By LINDSAY WELBERS Staff Writer After 40 years at the helm Renaissance Society executive director Susanne Ghez announced that she would be stepping down next summer. Renaissance Society board president Greg Cameron made the announcement in a press release recently. The board will be bringing Solveig Øvstebø from Norway to take over the century-old Hyde(…)
Akira, a Chicago-based fashion retailer, officially opened its doors today The staff, wearing Akira fashions, stood in wait of their first patrons as word slowly spread in the neighborhood that the women’s fashion shop was open for business. Akira occupies the former Borders Books and Music at 1539 E. 53rd St. The site’s exterior, which(…)
By LINDSAY WELBERS Staff Writer The Chicago City Council approved the creation of the 51st Street/Lake Park tax increment financing district on Thursday, among the last steps needed to finance City Hyde Park on the former site of Village Foods. The 51st Street/Lake Park TIF district was separated from the 53rd Street TIF after the(…)
By DASCHELL M. PHILLIPS Staff Writer Teachers For Social Justice held its 12th Annual Teaching For Social Justice Curriculum Fair Saturday at Kenwood Academy High School, 5015 S. Blackstone Ave. Chicago Teachers Union President Karen Lewis and others who played pivotal roles in this year’s school reform fight were keynote speakers at the event. Lewis(…)
The Hyde Park Village, an organization which helps seniors network to find support to remain in their own homes, will have a table at the United Church of Hyde Park’s Bazaar on Saturday, Dec. 1, at 1448 E. 53rd St. Organizers hope to raise funds that will help the group launch more formally early next(…)
By JEFFREY BISHKU-AYKUL Assistant to the Editor Rozenn Bailleul-LeSuer, PhD candidate in the Department of Anthropology at the University of Chicago, is passionate about birds. It becomes clear upon receiving her business card — on which silhouetted birds are printed alongside her contact information — and even more so after hearing her discuss the new(…)
By DASCHELL M. PHILLIPS Staff Writer Five band students at Kenwood Academy High School, 5015 S. Blackstone Ave., were selected as “Ravinia Jazz Scholars” for the 2012-2013 year. The students, who are under the instruction of Kenwood Band Director Gerald Powell, are five out of the 28 Jazz Scholars in this year’s program. Through Ravinia’s(…)
By JEFFREY BISHKU-AYKUL Assistant to the Editor Hyde Park shopowner Hyman Jackson calls Sophistiqué (pronounced “so-phis-ti-kay”), a “basic boutique.” But he has bigger plans for the corner store located at the intersection of Blackstone Avenue and 52nd Street. “I’m trying to make sure that our vision is realized,” Jackson explained, sitting in his basement-level shop(…)