Stories by Abena Bediako

The Chicago Board of Education is in the midst of massive change. Residents just voted in 10 members of the city’s first elected school board.

Illinois lawmakers previously approved $50 million for after-school and summer programs, but that funding hasn’t reached schools yet. This delay leaves Chicago Public Schools and local organizations facing difficult budget cuts.

Artist, scientist, engineer and philosopher — titles that only scratch the surface of what 15th century Italian Leonardo da Vinci achieved. A new two-part PBS documentary series from Ken Burns, Sarah Burns and David McMahon dissects da Vinci’s life in an effort to make sense of his work and the impact he has to this day.

Disgruntled X users are again flocking to Bluesky, a newer social media platform that grew out of the former Twitter before billionaire Elon Musk took it over in 2022. While it remains small, it has emerged as an alternative for those looking for a different mood, lighter and friendlier and less influenced by Musk.

A funeral service was held Monday morning for Chicago police Officer Enrique Martinez, who was fatally shot while conducting a traffic stop earlier this month. “The willingness to give your life for the safety of others is the most noble thing you can do,” said Chicago Police Supt. Larry Snelling.

Spirit, the biggest U.S. budget airline, filed a Chapter 11 bankruptcy petition after working out terms with bondholders. The airline has lost more than $2.5 billion since the start of 2020 and faces looming debt payments totaling more than $1 billion in 2025 and 2026.

Mariam Paré is part of a small community of people who paint with their mouths or feet. Paré was an aspiring art student when a 1996 shooting left her quadriplegic. “I wasn’t ready to change everything that I wanted to be,” Paré said.

Beyond the renown of being named White's unofficial body double, the winner walked away with $50 and a pack of cigarettes in recognition of the puff-prone character White plays in the series — Carmen “Carmy” Berzatto — a young, award-winning chef from the glittery world of fine dining who returns to the Windy City to captain his family's dive sandwich shop.

The U.S. Justice Department is demanding records related to the shooting of an Illinois woman who was killed in her home by a sheriff's deputy as it investigates how local authorities treat Black residents and people with behavioral disabilities.

Johnson had planned to be in attendance at Martinez’s funeral Monday, but changed course Saturday, saying he’d “heard from the family and am honoring their request.”

Donald Trump's choice of Matt Gaetz to be attorney general has many Justice Department employees reeling, worried not only about their own jobs but the future of the agency that the Trump loyalist has railed against.

President-elect Trump starts planning his return to Washington — and picking his Cabinet. And the City Council unanimously votes down Mayor Johnson’s proposed property tax hike.

As President-elect Donald Trump moves to set up a more forceful presidency than in his first term, he is choosing loyalists for his Cabinet and considering a tool known as recess appointments to skip over Senate confirmations for even some of the most powerful positions in U.S. government.

The holiday-related activities such as holiday markets and tree lighting ceremonies begin this month and run through early January.

Of the billions of birds on the planet, a lone osprey with a unique ID band was found in Colombia and linked to Cook County.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration spent more than 15 years crafting the guidelines, which are designed to do away with industry practices that downplay or distract viewers from risk information.

City Council rejects the mayor’s $300 million property tax hike. Advocates push back against the city’s new shelter approach. And Kim Foxx reflects on her tenure as Cook County state’s attorney.

Local organizations are pushing back on Chicago’s plan to merge its migrant shelter operations with its homeless shelter network. The city is set to launch the plan known as the One System Initiative on Jan. 1 with a total of 6,800 shelter beds.

After eight years in office, Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx is passing the torch. Foxx was among a cadre of so-called progressive prosecutors to take office around the country eight years ago. She became the first Black woman to assume the role in Cook County, promising to reshape the criminal justice system.

The six-member board on Thursday unanimously approved a measure demanding Acero return any unspent public funding if it moves ahead with the closures at the end of the current school year.

Before the stunning rebuke from all 50 alderpeople, including his closest allies, Mayor Brandon Johnson said he remained “committed to collaboration” and would work to craft a budget that reflects the city’s values by investing in people.

The state is partnering with the nonprofit Undue Medical Debt, which can buy debt from collection agencies, hospitals and similar entities for just a few cents per dollar. Every $1 collected translates into $100 of debt relief by the nonprofit, which partners with governments on debt forgiveness programs.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a former Democrat who ran as an independent in this year’s presidential race, abandoned his bid after striking a deal to give President-elect Donald Trump his endorsement with a promise to have a role in health policy in the administration.

Subscription packages will start at $19.99 per month for one team or $29.99 per month for full access to Chicago Sports Network, including all three teams’ live games. CHSN launched in October to replace NBC Sports Chicago, the longtime former home of the Blackhawks, Bulls and White Sox.

Michael Broadway, 51, died in June while in custody of the Illinois Department of Corrections. A new lawsuit alleges IDOC and Wexford Health Sources ignored Broadway’s requests for medical attention.

The satirical news publication The Onion won the bidding for Alex Jones' Infowars at a bankruptcy auction, backed by families of Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting victims whom Jones owes more than $1 billion in defamation judgments for calling the massacre a hoax.