Stories by Alex Ruppenthal

Dante, a 30-pound alligator snapping turtle, made his public debut after passing a routine physical exam, which was actually quite similar to a human checkup.

“My main hope is to make it easier for people to access health care,” said Yosue Perez, whose website maps health care providers in Illinois that serve people regardless of their immigration status.

A trio of newly arrived birds is making noise – lots of it – inside Lincoln Park Zoo’s Dry Thorn Forest exhibit.

A controversial plan to convert a high-performing Near South Side elementary school into a neighborhood high school will move forward, Chicago Public Schools announced Friday.

Lawmakers reach a deal on school funding. Gov. Bruce Rauner cleans house again. Chicago sees its most violent weekend since July 4. And the Cubs grow a comfortable lead in their division. 

To honor the first female senator – who was an agriculturally minded lady – we concoct a drink straight from the farm: a dairy base that gets a spark from corn whiskey and would work hot or cold.

Gov. Bruce Rauner may say a controversial cartoon published by the Illinois Policy Institute has nothing to do with him, but his response may have led to another staff shake-up.

The disgraced former Chicago Public Schools CEO reports to prison in just a few days.

Watch the Aug. 24, 2017 full episode of "Chicago Tonight."

Meet one of the first African-American flight attendants, and the unusual way her mom inspired a love of travel.  

A woman who says she had underage sex with Grammy Award winning performer R. Kelly is breaking her silence. Veteran music journalist Jim DeRogatis joins us with details.

The internationally acclaimed violinist from the Chicago area and Russian violinist Artem Kolesov join us in conversation and performance.

After days of meetings and months of debate, an agreement has been reached on education funding reform in Springfield. What we know about the deal.

Deborah Hersman, president and CEO of the National Safety Council, joins us to discuss her organization’s latest data and how Illinois can make its streets safer.

Dozens of mallards have been found dead over the past month in multiple locations along the Chicago River, marking what one expert says is the largest occurrence of birds dying in the river in decades.

One of Chicago’s largest charter school networks is rebranding itself for the coming school year and rolling out new names for five of its campuses as it awaits approval for the changes from Chicago Public Schools.

Scores of triathletes, saganaki, fancy footwork, food trucks and global grapes usher in the weekend. Here are 10 things to do in and around Chicago.

A look at the creation of the latest mural from the Chicago Public Art Group.

Illinois’ top legislators will meet Thursday to continue hammering out a deal on education funding, even as a controversy continues to swirl over an editorial cartoon that backs one of Gov. Bruce Rauner’s positions.

The city will have to come up with tens of millions of dollars to realign the roads in Jackson Park to accommodate the wishes of the Obama Foundation, but they say it’s too soon to talk about exact costs.

Tierney Darden was left paralyzed from the waist down after a bus shelter at O’Hare International Airport collapsed on her during a storm in 2015.

Watch the Aug. 23, 2017 full episode of "Chicago Tonight."

A discovery by Chicago scientists could lead to new understanding about the largest explosions in outer space. 

Reflections on a 70-day canoe trip from Lake Itasca in Minnesota to the mouth of the Atchafalaya River in Louisiana.

Speakers at a CPS-led public hearing Wednesday repeatedly called on board members to vote down the district’s budget proposal, and instead advocate more strongly for sustainable funding.

WBEZ’s Northwest Indiana reporter Michael Puente joins to discuss the start of the new school year in Gary.