Stories by Alex Ruppenthal

Shedd Aquarium is rolling out several new outdoor programs this summer aimed at bringing Chicagoans closer to local waters and aquatic life.

Barbecue ribs, vegan burgers, Brazilian samba and hot-air balloons usher in the weekend. Here are 10 things to do in and around Chicago.

The office will be responsible for overseeing investigations into allegations of student-on-student abuse, ensuring students involved in any allegation are paired with an advocate. 

Watch the June 26, 2018 full episode of “Chicago Tonight.”

Your thoughts about Cardinal Cupich’s stance on the separation of families at the border. 

Statewide, school districts reported more than 2,000 unfilled positions last school year, with 43 percent of those in Chicago Public Schools alone.

U.S. Rep. Mike Quigley gave a speech Tuesday paying tribute to the late Chicago Tonight host. 

A $1 billion redevelopment of the station would add 330 hotel rooms and more than 400 apartments atop the existing station that was completed in 1925.

The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday upheld an order restricting travel to the United States from several majority-Muslim nations. 

Inside the Cook County jail is a full-fledged medical center that treats every one of the 6,000-7,000 detainees housed there on a daily basis. We get an exclusive tour. 

Water testing at a Chicago day care center showed at least one sample 16 times higher than the lead level allowed in bottled water, according to a new report from an environmental watchdog group. 

The 19-year-old writes poetry with a message of empowerment, social activism and remembrance. Meet Patricia Frazier.

Chicago has a style of magic? It does. We check out a North Side lounge that aims to recreate the spirit of Chicago-style close-up magic.

The announcement comes as CPS continues to deal with blowback from a Chicago Tribune series that detailed how the district repeatedly failed to protect students from sexual abuse and misconduct.

Watch the June 25, 2018 full episode of “Chicago Tonight.”

The Supreme Court’s term officially ended Monday without rulings on a trio of hot-button issues. Those are expected by the end of the week.

By all accounts, Ivan Albright was a lighthearted fellow – but in the mid-20th century, the Chicago artist painted some very dark pictures.

Primary voters decided the Republican and Democratic candidates for governor in March, but chances are voters will have other options in the general election.

Chicago will become the second city in the country requiring hotels to implement panic buttons.

White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders touched off a fiery public debate this weekend after tweeting that a Virginia restaurant refused to serve her because she works for the president. 

Just as many Italian Renaissance paintings of the crucifixion possess a breathtaking beauty that defies the brutality of the event, this music continually captures a vivid sense of transcendence.

A new program for teenagers lets them explore the arts in Chicago for just $5. Learn more about the Teen Arts Pass. 

Nearly three years after becoming the first corpse flower to bloom at the Chicago Botanic Garden, Alice the Amorphophallus is on the verge of blooming again.

Attorneys for Brendan Dassey say he was coerced as a teen into a murder confession. But with the high court's decision, he will remain in prison serving a life sentence.

The powerful head of the Chicago Teachers Union cited her ongoing battle with brain cancer as the reason for stepping down, according to a statement to the Chicago Tribune.

In promoting his first work of fiction, “The President is Missing,” former President Bill Clinton on Thursday in Chicago demonstrated that he remains a super-smart, silky-tongued talker with both a healthy ego and an easily self-deprecating sense of humor.