School districts in Illinois have been declining in number through consolidation since 1940, a time when there were nearly 12,000 districts. There are now only 861.
In an effort to save money, however, the state would like to see that current number reduced by more than half.
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Illinois agriculture leaders are excited about the U.S. House's overwhelming approval Wednesday of an $8.2 billion water resources bill they have sought for years. It will improve locks and dams vital to shipping more than $100 billion worth of grain and raw materials annually.
Kankakee County farmer Bill Olthoff, who worked on the issue for years as a director of the Illinois Farm Bureau, was one of those glad about the bill's approval; however, his enthusiasm was tempered with a "show me the money" outlook.
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An American who's now aboard the International Space Station is a University of Illinois alum who once played football for the school.
Mike Hopkins and two Russians traveled in a Soyuz capsule Wednesday after blasting off from a launch pad in Kazakhstan to dock with the space station, where they'll spend the next six months.
The 44-year-old Air Force colonel earned a degree in aerospace engineering from Illinois in 1991, according to a report in The (Champaign) News-Gazette.
Officials at the school say he's the sixth alum to become an astronaut. This is his first mission.
"Needless to say we're very excited to have another former student get the chance to go to space," said Philippe Geubelle, who leads the school's aerospace engineering department. "I'm absolutely convinced that 90 to 100 percent of students join aerospace because they would like eventually to become astronauts. It's nice to see that some actually get to live the dream.
Video gaming is a multimillion-dollar business.
That was true even before the state dipped its paw in the honey jar. Just the other day in a bar in Manteno, a patron made a case for the "old machines." He told the bartender they paid out better. I don't know if that's true. It's probably an argument impossible to prove.
The point is this: People in this county and throughout the state had been pumping cash into bright, noisy boxes for years before they ever became legitimate.
So, when some readers commented on a recent story about video gaming, that the state should not be cashing in on the vices and vulnerabilities of problem gamblers, I couldn't help but think that some portion of that population already had been at risk.
Their lost wages just didn't make it into the state's coffers.
Still, gambling addiction counselors are calling video poker machines the "crack" of gambling.
CHICAGO — Working on a tight time frame, Illinois is building an 800-person army of temporary workers to help people sign up for health insurance coverage under the Affordable Care Act.
The "in-person counselor" jobs, located in every corner of the state, range from a $9-per-hour part-time evening job in Clinton County to a $45,000-per-year project coordinator position in Chicago for someone with experience in community organizing and public speaking.
The workers will help consumers apply for coverage, and will answer questions and explain differences between the insurance policies offered on the new online marketplace. They will help consumers figure out if they're eligible for Medicaid or for new tax credits that will help many people pay for coverage.
Job applications are being collected online and anyone hired will get three days of training about health insurance, enrollment rules and other complicated aspects of the health law.
CHICAGO — Working on a tight time frame, Illinois is building an 800-person army of temporary workers to help people sign up for health insurance coverage under the Affordable Care Act.
The "in-person counselor" jobs, located in every corner of the state, range from a $9-per-hour part-time evening job in Clinton County to a $45,000-per-year project coordinator position in Chicago for someone with experience in community organizing and public speaking.
The workers will help consumers apply for coverage, and will answer questions and explain differences between the insurance policies offered on the new online marketplace. They will help consumers figure out if they're eligible for Medicaid or for new tax credits that will help many people pay for coverage.
Job applications are being collected online and anyone hired will get three days of training about health insurance, enrollment rules and other complicated aspects of the health law.
Fourteen-year-old Dylan Hummel, of Cabery, sold his grand champion meat goat for $11,050 at the Illinois State Fair Governor's Sale of Champions Tuesday, shattering the previous record price of $6,900 in 2009.
Seven records were broken and one tied, pushing the sale total to $222,750 — nearly $67,000 higher than the previous record, said Jeff Squibb, state fair spokesman.
The young exhibitors get 80 percent with 20 percent split by the 4-H and FFA organizations of Illinois.
Gov. Pat Quinn and Agriculture Director Bob Flider encouraged bidders from the floor and many others had worked behind the scenes to bring support for exhibitors of grand champion livestock in the junior show and Illinois bred and raised "Land of Lincoln" show.
Another local connection was the record price set for the Land of Lincoln grand champion meat goat shown by Carlee Critchelow, of Chanderville. It brought $3,750 — 50 percent above the previous record of $2,500.
Video gaming is a multimillion-dollar business.
That was true even before the state dipped its paw in the honey jar. Just the other day in a bar in Manteno, a patron made a case for the "old machines." He told the bartender they paid out better. I don't know if that's true. It's probably an argument impossible to prove.
The point is this: People in this county and throughout the state had been pumping cash into bright, noisy boxes for years before they ever became legitimate.
So, when some readers commented on a recent story about video gaming, that the state should not be cashing in on the vices and vulnerabilities of problem gamblers, I couldn't help but think that some portion of that population already had been at risk.
Their lost wages just didn't make it into the state's coffers.
Still, gambling addiction counselors are calling video poker machines the "crack" of gambling.
