Local Educator Brings Nature Play Expertise to Velma Thomas
Jessica Fong engages with students in 2017 at the Jardincito play garden, which informed her research project on nature-based play.
Local educator and McKinley Park neighborhood resident Jessica Fong has started her teaching engagement at the Velma Thomas Early Childhood Center, bringing her expertise in nature-based play to the highly regarded preschool. Fong, whose original research quantifies the benefits of nature play, said she is eager to bring what she has learned to the school and take advantage of nearby McKinley Park and the McKinley Community Play Garden.
"Having the 65 acre park just a half block away will add another dimension to my nature-based play research," she said. "I am also curious to see what effects nature play has, if any, on the dual language development of the students."
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Fishing Derby, Business Conclave and More Slated for This Week in McKinley Park
Hard-fighting game fish are coming to McKinley Park's lagoon for the Fishing Derby, 9 a.m. to noon on Saturday, September 22. The Illinois Department of Natural Resources will stock the lagoon for the contest, which is open to kids 7 to 13 years of age, and includes prizes from local retailers. Be sure to bring your rod and tackle, and register in advance by calling (773) 869-9050.
The McKinley Park Development Council has a busy week ahead, with the McKinley Park Neighborhood Plan Business Focus Group meeting the morning of Wednesday, September 19, at the 36Squared Business Incubator to provide feedback to the neighborhood plan with help from the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning (CMAP). On Wednesday evening at the McKinley Park field house, the McKinley Park Development Council Meeting features architectural preservationist Erica Ruggiero discussing the Central Manufacturing District.
Read more: Fishing Derby, Business Conclave and More Slated for This Week in McKinley Park
McKinley Park Businesses to Convene Toward Neighborhood Planning
Ricardo Lopez of the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning explains the neighborhood plan at the September 5, 2018, meeting of the McKinley Park Civic Association.
A first-of-its-kind gathering of McKinley Park neighborhood businesses looks to inform community planning at the Business Focus Group breakfast on Sept. 19 at the 36Squared Business Incubator. Part of the McKinley Park Development Council’s project to create a comprehensive neighborhood plan, the event welcomes the participation of all enterprises in the McKinley Park Community Area and the Central Manufacturing District.
The focus group’s business outreach is an important component of the neighborhood plan, which is administered as a project of the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning (CMAP), said council President John Belcik. “This plan will help guide McKinley Park into its future,” he said.
Read more: McKinley Park Businesses to Convene Toward Neighborhood Planning
