Photo Essay: Bulls and United partner on Infinity High School community program

This past season, the Chicago Bulls and United Airlines launched a community program with Infinity Math, Science & Technology High School in Little Village – a predominantly Latinx neighborhood in Chicago. The program focused primarily on providing Latinx youth with opportunities to explore professional pathways across the STEM industries, and supported the school’s efforts to strengthen its art curriculum through a collaboration with Bulls Creative Strategy & Design Advisor Don C.

Here are the thoughts and reflections of the students on the program:

Valeria Perez: I really loved going to MSI, seeing all of the different prosthetics and even planning some out was super cool. I also liked talking to the pilots because it gave me a new perspective on flying. I learned so much more about what it’s like to be a pilot and how much responsibility there is... seeing all the those controls made me really appreciate pilots.

Jennifer Guzman: The people we talked to (at Discovery Partners Institute) were amazing. I remember Sanjuana (Jaime-Nix, product director) shared a beautiful story with us. She talked about her struggles and her words were meaningful. That morning, I had just failed a biology exam and hearing those kind words melted my heart and just reminded me that everything happens for a reason and to keep pushing.

Something I’ve learned is to believe in myself. We were challenged to complete a website under 30 minutes and I was doubting myself but managed to complete the challenge.

Christopher Luna: Ever since January we’ve started to get closer with the Bulls, and the Los Bulls game was a nice way to write off a chapter. It felt great to feel represented and to leave our mark with the Bulls.

Diana Sandoval: Living in Little Village for so long, you think that you would know all about it, but the Dilla Tour added more to my knowledge. When going through 26th St and all these different streets, we have seen all these different buildings and all the art, but thanks to the Dilla tour, we know the origin of all the art and its purpose.

Isabella Salgado: It's so important to learn about where I live. I didn't realize how amazing our community is and how beautiful everything is. 

Cassandra Perez: Budgeting hadn't really been on my mind a lot until I came across the game we played where we had different scenarios. I had the college student scenario and because I'm going to become one, I learned that I have to take responsibility on what I spend my money on. I realized that saving money is such a huge responsibility when it comes to being a college student.

Jose Tamayo: It was so thrilling to get under the wing of a marvelous plane like the 787 Dreamliner. To see the whole process that a passenger usually doesn’t get to experience was just amazing to say the least. I truly felt like a little kid with the amount of excitement rushing through my body.

Laura Acosta: Something interesting that I learned at the stop was how all types of careers can fit into running an Airport. For example, if you’re good with math then you might be needed for analyzing statistics. If you’re good at communicating then you’re needed to communicate with others to secure a flight. It was really interesting to learn how much goes on in an Airport.

For the final stop of the program, the Infinity High School students visited United's corporate offices in Willis Tower. The students learned about the business operations that support United Airlines flights and were also presented with their own custom Bulls jerseys to celebrate the end of the program.