The architectural firm now known as Holabird & Root was founded in Chicago in 1880. Over the years, the firm has changed its name several times and adapted to the architectural style then current — from Chicago School to Art Deco to Modern Architecture to Sustainable Architecture.

The University of Illinois Laboratory High School, also known as Uni High or just Uni, was established in 1921 and is a laboratory school located on the engineering section of the University of Illinois campus in Urbana, Illinois. Its enrolls about 300 students, spanning five years. The school's alumni include three Nobel laureates and a Pulitzer Prize winner. In 2022, Uni High was named as a top-15 public school in Illinois by Niche and the following year rose to a top-15 public school in the nation. In 2006 and 2008, it was recognized as a "public elite" school by Newsweek because of its students' high scores on the SAT. Before the change in the SAT's format in 2016, the average SAT score was 2045, and now varies from 1400 to 1600. As of 2019, the average SAT was a 1470. The average ACT score is a 32.