Urbana Shootings In 2021 Soar Past Last Year’s Numbers, And Leaders Are Looking For Change
URBANA – Halfway through 2021, Urbana had already surpassed the total number of shootings that took place in 2020. Last month, the Urbana Police Department reported 55 shootings had occurred so far this year — more than the 53 that occurred in all of 2020. This follows a trend of heightened gun violence throughout the […]
Illinois Becomes 20th State To Allow College Athletes To Profit Off Their Name, Image And Likeness
CHAMPAIGN – Governor J.B. Pritzker was in Champaign Tuesday to sign a bill allowing Illinois college athletes to profit off of their name, image and likeness. Now, NCAA athletes throughout the state of Illinois can sign endorsement deals with businesses and brands. Speaking at the University of Illinois’ State Farm Center, Governor Pritzker said he […]
People Of Color Are The Least Vaccinated In C-U; Local Organizations Are Trying To Help
Editor’s Note: A prior version of this story incorrectly stated the percentage of Black and Hispanic residents in Champaign County who are fully vaccinated. The correct values are now reported below. CHAMPAIGN- When Dr. Wanda Ward, a University of Illinois employee with SHIELD CU, first heard that COVID-19 vaccines were being rolled out, she says […]
Illinois Colleges Approach Legal Weed Differently, Even Though It’s Illegal Federally
NORMAL – It’s January, so most Illinois college students are coming back to class after winter break. But this will be their first time back on campus in a state where consuming cannabis is legal. Even so, that doesn’t necessarily mean that they’ll be able to do it. A 2017 study by the National Institute […]
IL Struggles With Lack Of Long-Term Addiction Recovery Options
Earlier this year, we covered the difficulties faced by Illinoisans in recovery – especially those who had successfully detoxed, and were hoping to…
Illinois Students Act In Response To Proposed Title IX Changes
Students across Illinois are calling for tougher campus policies on sexual harassment and misconduct as the Trump administration proposes changes to…
Reporter’s Notebook: Why We’re Investigating Education And Incarceration In Illinois
Earlier this year, I reported for Illinois Newsroom that the Illinois Department of Corrections spent less than $300 on books for its educational programs across more than two dozen state prisons last year. I also reported that figure represents a dramatic decrease in spending since the early 2000s when IDOC was spending roughly three-quarters of […]
How Seeking Justice Retraumatizes Assault Survivors
Rape and sexual assault are issues that have dominated the headlines recently. The response to those stories – whether they are about Brett Kavanaugh,…
E-Cigarette Use Soars Among Illinois Teens
E-cigarettes are setting anti-smoking efforts back by as much as a decade. That’s what researchers found after analyzing this year’s Illinois Youth…
Women Make Some Gains In Illinois Elections
This week’s election was expected to bring a second “Year of the Woman” to American politics. After Tuesday, here’s what that looks like in Illinois:…
Do Campus Sexual Misconduct Policies Allow Harassment To Persist?
Every college campus has standards and policies to prevent sexual harassment. But time and again, repeated complaints are filed against professors for…
Reporter’s Notebook: The Road To A Story
I’m used to long roads. I grew up at the dead end of a dirt one in rural Montana. For my latest radio story, I drove about 11 hours. Every person I interviewed was a stranger in a town I’ve never been. Mostly, I found them online. Don’t tell my mother. That latest story — […]
High Schoolers To Help At Polling Places In Sangamon County
At the county health building in east Springfield, election judge trainees sit through a presentation and comb through packets of information. On…
Non-Profit Sues IDOC Over Censorship Of LGBTQ Publications
Knowing there were other transgender inmates in prisons in Illinois and across the country made Leila Lee feel as though she wasn’t alone. She said it…
Illinois Sex Ed Law Requires ‘Honor And Respect For Monogamous Heterosexual Marriage’
Lily Furgeson had a great experience in sex ed in middle school. Furgeson, who is a 17-year-old senior at a Chicago Public Schools high school, said her eighth grade sex ed teacher made sure to include lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender identities as part of their curriculum.