Urban Passage: Downtown and Woodlawn Overviews
Wheaton College is a brief train ride to Chicago, America's third most populous city. Passage invites students to start their Wheaton journey by experiencing Chicago's diverse culture and rich history. Students may select from Passage: Downtown or Passage: Woodlawn .
Urban Passage: Downtown will take you right into the heart of the global city of Chicago. Students can participate in various urban experiences from kayaking to exploring public art and architecture and visiting neighborhoods representative of the richness of Chicago's ethnic diversity. With small groups of peers, you will engage in multiple facets of the city, from the skyscraper-stacked lakefront to historic neighborhoods with multigenerational businesses, restaurants, and communities. Through the lens of Christian faith, you will explore topics like immigrant and refugee experiences, wealth and inequality, and flourishing in urban places as you form close friendships to start your Wheaton College experience.
| Time | Activity |
|---|---|
| 7:00-8:00 | Personal Prayer and Scripture Time |
| 8:00-9:00 | Continental Breakfast at International Hostel |
| 9:00-10:00 | Use public transportation to travel to the Pilsen neighborhood in groups. |
| 10:00-11:00 | Visit National Museum of Mexican Art |
| 11:00-12:00 | Pilsen Neighborhood Mural Walk |
| 12:00-1:30 | Lunch at a local Hispanic restaurant |
| 1:30-2:30 | Small Group Devotion Time |
| 2:30-3:00 | Return to International Hostel |
| 3:00-5:00 | CORE 131 Reading Time |
| 5:00-6:00 | Dinner at local dining hall |
| 7:00-7:45 | Evening Passage program and worship |
| 7:45-10:00 | CORE 131 Class with Wheaton College Faculty |
| 10:00-11:30 | Late night fun at International Hostel |
*Approximate schedule provided; subject to change.
Urban Passage: Woodlawn will take you right into Chicago's Southside, where you will reside at Wheaton's Urban Studies facility located in Chicago’s Woodlawn community, the historic home of Emmett Till, Lorraine Hansberry, and Jesse Owens. Dedicated to community partnership, Urban Passage: Woodlawn will connect you to organizations that minister in the Woodlawn neighborhood. With small groups of peers, you will engage with topics of race, justice, and urban spaces through the lens of Christian faith. You will enjoy proximity to the University of Chicago, the future Obama Center and Library, and delicious food from all over the world, as you form close friendships to start your Wheaton College experience.
| Time | Activity |
|---|---|
| 8:00-9:00 | Personal Prayer and Scripture Time |
| 9:00-9:45 | Students prepare breakfast in apartments |
| 9:45-10:00 | Woodlawn Morning Meeting |
| 10:00-12:30 | Woodlawn Historic Driving Tour |
| 12:30-1:00 | Lunch in apartments |
| 1:00-3:00 | Community Garden volunteering |
| 3:00-4:30 | Rest and Play |
| 4:30-5:30 | Cooking and dinner with apartment group |
| 5:30-6:30 | Travel to Loop Neighborhood to meet with Urban Passage: Downtown |
| 7:00-7:45 | Evening Passage program and worship |
| 7:45-10:00 | CORE 131 Class with Wheaton College Faculty |
| 10:00-11:00 | Travel back to Woodlawn apartments |
*Approximate schedule provided; subject to change.
Location, Accommodations, and Food for Urban Passage
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Location
Urban Passage: Downtown will go out from the Central Loop area of downtown Chicago into various cultural neighborhoods. Urban Passage: Woodlawn will be based in the Woodlawn neighborhood of Chicago, but will also visit other surrounding neighborhoods. Programming for Urban Passage: Downtown and Woodlawn overlap at times and are distinct at times.
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Accommodations
At both locations, students will stay in rooms with ensuite bathrooms along with 6-8 fellow first year students.
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Food
Urban Passage students will have the opportunity to occasionally enjoy cultural cuisine when in local neighborhoods. For Urban Passage: Downtown, most meals are served as continental breakfast or in a local dining hall. For Urban Passage: Woodlawn, most meals are prepared in Woodlawn apartment kitchens.