
Central Illinois students win state poetry prize, as host organization grapples with federal funding cuts
Two students in rural Piatt County and one student in Champaign won a youth poetry prize hosted by Illinois Humanities.

Two students in rural Piatt County and one student in Champaign won a youth poetry prize hosted by Illinois Humanities.

While the focus of federal COVID-19 relief money for schools was on recovering from the pandemic, districts were allowed to use some for construction. For many districts, it was a once-in-a-lifetime infusion of cash.

MATTOON — Black and Hispanic students are learning more quickly in the Mattoon school district than in any other school district in east central Illinois. The Illinois State Board of Education published information on student growth Thursday alongside its 2022 Illinois Report Card. The state calculated growth for local schools and districts by measuring student