The first Unit, called “Legislate,” investigates the ways that policy happens through legislative bodies. For the most part, our curriculum focuses on the…
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Getting Physical and Philosophical with Jason Bender
Students in Who Am I? journeyed up to Andersonville’s Cheetah Gym to take an introductory jiu-jitsu class with Jason Bender of Bender Fitness. While the study of martial arts might seem miles…
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Philosophizing in the Modern World at New Acropolis
At GCE, our mission of connecting our studies to real-world situations and activities with a global focus finds quite a bit of overlap with New Acropolis, who define their work…
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