Proven Results

12,408

Chicago students have participated in MC2 programs since 2012.

64%

of MC2 students live in underserved communities.

81%

of students say MC2 made them more interested in math.

MC2 measures its impact in several ways. Our mission is to provide opportunities for all children across Chicago to develop a passion for mathematics. So we want to reach a lot of students. And we want those students to be representative of the city. Reaching these students is not enough—we want them to get more interested in math, persist in studying ‘extra’ math for years, and help others develop their interest in mathematics. We also want to have an impact on our teachers, particularly those teaching in public schools.

NEW! Check out our 2023 Annual Report!

WE ARE BIG

Enrollment Graph – Chicago, IL – Math Circles of Chicago

Math Circles of Chicago is officially the largest math circle in the US (and likely the world). In 2022–23, we served over 2,000 students. This achievement is particularly remarkable because, (1) all of our programs are free, and (2) we have a highly engaged community of teachers that provides programming that we think is second to none. MC2 is a new model, where access is provided to all students across a major city through geographic (and online) reach, through developing welcoming classroom environments for everyone participating, and by removing the financial barrier to participate.

Enrollment by Program Graph – Chicago, IL – Math Circles of Chicago

We’ve grown through our unique approach to working to reach ALL students by holding sessions in multiple settings. We have in-person Hubs (like the University of Chicago and Back of the Yards High School) where children from any school can attend. We also have ‘Online Hubs’--a carryover from the stay-at-home COVID era—where children can participate from home. We piloted our after-school programs in the 2019–2020 school year at two schools, and we now serve 25 schools. Our partners include homeless and domestic violence shelters, community centers, and partner STEM Programs like Mapscorps. Our summer programs, festivals, and QED, our Math Symposium, have had explosive growth over the last few years.

Math Circles of Chicago is officially the largest math circle in the US (and likely the world). In 2023–24, we served 4,000 students. This achievement is particularly remarkable because, (1) all of our programs are free, and (2) we have a highly engaged community of teachers that provides programming that we think is second to none. MC2 is a new model, where access is provided to all students across a major city through geographic reach, through developing welcoming classroom environments for everyone participating, and by removing the financial barrier to participate.

We have three levels of programming, all of which have grown substantially over the last 5 years.

Level 1: Math Festivals
Level 2: Math Circles
Level 3: Summer Camps and QED: Chicago's Youth Math Symposium

In the last two years our Level 1 programming has exploded. In 2022-23 we held festivals at a handful of schools; in 2023-24 we held 30 such festivals! (Our success here has been built upon the amazing work being done by the Julia Robinson Math Festival organization).

Level 2: Math Circles is our 'bread and butter'. We hold these both at Hubs, locations where any child can attend, and After School Programs (ASPs) in public schools in Chicago. We reached 300 students the past few years and we hope to double this number.

We push children to get to Level 3, summer camps in math and QED, our annual math symposium. The growth of our festival work is strategic, leading to dramatic growth in our upper level programs in upcoming years!

WE ARE DIVERSE

MC2 has grown large; it has also grown intentionally. We look to add 5 After School Programs each year, chiefly on Chicago’s South and West sides. We will also be adding a 3rd summer camp site in 2025 at a location on the West side TBA!

Over the last three years the percentage of Black and Latino students we serve has increased from 47% to 69%, and the percentage of students who attend schools that are majority Low Income has risen from 37% to 64%. The percentage of girls in our programs was 46% in 2024.

WE HAVE IMPACT ON OUR CHILDREN

MC2 takes teacher development and teacher community very seriously, and it pays off in how our students respond to our programs. Overall satisfaction in our programs is 93%. 81% of our students say their math circles experience has made them more interested in mathematics, and 72% now identify as a math person.

Over the years we’ve collected many testimonials--you can see some of those quotes below. Additionally, here are three stories that show the power of our work in a deep way.

Testimonials

WE HAVE IMPACT ON OUR TEACHERS

More than 100 people teach for MC2. Our After School Programs are generally led by middle school teachers. Our Hubs are taught by a wide mix of classroom teachers, graduate students, professors, math enthusiasts in other careers, along with undergraduate and high school assistants.

We believe that teachers improve by participating in a thriving community of practice. When teachers come to workshops, get coaching, talk to each other online, and reflect with each other after they teach, they get better and better at what they do. Our data shows that our teachers are happy and are part of a thriving teaching community.

WE HAVE IMPACT ON OUR CHILDREN

WHAT OUR COMMUNITY SAYS

"I like how my teacher tries to include everyone in conversations and activities. He also helps me think deeper about problems."
"She was told she was not good at math by someone (we do not know who). And while we talked to her about it and tried to convince her otherwise but we did not have much of an impact. But here in Math Circles she is in classes and keeping up with people she thought were smarter than her, and she did not think she could work with on an equal basis but she is enjoying it and getting better grades in math (A is first trimester of 6th grade and she had all B’s in math in 5th grade)"
"It really has helped my daughter want to be better at math. She even thinks math is now a little cool! That’s new for her because math is not her best subject."
"I look forward to coming back to math circles. The environment is very welcoming, the teachers and students are kind, and the topics we cover are quite engaging."
“I like the new problems and puzzles I never knew math had.”
“I would like to come back to Math Circles, because it is engaging and speaks to me in a way that normal math class doesn’t.”
"One of the former Math Circle students asked me today if we were going to have Math Circles this year. When I said that I was hoping to start it, she said 'Yes!' enthusiastically. This student cried anxiously about an upcoming division unit last year and was reluctant to speak in math class at the beginning of fifth grade. " -An MC2 Afterschool Teacher
"I think Math Circles does a nice job of offering ways to get involved iwith the Math Circles community. Such as opportunities to view someone else teaching a lesson, ways to collaborate with other instructors including a portal to share lesson reflections and dialogue about each others' successes and ways to improve. "
"Really appreciate the collaboration and feedback, online supports and lesson plans---keep doin what you're doin!"
"As I consider my career next steps, I think about Math Circles and the programs that it has enabled me to bring to my students (i.e. Math Festival, QED) and it increases my desire to stay in the classroom. Math Circles facilitates and cultivates the joy in teaching and learning that first drew me to to the work, and helps to counteract some of the push factors to leave the field."
"Math circles for me has been very sustaining. It's something I always look forward to, and really can lean into on days that don't go as planned. It brings me so much joy. "
"Sometimes I think "wow, I wish I had this level of autonomy in my classroom all the time, I don't want to work in a school classroom," but I do think that teaching for MC2 reminds me what is possible for me but especially for students in a way that pushes me to actually make that happen at school. I can go back into the classroom because I can see the effects of open-ended tasks that foreground collaboration on student success."