2018: our community
From attending crucial city council meetings to sharing their hopes for their communities at events and dinners across the city, our neighbors are helping us bring the Obama Presidential Center and our work in Chicago to life. We look forward to strengthening our relationship with our neighbors for years to come.
We hosted a public meeting on Tuesday, February 27 at McCormick Place in Chicago to continue our ongoing community discussion about the design and development of the Obama Presidential Center, as well as our initiatives and programs. You can learn more about our community engagement here.
Explore renderings of the future Obama Presidential Center here.
The Obama Presidential Center: Where We Are Now
We're creating a cultural destination in Jackson Park and an economic engine for the South Side and City of Chicago. See where we are now.
Announcing the Obama Youth Jobs Corps
The Obama Foundation and Urban Alliance, a national youth development nonprofit organization, launched the Obama Youth Jobs Corps (OYJC) to bring workforce readiness training to high school sophomores and juniors on Chicago’s South Side.
Our Community Commitments
We’re committed to ensuring that the community that has given so much to the Obamas benefits directly from the Obama Presidential Center. Check out the commitments and keep up with our progress+
Chicago Pride Parade, June 2018
June 24, 2018
The Obama Foundation and one hundred of our closest neighbors showed up loud and proud to march in the annual Chicago Pride Parade. See highlights from the parade+
June 19, 2018
Obama Foundation Hosts Community Conversation in Chicago
The Chicago Community Conversation brought together people doing incredible work for communities across the city for a day of conversation, collaboration, and collective action. See highlights+
Obama Foundation staff and friends walked in the Bud Biliken Parade on Saturday, August 24.
Learn more about the museum of the Obama Presidential Center here.
Watch: President Obama shares the vision of the Presidential Center
President Obama stopped by the Obama Foundation office on the South Side of Chicago to talk about the future Obama Presidential Center with Chicagoans who have been involved in the process to bring the world-class museum to Jackson Park, and to thank them for their tireless efforts.
“ This community has given everything to me, and so when Michelle and I talked about where are we going to put our library, our museum, center, our activities, there was really no other choice for us than here. ”
–President Obama, 2018
We launched a dinner series that brings together local chefs and community leaders to engage in conversations about issues that are on the hearts and minds of folks across Chicago. Moderated by Jahmal Cole of My Block, My Hood, My City, our first dinner was an intergenerational conversation about Chicago’s changing neighborhoods at Majani’s in South Shore.
October 31, 2018
Chicago City Council Votes on Use Agreement
The Chicago City Council voted 48-0 to approve agreements between the City of Chicago and the Obama Foundation related to the Obama Presidential Center and Museum, the last step in the City’s approval process related to the Center. Read the full story+
Reimagining the South Side: The Obama Presidential Center
The South Side of Chicago is the place where President Obama first began his career in public service, the place where First Lady Michelle Obama was born, and the place where they, together, raised their family. We’re excited to bring the Obama Presidenti