By WMBD-TV BLOOMINGTON – District 87 School Board approved cutting seven Professional Educator Licensed employees and Educational Support Personnel. Anyone hired after Jan 1. is automatically a reduction in force for the district; meaning their term will end at the end of this school year. This year those positions included, but were not limited to…… MORE
By IIS Radio SPRINGFIELD – Illinois State Police are seeing an increase in road rage. There are a lot of angry drivers across the state, but especially in the Chicago area where road rage is tied to quite a few expressway shootings said ISP Trooper Jayme Bufford. “If other drivers are following too closely or…… MORE
By WMBD-TV BLOOMINGTON – A juvenile has been charged with threatening family members with a firearm on Friday. According to a Bloomington police press release, officers were called to the 800 block of East Douglas St. for gun threats. After speaking with the juvenile male, an arrest was attempted before he fled the scene. He…… MORE
By WMBD-TV NORMAL – Gov. JB Pritzker was at Heartland Community College on Tuesday to highlight his proposed investments for increased access to community college. Pritzker’s FY 2024 budget calls for a $100 million increase in Monetary Award Program (MAP) grants, from $601 million to $701 million. It’s the largest increase in state history and a…… MORE
By Dave Dahl SPRINGFIELD – It’s the Illinois Supreme Court’s turn to decide whether the elimination of cash bail in the state is constitutional. The court heard oral arguments, as a lower court ruled against the legislature and tossed out the law. Arguing there’s never been a need for cash bail, assistant solicitor general Alex…… MORE
By Dave Dahl SPRINGFIELD – Giving your workers peace of mind is valuable, say proponents of a new law requiring employers to offer paid leave. So valuable, they say, that workers will become more productive and more dedicated, knowing they can tend to their personal affairs or stay home sick without fear of losing money…… MORE
By WMBD-TV NORMAL – There’s been another celebrity sighting in Central Illinois. Actor Henry Winkler was spotted in Uptown Normal on Monday. According to the Uptown Normal Facebook page, Winkler was in town for a speaking engagement, then he grabbed some refreshments at The Coffeehouse in Uptown after he shopped at the Children’s Discovery Museum’s store.…… MORE
By WMBD-TV BLOOMINGTON – Miller Park Zoo will begin to see major upgrades as construction got underway on Monday. According to Miller Park Zoo Facebook, the sidewalk outside the Wallaby Walkabout and Guanacos and River Otters will be replaced. While this construction will render half the park unavailable to the public, Miller Park Zoo is still…… MORE
By Dave Dahl SPRINGFIELD – Three years after the pandemic started, a University of Illinois researcher says anxiety and depression showed up more in Black and Latina women. These non-whites have many things going against them. “They were overrepresented, and continue to be overrepresented, in chronic health conditions, often due to high levels of stress…… MORE
By Dave Dahl SPRINGFIELD – As those interested in the assault weapons ban await word from the Illinois Supreme Court on its constitutionality, State Rep. Patrick Windhorst (R-Metropolis) says that bill was rushed through the General Assembly. “From the start of the first hearing on the bill until the governor’s signature was approximately 41 days,”…… MORE
By Mike Matejka Because of COVID, there is no Labor Day Parade this year. It’s always a great event for our everyday workers to march proudly down the street and enjoys the festive crowd. If there had been a parade, this year’s Labor Day theme was to be “150 years of struggle: your right to vote.” …
By Mike Matejka As President Donald Trump threatens to send federal marshals into Chicago, over the objections of Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker, recall another Illinois Governor who protested the incursion of armed federal personnel into the city. Those federal troops, rather than calming, escalated the situation, leading to deaths and violence. Illinois poet Vachel Lindsay…
By Mike Matejka Our nation is at a unique watershed in human relations. African-Americans have been killed too many times in the past before George Floyd, but the response to this man’s death is international and all-encompassing. I was a grade-schooler during the Civil Rights 1960s. I watched Birmingham demonstrators hosed and the Selma – Montgomery…
Looking around our community, when we say employer, most will respond to State Farm, Country, or Illinois State University. We too often forget those who are building our roads, serving our food, or our public employees. COVID-19 has made us more aware of the risk. Going to work every day for some people means…