Illinois Lawmakers React After Trump Supporters Storm Capitol

Illinois Lawmakers React After Trump Supporters Storm Capitol

5:45 p.m. Update SPRINGFIELD – Republican congressmen from Illinois are denouncing the pro-Trump extremists who stormed the US Capitol on Wednesday. Amid the chaos and evacuations of legislators and staff, reaction is coming in slowly. In a statement, Rep. Rodney Davis (R-IL13) says he and his staff are safe. He calls this a “sad day…

Pritzker’s Daily COVID-19 Briefing Full Transcript And Audio — Jan. 6, 2021

Pritzker’s Daily COVID-19 Briefing Full Transcript And Audio — Jan. 6, 2021

Gov. J.B. Pritzker and Dr. Ngozi Ezike are holding daily COVID-19 press briefings as cases and hospitalizations in Illinois reach record highs. Read and listen to the latest update from the governor’s office on new cases, phased re-opening and closings of different regions and the state’s ongoing pandemic response. You can watch the most recent…

Urbana Schools Plan Return To In-Person Learning With COVID-19 Testing On-Site
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Urbana Schools Plan Return To In-Person Learning With COVID-19 Testing On-Site

URBANA – At least 1,300 students plan to return to Urbana classrooms later this month, according to data shared during an Urbana District 116 Board of Education study session Tuesday night. School officials say their safety plans will be bolstered by access to a rapid COVID antigen test — known as the BinaxNOW COVID-19 Ag…

December Flash Index Shows Slow, Steady Recovery For Illinois Economy

December Flash Index Shows Slow, Steady Recovery For Illinois Economy

URBANA – The Illinois economy continued its slow recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic in December, according to the University of Illinois Flash Index. The monthly report measured the state’s economy at 95.9 in December, up from 95.6 in October and November. The number shows an improvement in the state economy since the Flash Index dropped…

Unmotivated Students, Confusing Requirements: Illinois Student Teachers Are Struggling

Unmotivated Students, Confusing Requirements: Illinois Student Teachers Are Struggling

In her virtual classroom last fall, Erika Jimenez struggled to teach her third graders how to read an analog clock in English. In person, the lesson would have been challenging for the predominantly Spanish-speaking class. Over Zoom, the students were visibly frustrated. Some even cried. But those were just the students paying attention. Jimenez knows…

Organizer Of Paxton Flag Project Aims For Memorial Day Dedication
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Organizer Of Paxton Flag Project Aims For Memorial Day Dedication

PAXTON — The organizer of Paxton’s Grand Old Flag project hopes that 2021 is the year that their flag start flying. Denny Kingren has set the dedication ceremony for this coming Memorial Day. Listen to this story here. The Grand Old Flag’s 150-foot flagpole went up last summer, on the west side of Paxton-Buckley-Loda High…

Historic University of Illinois Aeronautical Engineer Remembered

Historic University of Illinois Aeronautical Engineer Remembered

Editor’s Note: our original story incorrectly reported Carruthers earned his Bachelor of Science, Masters of Science and doctorate degrees in Aeronautical Engineering. His his MS degree was from the Department of Nuclear Engineering. We’ve updated the story. URBANA – Many are remembering an astrophysicist from Illinois who developed technology critical to America’s space program, including…

Urbana Extension Proposed For Kickapoo Rail Trail
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Urbana Extension Proposed For Kickapoo Rail Trail

URBANA — Officials in Urbana now have a feasibility study, for a proposed extension of the Kickapoo Rail Trail through the city.  But Mayor Diane Marlin says it could be some time before the project becomes a reality. The proposed extension would be different in nature from the Kickapoo Rail Trail, which is a rail-to-trail…

We Know How To Increase Access to HIV/AIDS Testing. Can Those Strategies Work For COVID-19?

We Know How To Increase Access to HIV/AIDS Testing. Can Those Strategies Work For COVID-19?

URBANA – The COVID-19 pandemic has shone a spotlight on long-standing racial disparities, when it comes to access to health care and other resources.  People of color, who are overrepresented among essential workers and in low-income communities, have been disproportionately hurt by the virus and are among those in need of better access to coronavirus…

Parkland College Students Bury 2020 Chaos In Time Capsule
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Parkland College Students Bury 2020 Chaos In Time Capsule

CHAMPAIGN – A rainbow flag, Black Lives Matter pins and a roll of toilet paper are among items Parkland College students recently ‘laid to rest’ in a time capsule featuring the events of 2020. Phi Theta Kappa, the Honors Society chapter at Parkland created the time capsule. The students buried the capsuled during a physically…

Farmworkers Who Help Put Food On American Tables Struggle To Afford It Themselves

Farmworkers Who Help Put Food On American Tables Struggle To Afford It Themselves

It’s been a tough year for essential workers — nurses, first responders, grocery store workers. But among the hardest hit are agricultural workers, who have been working non-stop to keep food on our tables while struggling to make ends meet themselves. Organizations like the Farmworker & Landscaper Advocacy Project (FLAP) are trying to help by…

Pritzker’s Daily COVID-19 Briefing Full Transcript And Audio — Dec. 23, 2020

Pritzker’s Daily COVID-19 Briefing Full Transcript And Audio — Dec. 23, 2020

Gov. J.B. Pritzker and Dr. Ngozi Ezike are holding daily COVID-19 press briefings as cases and hospitalizations in Illinois reach record highs. Read and listen to the latest update from the governor’s office on new cases, phased re-opening and closings of different regions and the state’s ongoing pandemic response. You can watch the most recent…

New Central Illinois Clinic Aims To Reduce ER Visits For Patients In Mental Health Crisis

New Central Illinois Clinic Aims To Reduce ER Visits For Patients In Mental Health Crisis

SPRINGFIELD – A central Illinois hospital system recently launched a new mental health crisis clinic, which aims to meet the growing need for services amidst the pandemic while reducing pressure on local hospital emergency departments. Rates of anxiety and depression appear to be rising during the pandemic, according to federal data. The U.S. Centers for…