Jun 03, 2025 03:35 pm .::. If you love food, here are the top cities you need to move to this year
For anyone who truly enjoys good food, choosing where to live can shape everyday happiness. Certain places offer incredible meals on every corner, from street stalls to high-end restaurants. Finding cities you should move to if you love food means looking for diversity, quality, and unique local flavors.
Jun 03, 2025 02:40 pm .::. Challenges to Illinois gun laws could go before the Supreme Court
Challenges to local and state gun bans in Illinois could be the next case in front of the U.S. Supreme court on the “AR-15 issue.”
The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to take up a challenge to Maryland’s ban, The Center Square reported. In the order, Justice Brett Kavanaugh said whether a state can ban an AR-15 is a question he expects the court to take up, but not right now.
May 28, 2025 12:57 pm .::. Book Review | I Fuel, How Energy Powers Our Busy World
"As dinosaurs thump about, my life begins," opens I Fuel, Kelly Rice Schmitt’s attempt to explain to children the complex web of energy topics.
Where do gasoline and jet fuel come from? How do our lights turn on? Why do we seek alternative energy sources? These questions are answered at a young child’s level in this 2024 picture book. Schmitt starts by describing the formation of crude oil, then delves into the ...
May 28, 2025 02:41 am .::. State-Bound: Local tennis players ready for IHSA Finals this weekendCHAMPAIGN - Three singles players and three area doubles teams are set to represent the Champaign-Urbana area at the IHSA Boys Tennis State Finals, which begin Thursday across the Chicago suburbs.
May 27, 2025 07:11 pm .::. Officials find first instance of West Nile virus in IllinoisCHICAGO - The Illinois Department of Public Health said the first positive test for West Nile virus in 2025 has been detected in Winnebago County near Rockford.
Health officials warned people in the infected area and elsewhere to take precautions to avoid the mosquito-borne disease, which is expected to spread across the state. Last year, Illinois reported 69 cases of West Nile, with 13 reported human deaths.
Illinois' "trigger law" could also lead to over 700,000 adults losing Medicaid coverage if federal reimbursement rates drop below 90%.
by Judith Ruiz-Branch Illinois News Connection
CHICAGO - As Congress considers federal cuts to Medicaid and SNAP food assistance, groups advocating for Illinois schools are speaking out on how it would affect students across the state and the education system at large.
They said budget cuts would have both direct and indirect effects, from student eligibility to school reimbursements for things like meals and health screenings, and straining the state budget as well.
Jessica Handy, executive director of Stand for Children Illinois, highlighted the importance of students having access to health care and food, linking it to issues like chronic absenteeism, which has recently spiked in Illinois.
"These things really are all interconnected," Handy explained. "It's not that kids can show up to school hungry, show up to school with some severe chronic health issues and not have treatment and then be able to sit there and learn as if those things didn't happen."
She stressed implementing stricter qualifying requirements for Medicaid would reduce the number of students with health coverage and school funding from Medicaid reimbursements.
Handy pointed out changes in school-based Medicaid reimbursements like expanding coverage to include therapy services and vision screenings are now a significant funding source for schools. Illinois' "trigger law" could also lead to over 700,000 adults losing Medicaid coverage if federal reimbursement rates drop below 90%, potentially affecting school staff.
"If the Legislature comes back into session and wants to change that trigger law, then we have another really expensive budget pressure that leaves fewer flexible dollars to fund our schools," Handy observed.
Handy noted potentially shifting SNAP benefit costs to states could also jeopardize school funding. Although Illinois' 2025 legislative session has adjourned, she emphasized lawmakers would have to come back this year if federal budget cuts are implemented to rework the state budget, with the uncertainty further compounding matters.
"Schools can't budget and plan effectively for programs throughout the school year when they're not sure what the impact's going to be," Handy added. "It leaves everybody in a kind of gray area that's not good for stability and not good for really being able to focus on programs, instead of on logistics and keeping the doors open."
by Judith Ruiz-Branch