Last Friday, March 9, former Vice President Joe Biden took the stage in the soaring three-story atrium of Kellogg School of Management’s Global Hub building on Northwestern University’s Evanston campus. The packed house consisted primarily of Kellogg School of Management students, with Biden’s speech made accessible to the public via live stream. Kellogg Dean of […]
Millions of American teenagers take either the SAT or ACT each year. It’s a rite of passage that most of us remember well, for better or worse, but standardized testing for high schoolers today is very different than it was for their parents. The College Board, who administers the SAT, has made big changes recently, […]
The McGaw YMCA is a cornerstone of the Evanston community, but few may know of the depth and breadth of programs and services they offer as a nonprofit organization. From child care and summer camp, to an exercise facility and residence for men — the McGaw YMCA strives to meet the needs of the community […]
If there’s one thing we know for certain in these uncertain times, it’s that children and young adults hold the key to a brighter (and hopefully safer) future. Beyond parents and caregivers, there’s no one more fundamental to the positive development of our kids than their teachers and school leaders. Golden Apple, a nonprofit dedicated […]
Make It Better’s You Said It section features letters and op-eds sent in from readers. If you would like to be featured, please email anna@makeitbetter.net with “You Said It” in the subject line. The views expressed in You Said It are the opinions of the author and not Make It Better. According to a […]
The birth of a child brings joy… and it brings challenges, with none causing more angst for most parents than the realization that in 18 years they could face a college bill to the tune of some $250,000 (in today’s dollars for a private institution). The statistics are sobering. Americans owe over $1.4 trillion in […]
October is Dyslexia Awareness Month, and while many have heard of dyslexia, it is often not well understood. The International Dyslexia Association defines dyslexia as “a specific learning disability that is neurobiological in origin. It is characterized by difficulties with accurate and/or fluent word recognition and by poor spelling and decoding abilities.” Dyslexia is the most common […]
There is a saying in sports that there is no “I” in “Team,” but the Jr. Trevians Youth Football organization takes that mentality even further. Thanks to a rejuvenation of its program and “teaming up” with New Trier High School, not only has football grown on the North Shore, but it has also inspired an […]
Years ago when I was a tutor for middle school and high school students, and before I had children of my own, I formed all sorts of opinions about the circumstances in which I would and would not hire a tutor for my own children. Fast forward 14 years and I’ve become a lot more […]
By his values or by his stats, Joe Ricketts is a remarkable man, driven by faith, family, entrepreneurism, earnestness, hard work, love of country, and generosity. You could call him the quintessential American success story — and his tale is perhaps most compelling when told by the numbers. When Ricketts commits to one — one person, […]
