Teaching &Technical Assistance

Radicals in Black & Brown
Throughout the course of their relatively short existence from the mid 60’s through the mid 70’s, the Black Panthers and the Young Lords Organization (YLO) captured the imagination of the nation and the world and stood out as symbols of direct resistance to the oppression of people of color and poor people in the United States, and to manifestations of imperialism and colonialism around the world. Radicals in Black and Brown examines some of the moments when Panthers and Lords crossed paths, reviews some of the common aspects of their histories, and highlights the various ways they influenced each other’s politics, strategies and tactics.

Humboldt Park Community GIS Project  
With a multi-year Early Career Grant from the National Science Foundation, Sarah Elwood, former DePaul Geography Department assistant professor now at University of Washington, developed a teaching, research and community outreach initiative to help two community-based organizations in greater Humboldt Park enhance their neighborhood revitalization activities. Through this initiative, staff at both Humboldt Park organizations receive hands-on training in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) mapping, data collection and analysis in weekly visits from EUC Staff.

The EUC also provides technical support to both organizations, and helps staff trouble shoot and maintain their on-site labs.  
     
For Action in Togetherness Holdfast (F.A.I.T.H., Inc.)   
F.A.I.T.H., Inc., established by Rev. John H. Crawford, Jr., is a non-profit, grassroots, self-help organization dedicated to connecting people formerly incarcerated in Illinois correctional facilities to social service resources and referrals. Since it began in 1987, F.A.I.T.H., Inc. estimates that it has helped some 25,000 men and women re-enter the community, reunite with their families and learn constructive living skills. The Egan Center has agreed to provide technical assistance to help the organization develop a strategic plan. We also will recruit and manage students, faculty and professional consultants and service providers in collaboration with F.A.I.T.H., Inc. staff to identify prospective funding sources and help prepare funding proposals.  
     
E-Business Program  
During the first two years of the West Humboldt Park project the Egan Urban Center focused on developing, delivering and enhancing the 12-week accelerated e-business training program to provide participants with the technology skills to transform a traditional small business into a well-enabled e-Business operation. It was designed to help transition at-risk teens and young adults into the information technologist industry.

Participants learned fundamental business concepts while working with the tools and technologies critical to each aspect of the industry. Students learned to start and maintain an e-business by writing an effective business plan and executing their own e-business solutions. In addition, they explore employment, internship and entrepreneurship opportunities.

During the third year of the WHPCTC project, the Egan Urban Center focused on sustainability and enhancing community capacity. To ensure that the Internet Business Computing (IBC) program for at-risk youth and young adults will continue beyond the life of the project, the EUC developed and customized the e-business curriculum for two of its West Humboldt Park community partner organizations, STRIVE Chicago Employment Services and Youth Service Project, Inc. To that end, the EUC provided intensive train-the-trainer classes for STRIVE and YSP staff instructors. The EUC also provided the CBOs with ongoing technical support and oversight throughout the implementation of the community-based e-business classes.   
     
E-Business Train-The-Trainer Program   
As part of the West Humboldt Park Community Technology Centers Project's sustainability, Egan provided training to the instructors. The 12-week intensive e-business course included business concepts and practical principals; business plan writing; field trip; individual assignments; presentations; assessments; systems Integration: QuickBooks Pro and legacy record keeping; web/graphic design; e-business roll out; troubleshooting systems; networking; marketing. Participants also had to develop a curriculum and lesson plan, teach a portion of the course, facilitate group discussions, direct activities, manage the classroom and evaluate their peers.

The CBO instructors also had access to the e-Business training lab for additional learning opportunities, consultation with curriculum experts, and/or for student site visits. They also have access to a broad range of university resources and faculty throughout the life of the project.   
     
Database Training  
West Humboldt Park Family and Community Development Council staff were trained in the use of the Access Database Program to create and maintain Block Club and members information.

EUC also offered comprehensive intermediate and advanced-level training on Access Database to help Stateway Gardens staff and administrators develop a database to track CHA residents, write queries, create data entry forms and reports including basic coding.   
     
After School Matters (ASM) - Web Development Internship Program  
The Egan Urban Center of DePaul University offered project-based learning opportunities for the After School Matters graduates and Chicago Public School students. The program was designed to provide "hands-on" experience as the interns assisted in the development of websites for various organizations and schools. The 6-10 week training program included all stages of software development life cycle. The main focus of this program was to develop a fully functional web based systems for real-world applications and at the same time provide the interns with valuable hands-on work experience.

The first internship program included students from seven city high schools to help develop a community technology training website and a website for the EUC’s Faculty and Community Research Center Lab. Due to the success of the initial effort, EUC and After School Matters staff offered another version of the program in spring for 22 high school students, taught on-site at Kelvyn Park High School, 4343 West Wrightwood Avenue. During this session, students learnt web and graphic development tools and to developed a website for their school.  
     
Community First Leadership/Housing and Community Development  
EUC staff helped design and implement the Community First Leadership and Housing and Community Development programs that trained more than 500 housing and community development professionals from the U.S. Dept. of Housing and Urban Development. The training was intended to produce "community-first, place-based leaders" able to work collaboratively with community development organizations. In intensive residential and satellite education programs, middle managers from the Midwest and Southwestern U.S. received interactive instruction in current theories and best practices from university professors and seasoned practitioners in the field.   
     
Education-to-Careers / GEAR-UP  
This five-year educational reform initiative was designed to improve the academic and career preparation of Chicago Public Schools students brought together schools, colleges, businesses and community organizations for school- and work-based learning opportunities. Funded by a unique collaboration between the U.S. Departments of Education and Labor, this initiative created a model for targeted-industry clustering in Chicago elementary, middle and high schools and pioneered a cluster skills standards model to better prepare students seeking careers in the broad construction industry. Graduates went on to undergraduate architecture programs and union apprenticeships, and structured their own construction business. The program was honored by the State of Illinois with its Exemplary Partnership Award.

A related initiative was GEAR-UP (Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs). Now housed at he School of Education, GEAR-UP has helped more than 15,000 disadvantaged children in 34 Chicago Public Schools (CPS) prepare for college and careers by engaging students, teachers and parents in their education experiences.