Free Educational Topics in Chicago

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  • Navigating Solar Options

    Ivonne Rychwa, Director of Outreach, Citizens Utility Board (CUB)

    A presentation on solar and the benefits of clean energy. Listen to a CUB expert explain different solar programs and incentives you can get involved in, why clean energy is more affordable and reliable, and how policies like CEJA (Climate and Equitable Jobs Act) and the Inflation Reduction Act benefit consumers. MORE >

    During this presentation, you will receive information on: how solar panels work with your home and the grid, an overview of state and federal incentives, how consumers can benefit from renewable energy, and programs like Community Solar and Illinois Solar for All.
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  • Increasing Political Polarization and what we can do about it

    Ed Spire, Co-lead, Restore our Democracy Project, NWSOFA-Indivisible

    Every decade, increasing gerrymandering has created more and more "safe seats", which have resulted in more and more extreme legislators on both sides of the aisle - creating a legislature where compromise is impossible, and very little legislative progress ensures. This presentation shows why this happens, and what we can do about it, using the recent example of the Alaska special election, utilizing a nonpartisan primary and a ranked choice voting general election, as an example of how to promote more moderate legislators and a more productive legislature. MORE >

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  • Start Early, Start Smart: How to Choose a Motivating College Major

    Georgia Koch, Community Outreach Coordinator, Career Vision

    Is it possible for students to identify potential college majors and career directions while still in high school? You bet! Students and parents will learn what they need to know before choosing a college, and how identifying a college major and career direction can build a student's motivation and confidence while reducing college expenses. MORE >

    Receive information and resources to guide your student and take the stress out of making these important decisions. This program is for parents and students of high school and college age.
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  • Making Cents of College Costs

    Joseph Orsolini, President, College Aid Planners, Inc.

    For most families college tuition is the largest expense they will face. Unfortunately, many families go into this stage in life uninformed and unprepared. Learn strategies that enable families of all income levels (not just low or moderate‐income) to make a college education more affordable and less of a financial burden.

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  • Get It, Check It, Know Who Has Seen It

    Chris Heuman, Practice Leader, RISC Management and Consulting, LLC

    The Health Insurance Portability & Accountability Act of 1996 or HIPAA is a federal law that sets rules about who can view and receive your Protected Health Information or PHI. This law gives you rights over your health information and when it can be shared. MORE >

    In addition, HIPAA requires your physicians, pharmacists and other health care providers, and your health plan to explain your rights and how your health information can be used or shared. Most of us believe that our medical and other health information is private and should be protected, and we want to know who has this information.

    You will learn about historical information, important terminology, sharing health information with family members and friends, and understand your health information privacy as a consumer.

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  • Deportation Nation

    Ed Spire, Co-lead, Restore our Democracy Project, NWSOFA-Indivisible

    In "Deportation Nation: America's Immigration Crossroads," Ed will analyze
    unprecedented changes in federal immigration policy, shedding light on how
    these actions impact families, communities, and the very fabric of our society. MORE >

    The Trump administration's approach to immigration marks a sharp departure
    from historic norms. With an enormous escalation in funding directed at
    enforcement measures, the federal debt continues to rise as resources are
    diverted towards policies that disrupt lives and separate families—including
    many U.S. citizens. These measures have not only caused immense personal
    suffering but have affected businesses, labor markets, and the broader
    economy, undermining the stability upon which our nation thrives.

    In this interactive session, Ed will present a contextual overview, showing how
    our nation's current actions stand apart from prior policy and tradition. By
    examining the history of American immigration, we'll explore the roots of our
    nation's strength: inclusion, opportunity, and the promise of a better life. Ed will
    pose thoughtful alternatives and policy ideas that align with our founding
    values and point toward a more humane and pragmatic future.

    All who care about the direction of our country and the well-being of our
    neighbors are encouraged to attend.

    Equip yourself with truth and perspective so that together, we can advocate for
    policies that reflect our best traditions and put an end to destructive, divisive
    practices. Bring your questions—and your hope for a more just America—to
    what is sure to be an enlightening and empowering event.

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  • Demonstrating and Teaching Mental Math Methods

    Cliff Petrak, Retired Teacher, Brother Rice High School

    Learn to master a multitude of little-known, super-shortcut computational methods involving addition, subtraction, fractions, squaring and multiplication. Unfortunately, our country consistently finishes among the bottom third of industrialized countries in the annual mental math competition for students. Learning these strategies and methods will leave your calculator-dependent friends in the dust!

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  • Rising Economic Inequality: how much, why it happens, why it matters, and what we can do about it.

    Ed Spire, Co-lead, Restore our Democracy Project, NWSOFA-Indivisible

    Economic inequality has been rising in the US for decades, damaging our economy and society in the process. This presentation will discuss how high it has become, why it happens, how it damages our country, and what we can do about it.

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  • Rethinking the Colonizing of North America

    Mark McGarvie, J.D., Ph.D.,, Retired Professor of History and Law, College of William and Mary

    European colonialism recently has been presented, both popularly and scholastically, as an evil that decimated native populations, destroyed native cultures, precipitated extensive wars, and caused irreparable environmental harm. Avoiding judgment in favor of understanding, Professor McGarvie will develop the context for European discovery of the New World in the intellectual, technological, political, and cultural contexts of both the Native Americans and the European explorers in the 16th - 18th centuries. MORE >

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  • What’s an Assault Weapon, and why are they so deadly?

    Ed Spire, Co-lead, Restore our Democracy Project, NWSOFA-Indivisible

    There's been a lot of discussion lately about tighter regulations on assault weapons like the AR-15. If we are going to regulate these weapons, we will need a legal definition describing them. And instead of a definition that depends upon specific configurations or cosmetic appearance, we propose a definition based on the factors that make this class of weapons so deadly. MORE >

    This presentation focuses on the development of this class of weapons, the factors that make them so deadly, and how we can use those factors to legally define an "assault weapon" for future regulation thereof.
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