At Urban Initiatives (UI), we see the power of play for Chicago students every day. Play provides a healthy outlet where young people move their bodies, process emotions, and experience joy.
When students engage in play-based activities alongside peers and caring adults, their nervous systems get a break. They laugh, breathe, and become fully present. This is stress relief and healing in action. Our work is made possible through the support of partners like the MDRT Foundation.
Investing in Play-Based Social Emotional Learning
We are proud to share that a $1,750 grant from the MDRT Foundation Global Grants Program is supporting Urban Initiatives’ full suite of play-based social emotional learning (SEL) programs.
This investment helps ensure that young people across our programs have access to developmentally appropriate opportunities to build essential life skills through movement, connection, and play.
Building SEL Through Play
The MDRT Foundation’s support advances core outcomes across our youth programs:
- Increasing Access and Engagement: Expanding high-quality, play-based SEL opportunities for youth who need them most
- Developing SEL Skills: Building age-specific social and emotional skills using the CASEL framework
- Strengthening Relationships: Fostering meaningful connections with peers and trusted, caring adults
- Supporting Academic Success: Promoting engagement, confidence, and belonging that carry into the classroom
A Shared Commitment to Chicago
Since our founding in 2003, Urban Initiatives has grown into a citywide organization rooted in the belief that play is essential to healthy youth development.
That growth is possible because of partners like the MDRT Foundation who understand that social emotional learning thrives when young people feel safe, connected, and supported.
Together, we are creating spaces where youth can move, connect, and build the skills they need to succeed in school and in life.
