Stories by WTTW News

The debate over police in schools as students return to the classroom. The remake of the ‘90s horror classic, “Candyman.” And a Bronzeville incubator helping young businesses think inside the box.

Some pandemic unemployment benefits are ending. State lawmakers on the latest round of map drawing. Des Plaines is this week’s In Your Neighborhood stop. Escaping conversion therapy. And more.

Local college students on returning to campus. The latest on a revived energy bill in Springfield. A new push for high-speed rail. And our Spotlight politics team on remapping, Afghanistan and more.

Redistributing political power through the state’s remapping process. More cases of COVID-19 in children. Making Gage Park youth into oral historians. And the scoop on new rules for new restaurants.

It’s the last summer weekend to squeeze in a family vacation, but the delta variant of COVID-19 is discouraging Labor Day weekend travel. Crain’s Chicago Business editor Ann Dwyer takes us behind the headline of that story and more.

Hiccups, hope and trepidation on the first day of school. Chicago immigrant groups prepare to resettle Afghans. Debating Amazon lockers in local parks. Hurricane Ida relief. And remembering Ed Asner.

We talk with Chicago Public Schools parents ahead of the return to in-person learning. How renters are faring as financial assistance has been slow to arrive. And getting in the game at Columbus Park.

Chicago Public School students return to in-person learning — some parents share their thoughts. We discuss controversial gunshot detection technology. And the last word on Latino entrepreneurs.

The governor issues a statewide indoor mask mandate. Why COVID-19 breakthrough cases are being undercounted. Live from Garfield Ridge. And new research on what brain functions improve with age.

A shortage of paramedics. What’s holding up a Chicago casino? An exclusive look at the city’s first and only national monument. Hedy Weiss is back. And pajamas on pit bulls.

The Chicago Police Department’s crime-fighting technology is called into question. Controversy over a new sex education law. And we talk with Wilco frontman Jeff Tweedy.

Chicago home sales continue to rise, but there’s a twist in that fire-hot streak. Crain’s Chicago Business editor Ann Dwyer takes us behind the headline of that story and more.

What’s in store for Chicago stages as they get set to reopen. Tracking down crime on city expressways. Chicago’s home sale hot streak. The FDA grants full approval to Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine.

Could vaccine mandates disenfranchise Black Chicagoans? Local efforts to help those in Haiti impacted by the earthquake. How coffee and hip-hop are helping to normalize mental health therapy.

A new City Colleges program for students facing financial barriers. A new analysis of Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s hiring trends. And a barbershop with a side of vintage music.

Republican Day at the Illinois State Fair. Live from Austin on the West Side. Local Afghan war veterans on the situation in Afghanistan. A new study says depression is worse in suburbs than cities.

Democratic maneuverings at the Illinois State Fair. The latest on masks and a vaccine booster. A Republican congressman thinks about running for Illinois governor. A new program to lower unemployment.

City mask mandates return as COVID-19 cases spike. The Chicago Teachers Union on safety concerns ahead of the new school year. Local relief efforts for Haiti. And questions about COVID-19 etiquette.

A new wave of Chicago organizations say they’ll require COVID-19 vaccinations. Crain’s Chicago Business reporter Danny Ecker has details on that story and more.

New research on how the pandemic is spurring anti-Asian violence. A nursing shortage is looming in health care. The latest on Afghanistan. And more businesses are requiring the COVID-19 vaccine.

Why Black students at Chicago Public Schools are so much more likely to be homeless, and what can be done about it. New laws protecting people living with HIV. And a pedal through Big Marsh Park.

Chicago Public Schools requires all teachers and staff to get vaccinated — we hear from the district’s interim CEO. A musical collaboration highlights Puerto Rico. Chicago teens learn camping skills. 

Census numbers are released. Analyzing Chicago’s budget picture. We’re live from Avondale. The delta variant risk for children. And inside the colorful world of freak bikes.

The mayor unveils the city’s projected budget deficit for 2022. Alderpeople talk policing in Chicago. What’s in the federal infrastructure bill for Illinois? Chicago teens learn about outdoor camping.

The latest on the two men charged with killing a Chicago police officer this weekend. Arguments over the state’s mask mandate for students. And vaccine mandates for some health care workers.

Exelon strikes a $885 million deal with a French utility giant, but will it cost the energy company more than what it paid? Crain’s Chicago Business reporter A.D. Quig has details on that story and more.