Try Something New
Try Something New
Try Something New helps ENG 100 students to explore their campus community, resources, and opportunities to engage with diverse ideas and cultures!
Some events may require an RSVP; visit the event's website for the most up to date information. Any events providing food or refreshments are first-come, first-served.
| Date | Time | Event | Description | Location |
| Tuesday, February 10 | 1:00 - 1:50pm | Understanding Our Cultural Lenses Workshop | REGISTRATION REQUIRED. In this session, participants will explore how their cultural backgrounds influence values, assumptions, communication styles, and ideas of what feels “normal.” Through guided reflection and discussion, students will begin identifying their own cultural lenses and how these shape interactions in both familiar and unfamiliar contexts. This session is part of the Global and Intercultural Readiness Workshop (GROW) sessions. | Campus Instructional Facility (1405 W Springfield Ave) Room 2018 |
| Wednesday, February 11 | 5:00 - 6:30pm | Lunar New Year Celebration and Dinner | Find us at the International Education table for educational activities and enjoy the traditional Lunar New Year (LNY) snacks and drinks. Win your meal ticket to enjoy the LNY dinner! | ISR Dining Hall (1010 W Illinois St) Main Street Lobby |
| Thursday, February 12 | 5:30pm | Uncorked: Chris Greene Quartet | The Chris Greene Quartet - led by the Evanston, IL saxophone colossus - played its first gig in 2005 and has since become one of the most highly visible, award-winning, and critically lauded bands in the Chicago area. While honoring jazz's tradition, the band incorporates elements of funk, hip-hop, rock, Afro-Cuban, the blues, and reggae, reflecting their diverse backgrounds. | Krannert Center (500 S Goodwin Ave) Stage 5 |
| Tuesday, February 17 | 5:30 - 6:30pm | Sharing History with the Horse Nation | Historical narratives are often said to have been “written from the back of a horse,” yet scholarship rarely considers horses as meaningful historical actors. This presentation examines how centering Indigenous horse knowledge offers a powerful framework for understanding our shared past with greater clarity, depth, and cultural accuracy. | Asian American Cultural Center (1210 West Nevada Street) |
| Wednesday, February 18 | 5:30 - 7:00pm | iCU Intercultural Dialogue Series - Tsagaan Sar! Celebrating Mongolian Lunar New Year | Join us in celebrating Tsagaan Sar, the Mongolian Lunar New Year, a holiday centered on family, renewal, and cultural tradition. Immerse yourself in Mongolian customs, cuisine, and the cultural significance of welcoming the new year, while enjoying the traditional Mongolian New Year's food for dinner. You will also learn how to greet others to invite a prosperous Lunar New Year! | Asian American Cultural Center (1210 West Nevada Street) |
| Monday, February 23 | 12:00pm | Liberation on 16 Bars: How women in hip hop are shaping the conversation on contemporary women's issues | Join the Women's Resources Center for Dish it Up featuring Cherisse Smith, College of ACES. Cherisse will present on modern women in hip hop and how they are shaping conversation on contemporary women's issues. Lunch will be provided! | Women's Resources Center (616 E Green St) Suite 213 |
| Tuesday, February 24 | 1:00 - 1:50pm | How Culture Shapes Perception and Judgement Workshop | REGISTRATION REQUIRED. This session examines how culture influences perception, interpretation, and judgment. Participants will practice distinguishing between observation and interpretation, explore common sources of misunderstanding, and learn strategies for suspending evaluation in intercultural interactions. This session is part of the Global and Intercultural Readiness Workshop (GROW) sessions. | Campus Instructional Facility (1405 W Springfield Ave) Room 2018 |
| Date | Time | Event | Description | Location |
| Monday, March 9 | 12:00pm | Women's History Month Dish It Up | Join the Women's Resources Center for Dish it Up. Lunch will be provided! | Women's Resources Center (616 E Green St) Suite 213 |
| Tuesday, March 10 | 1:00 - 1:50pm | Seeing Through Others' Eyes | REGISTRATION REQUIRED. In this session, participants will explore how people from different cultural backgrounds make meaning in distinct ways. Through case studies and guided dialogue, students will practice listening for understanding, identifying cultural logics behind unfamiliar behaviors, and engaging with difference without immediate judgment. This session is part of the Global and Intercultural Readiness Workshop (GROW) sessions. | Campus Instructional Facility (1405 W Springfield Ave) Room 2018 |
| Wednesday, March 11 | 5:30 - 7:00pm | iCU Intercultural Dialogue Series - Uganda on a Plate: Culture, Climate, and Community | Come learn about Uganda; the acclaimed pearl of Africa beyond the map through stories of its diverse foods, cultures, and natural landscapes, and explore what it means to belong to a community in Uganda. Dinner is provided. | Asian American Cultural Center (1210 West Nevada Street) |
| Tuesday, March 24 | 1:00 - 1:50pm | Managing Ambiguity and Emotional Responses | REGISTRATION REQUIRED. This session focuses on recognizing and managing thoughts and emotions that arise in unfamiliar or challenging cultural situations. Participants will explore common responses to change and difference and practice strategies for staying grounded, reflective, and curious when things feel uncomfortable or unclear. This session is part of the Global and Intercultural Readiness Workshop (GROW) sessions. | Campus Instructional Facility (1405 W Springfield Ave) Room 2018 |
| Tuesday, March 24 | 5:30 - 6:30pm | Treaties for Treatment: How Urban American Indians Navigate the Federal Healthcare Promise | Research regarding Urban Indian (American Indians living in cities or major metropolitan areas) healthcare access and experiences remains largely unexplored. This project takes an examines healthcare experiences such as accessing care (IHS and non-HIS care alike) to experiences with delivery of care itself in a sample with 38 Urban Indians. | Office of the Vice Chancellor for Access, Civil Rights & Community (HUB3070, 614 E. Daniel Street) 3rd Floor |
| Wednesday, March 25 | 5:30 - 7:00pm | iCU Intercultural Dinner Dialogue Series - Venezuela | Description will be updated at the event link. | Asian American Cultural Center (1210 West Nevada Street) |
| Date | Time | Event | Description | Location |
| Wednesday, April 1, 2026 | 5:30 - 7:00pm | iCU Intercultural Dinner Dialogue Series - TBA | Description will be updated at the event link. | Asian American Cultural Center (1210 West Nevada Street) |
| Tuesday, April 7, 2026 | 1:00 - 1:50pm | Learning from Cultural Dissonance | REGISTRATION REQUIRED. In this session, participants will reflect on challenging intercultural experiences and examine how meaning is constructed during moments of cultural dissonance. Students will practice reframing difficult situations as sources of insight and growth, strengthening their ability to learn from difference rather than avoid it. This session is part of the Global and Intercultural Readiness Workshop (GROW) sessions. | Campus Instructional Facility (1405 W Springfield Ave) Room 2018 |
| Tuesday, April 14, 2026 | 5:30 - 6:30pm | Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW): Integrating structural analysis and lived experience to address risk and protective factors | Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Relatives (MMIWR) has become a critical public health issue that brings together the intersection of structural inequities, historical and ongoing trauma and systemic failures in prevention and response. This presentation will focus on key risk and protective factors at the individual, community, and structural levels, while emphasizing the need to invest in culturally centered prevention frameworks. This discussion will bridge quantitative data with a narrative of familial loss, and address the ethical responsibilities of indigenous communities, government, academia, and other institutions in prevention, intervention, and accountability to protect Indigenous women. | TBD will be updated at the event link |
| Tuesday, April 21, 2026 | 1:00 - 1:50pm | Bridging Cultural Gaps in Relationships and Teams | REGISTRATION REQUIRED. This session focuses on bridging cultural differences in relationships, teamwork, and collaborative settings. Participants will explore strategies for shifting perspectives, attuning to others’ emotional and cultural cues, and adapting communication and behavior in ways that are effective, respectful, and appropriate across cultural contexts. This session is part of the Global and Intercultural Readiness Workshop (GROW) sessions. | Campus Instructional Facility (1405 W Springfield Ave) Room 2018 |
| Wednesday, April 22, 2026 | 5:30 - 7:00pm | iCU Intercultural Dinner Dialogue Series - Red Sea Coffee and Tea Culture | Description will be updated at the event link. | Asian American Cultural Center (1210 West Nevada Street) |