SPECIAL NEEDS and CONSIDERATIONS 

Middle School Courses: Spring 2023

Mondays and Wednesdays from 3:30 PM - 6:30 PM

 Students in our programswill experience hands-on learning in STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, and math) education. Beginning January 2023, CHICAT will be running two 9-week sessions for CHICAT families. Parents can choose any of the following programs to enroll their middle school student for the Spring! 

   

Session 1: January 9th - March 10th  

Design Lab: Storybook Pop-Up: Paper Sculptures

Students will develop their story-telling skills in a set of drawings that they use to project into 3D paper sculptures. Using repurposed books, students will design individual creatures or landscapes that will bring their story to life. The Pop-up sculpture will display in an art exhibition with their peers at the end of the session

 

Digital Lab: Studio Photography

This course will explore studio Macro/Close-up Photography. Students will utilize
digital cameras, photo editing software and specialty lenses
and hardware.

 

3D Maker Lab: Model and Print

Come learn to use Blender to create your own 3D models and prepare them to be 3D printed. This course will cover sketching designs, 3D modeling them, and how to use 3D printers and their filament!

Session 2: April 10th  - June 7th 

Design Lab:3D Sponge Art

Students will develop skills of repurposing sponges to create 2D mixed media art in this course. Using their imagination, students will design objects out of sponges and use color theory to make prints on paper. They will use the prints as a starting point to create mixed media artworks by adding pencil drawing. Once finished, the artworks will display in an art exhibition with their peers at Gallery 1701.

 

Digital Lab: Exploring Digital Photography 

This course will explore Landscape and Portrait Photography. Students will capture imagery in both the studio and the local neighborhood environment. The course will utilize digital cameras, photo editing software and specialty lenses and hardware.

 

3D Maker Lab: Beginner Electronics 

Students who are interested in electronics and robotics should take this class! Projects will focus on fundamentals of electricity, building circuits, programming LED matrixes, and more.

Field Friday! Exploring Technology through STEAM!

(Field Friday is only available on Fridays, from 3:30pm -6:30pm, and will run for both Session 1 and Session 2.) 

Field Friday is an excellent way to build a bridge between classroom learning and life outside of school, providing an opportunity for real-world application. CHICAT is connecting Middle students, through arts and tehnology, to community-based organizations that will teach them about local resources and events, the power of civic engagement, job prospects, and much more.

Students in enrolled in CHICAT's programs will participate in focus groups that are vital to our research, which include refining or modifying our current programs and resources.

Student feedback regarding our programs are very valuable to us, and any information youth provide will be used to improve future programs offered here at the Chicago Center for Arts and Technology (CHICAT).

Signin this consent form means that you voluntarily agreed to have your youth participate in a focus group following the guidance of the Discussion Leader. This form authorizes CHICAT to capture student feedback relevant to various topics. 

● Spoken statements

● Written statements, including drawings

● Comments extraneous to the topic as stated during the focus session

● Follow-up as described to me on the focus group information sheet.

● Ideas rendered, which are yielded into the research gathered today.

Feedback might be captured in any and all of the following formats:

● Audio recordings

● Visual recordings, including films, photographs, and audiovisual records

● Youth written statements

CHICAT is excited to safely return students and staff to in-person learning in September 2021. In order to facilitate a safe and healthy return, CHICAT has adopted the following Return to Class Policy applicable to all students and their caregivers.

I. Daily Health Screening Form. All caregivers are responsible for completing and submitting a Health Screening Form prior to the student’s arrival at CHICAT. Students will not be permitted entry into CHICAT unless the Health Screening Form has been received for that day and all responses are truthfully answered “no.” If a student responds “yes” to one or more of the health screening questions, he/she/they must be kept home and will not be permitted entry into CHICAT. If a student arrives and either the Health Screening Form has not been received or the student is exhibiting symptoms of COVID19, the student’s caregiver will be notified and must arrange for the student to be picked up or transported home at the caregiver’s expense. As a general rule, caregivers should not send a sick student to CHICAT under any circumstance.

II. Students Who Become Sick At CHICAT. If a student falls ill while at CHICAT, staff will remove the student from the classroom and isolate him/her/them in a private, closed room. Staff will then notify the caregiver that the student is unwell and must be taken home immediately. Caregivers are obligated to arrange for their child to be picked up from CHICAT and taken home as soon as possible but no more than 1 hour after CHICAT notifies the caregiver. CHICAT will call 911 if a student is experiencing a medical emergency (e.g. unable to breathe, loss of consciousness) before notifying the caregiver.

III. Contact Tracing. If a student tests positive for COVID-19, caregivers are asked to promptly notify Lisa Moultrie by calling (312) 733-1701 or emailing lisa@chicat.org. CHICAT may request to ask the student whom they had close contact with during the 48 hours before the diagnosis. CHICAT will then
notify all staff and students who had close contact with the student, without revealing the student’s name or identity.

IV. Face Mask Policy. When inside CHICAT, students must wear a face mask or face covering that covers the nose and mouth. If a student has a medical condition or disability that prevents them from safely wearing a face mask or face covering, the caregiver must notify CHICAT before the start of class. Students who arrive to CHICAT without a face mask or face covering will be provided a disposable face
mask for use that day.

V. Social Distancing. Classrooms have been configured to accommodate social distancing guidelines for K-12 schools. Students should generally remain 3-6 feet apart from other people inside CHICAT and should comply with any and all directional signs indicating one-way hallways or social distancing measures.

VI. Hygiene. Students should practice safe cough hygiene by coughing into the shoulder as opposed to the hands. Students should utilize hand sanitizer throughout the day and should wash hands frequently with soap and water.

VII. Cleaning and Sanitation. Students should contribute to the overall cleanliness of CHICAT by putting trash in receptacle bins, keeping desks clean and tidy, and cooperating with cleaning and sanitation measures that occur throughout the day. Students should promptly report spills or related accidents that impact the overall cleanliness of CHICAT.

VIII.COVID-19 Vaccination. CHICAT does not require students to be vaccinated against COVID-19 at this time. However, CHICAT encourages all caregivers to independently research the available COVID-19 vaccines and discuss the risks and benefits with their health care provider. If a student is or becomes fully-vaccinated, as defined by the Centers of Disease Control (“CDC’”), caregivers are encouraged (but not required) to disclose student vaccination status by emailing Lisa Moultrie at lisa@chicat.org. Fully vaccinated students will be permitted entry into CHICAT so long as they do not have symptoms of COVID-19 not attributed to another medical condition.

CHICAT strives to be transparent regarding its response to COVID-19 and return to in-person instruction. To the extent parents or caregivers have any questions or concerns, please reach out to Lisa Moultrie by calling (312) 733-1701 or emailing lisa@chicat.org.

CONSENT AND RELEASE

I consent to interviews, photographs, and audio and video recordings of myself (collectively, “Personal Images” I grant the Chicago Center for Arts and Technology irrevocable right to use, reproduce (whether through digital copying, photography, audio, and video recordings, or any other means), release, publish, transmit, distribute, exhibit, and/or display in any and all forms of media (whether existing or future, and whether in whole or in part) and in any and all manners, including (1) any or all of my artwork that is created at or through CHICAT, (2) any or all of the Personal Images, and (3) my name and likeness. The preceding consents are given for and limited to CHICAT’s activities as a non-profit institution. Such activities may include, without limitation, news articles, telecasts, webcasts, press releases, education, fundraising, marketing, advertising, and research. Such activities may be performed by CHICAT or CHICAT’s employees, agents, affiliates, partners, assignees, licensees, or designees.

I waive all rights to inspect or approve any uses that may be created under the preceding paragraph, or the use to which any of the materials may be applied. I waive the right to compensation by, through, or under CHICAT for any uses that may be created under the preceding paragraph. I agree that Personal Images and all other originals thereof shall constitute CHICAT’s sole property, with the full right of disposition in any manner whatsoever.

I release, discharge, and agree to hold harmless CHICAT, its agents, affiliates, partners, assignees, licensees, and designees, and all persons acting under its/their authority from any and all claims whatsoever in connection with the use of the materials as described in the first paragraph above. I certify that I either (a) am 18-years old and legally competent to execute this Consent and Release or (b) am under 18-years old and have the consent of my parent or guardian to execute this Consent and Release. I understand that the terms herein are contractual and not a mere recital, that this instrument is legally binding, that I have voluntarily signed this document, and that CHICAT is relying on this Consent and Release to perform the activities described in the first paragraph above. I have read this Consent and Release and am fully familiar with its contents.