The Midway is providing periodic updates regarding the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on U-High students, faculty and others in the community. 

Chicago Tribune, New York Times give free subscriptions to students

It can be difficult, but is even more important than usual to find reliable and accurate information during the pandemic, especially if you don’t have a subscription to a newspaper.

In order to make sure students have access to information, the Chicago Tribune is providing free digital subscriptions to students.

“I think it’s important to have the right information,” U-High sophomore Andrew Swinger, who’s planning on subscribing, said. “It can be difficult to know what’s true and what’s not with fake news and the situation keeps changing.”

In a similar move, The New York Times teamed up with Verizon to offer 14 million digital free digital subscriptions for the next three months to American high school students. For Laboratory Schools students to qualify for the program, a school teacher or administrator must first apply, be verified and submit the emails of students.

Lab students already have access to The New York Times through the library database system, according to Laboratory Schools Director Charlie Abelmann. He said, “Our students already have access to many credible news or other information sites anyway where they can get quality information through the university or library.”

“Night Owls” philosophy events to continue through stay-at-home order

The University of Chicago philosophy department is continuing their weekly event series, “Night Owls,” through livestreams every Thursday from 5 to 8 p.m. Livestreams with guests ranging from university professors to Laboratory Schools students are scheduled through the end of the spring quarter.

“There’s a need for intellectual events that also let off steam,” University of Chicago professor and “Night Owls” organizer Agnes Callard, associate professor in philosophy, said in a promotional video.

In addition to regular programming, “Night Owls” is also holding regular essay contests on a variety of philosophical prompts like most recently, “The End of the World.” Everyone, including Lab students, are invited to submit.