Chicago Lights serves people of all ages, providing resources that help persons reach their potential. Many of the programs were begun in the 1960s by Fourth Presbyterian Church of Chicago to assist its urban neighbors. Originally incorporated as a 501(c)(3) under the name Partners in Education in April of 1991, the organization changed its name to Chicago Lights on January 1, 2004 and added more programs. Tutoring, the first program of Chicago Lights began in 1964. The most recent program, the Chicago Lights Urban Farm, was added in 2009. Today we serve over 5,400 individuals annually regardless of age, disability status, economic circumstance, ethnicity, gender, race, religion or sexual orientation. A 16-member Board of Directors governs Chicago Lights.

Chicago Lights is a 501 (c)(3) non-profit community outreach organization whose mission is to provide hope and opportunity to our city’s children, youth, and adults who face the challenge of poverty. Through supportive relationships and diverse programs, we empower people to thrive academically, secure economic stability, lead healthy lives, and build community. Chicago Lights has seven outreach programs: Center for Whole Health, Elam Davies Social Service Center, Summer Day, Tutoring, Chicago Lights Urban Farm, Chicago Lights Academic Success in Schools, and Free Write Jail Arts and Literacy Program at the Nancy B. Jefferson Alternative School, the focus of this proposal.

The Tutoring program provides 400 students in grades 112 with weekly one-to-one tutoring sessions to support learning, improve literacy, and ensure long-term academic success. Summer Day, a six-week summer program, allows 100 economically disadvantaged children in grades 1 through 8 to sharpen their academic skills while participating in art, music, drama and dance activities. Literacy and Arts at the Near North Magnet Cluster Schools promotes literacy and the arts in the Cabrini-Green neighborhood through supplemental reading programs and fine-arts education at three elementary schools. Free Write Jail Arts and Literacy at the Nancy B. Jefferson Alternative School provides one-to-one literacy programming to the 460 youth incarcerated in the Cook County Juvenile Temporary Detention Center. The Center for Life and Learning provides 250 men and women ages 60 and over with educational, social, cultural and wellness programming to help members explore new interests, pursue overall well-being, and participate in community life. The Elam Davies Social Service Center addresses homelessness and hunger among low-income individuals and families in Chicago by providing basic human needs, support and a path to self-sufficiency for nearly 4,000 adults who are homeless or living in poverty. Chicago Avenue Community Outreach, located in the Cabrini Green neighborhood, works to strengthen ties within the community and to provide gardening, educational, and recreational opportunities for children and families living and working in the area. The Center for Whole Health (CWH) promotes health and wellness in mind, body and spirit through screenings, immunizations, health assessments and referrals, and educational seminars and lectures. With more than 2,500 annual contacts, the Center focuses its outreach in the areas of healthy aging, mental health, women's health and the health of persons who are homeless or low-income.