Bennett, Other Lawmakers, Voice Concern About “Rape In Champaign” Email
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Bennett, Other Lawmakers, Voice Concern About “Rape In Champaign” Email

State lawmakers are reacting with alarm to a recently released email that refers to the cover-up of a quote “rape in Champaign”. State Senator Scott Bennett, a Champaign Democrat, says he was shocked and angered by the WBEZ report of a 2012 email from then-lobbyist Michael McClain to two aides in the administration of then-governor…

Illinois EPA Developing Rules To Regulate Coal Ash Ponds

Illinois EPA Developing Rules To Regulate Coal Ash Ponds

A new law passed last year requires the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency to develop rules regulating the closure of ponds that store waste from coal-fired power plants. The agency released a draft rule in December, and stakeholders met Monday in Springfield to share their thoughts. Andrew Rehn with the clean water advocacy group Prairie Rivers…

‘Leave Garden Hills Alone’ Champaign Residents Oppose Unit 4 Campus Swap

‘Leave Garden Hills Alone’ Champaign Residents Oppose Unit 4 Campus Swap

Garden Hills Elementary School parents, neighbors and Champaign community members said they opposed a proposal that would swap the school’s campus in north Champaign with the International Prep Academy —  the district’s bilingual program. A diverse crowd packed the Garden Hills cafeteria for a listening and information session hosted by Champaign Unit 4 Superintendent Susan…

Lawmakers Demand Answers On ‘Seclusion Rooms’

Lawmakers Demand Answers On ‘Seclusion Rooms’

SPRINGFIELD – Illinois lawmakers on Tuesday grilled officials about the practice of locking kids in “seclusion rooms” in schools. It’s the first legislative hearing since a news report brought attention to the practice late last year. The story, from ProPublica Illinois and the Chicago Tribune, revealed thousands of incidents in which kids with special needs were…