Maddie is a senior at Oak Park-River Forest High School. She’s in an English class that focuses on self-awareness and building empathy. Students from the class recently came to the StoryCorps booth in Chicago to talk about their experiences. Maddie’s family moved to Chicago from Las Vegas when she was in eighth grade and she had a difficult time with the transition.

StoryCorps’ mission is to provide Americans of all backgrounds and beliefs with the opportunity to share, record and preserve their stories. These excerpts, edited by WBEZ, present some of our favorites from the current visit, as well as from previous trips.