New Champaign Unit 4 Schools Leader Moving From Springfield

New Champaign Unit 4 Schools Leader Moving From Springfield

CHAMPAIGN – The next superintendent of Champaign Unit 4 Schools is moving from Springfield. On Thursday night, the Board of Education announced its selection of Shelia Boozer. Boozer is 23-year veteran of education.  She is currently the Director of Teaching and Learning and Technology in Springfield District 186. Boozer earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology from…

Building Trust Is Key To Ensuring Farmworker Access To COVID Testing, Vaccine

Building Trust Is Key To Ensuring Farmworker Access To COVID Testing, Vaccine

Lea este artículo en español aquí. For more than a decade, Saraí has been a farmworker, cultivating corn and soybeans in the fields of central Illinois. She moved to the U.S. from Mexico to find work that would allow her to better support her family. Being an agricultural worker “is the most beautiful thing,” Saraí…

From The 21st: Illinoisans’ Hopes for the Biden Administration
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From The 21st: Illinoisans’ Hopes for the Biden Administration

WASHINGTON – Presidential inaugurations are by definition historic events. Joe Biden officially become the 46th president of the United States on January 20, 2021 just before noon Wednesday during a ceremony at the U.S. Capitol. The inauguration came two weeks after a violent mob of white nationalists brawled with police and smashed their way into the Capitol building,…

‘It Was An Incredible Experience’: U of I Professor Tapped By Biden Administration To Transition USDA
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‘It Was An Incredible Experience’: U of I Professor Tapped By Biden Administration To Transition USDA

URBANA – A University of Illinois professor helped the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) transition from the Trump to the new Biden-Harris administration.   Jonathan Coppess is one of hundreds of people — including researchers, professors and scientists — who volunteered their time on the effort. Coppess, an assistant professor within the U of I’s agriculture…

Illinois Could Expand Access To Higher Education In Prison Through Pell Grants
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Illinois Could Expand Access To Higher Education In Prison Through Pell Grants

WASHINGTON – Federal financial aid to people in prison was quietly restored as part of a COVID-19 stimulus bill passed by Congress last month. The U.S. Department of Education has until 2023 to reinstate Pell Grant access to people in prison — which was previously banned under the 1994 Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement…