Stories by Erica Gunderson

The U.S. Supreme Court struck down affirmative action in college admissions, a policy that withstood challenges reaching as far back as 1978. Now, higher education institutions wishing to achieve racially diverse student bodies have to find a new way forward.

Already wildfires are consuming three times more of the United States and Canada each year than in the 1980s, and studies predict fire and smoke to worsen.

With an audience approaching about 8,500 people, Maestro Riccardo Muti led the Chicago Symphony Orchestra at the “Concert for Chicago” in Millennium Park. He ended his 13-year tenure as CSO music director but will continue to conduct some performances.

Erik Varela of the Illinois International Port District said the port brings in steel, iron, concrete and sand. “If the port were to go away or not be invested in, you have to imagine that those commodities are going to go elsewhere, those jobs and those things will go there.”

Illinois Comptroller Susana Mendoza is ringing in fiscal year 2024 by celebrating a record-high $1.94 billion in Illinois’ “rainy day” fund and setting her sights on doubling that figure in the next decade.

The synthetic opioid fentanyl remains a danger in Chicago, especially in Black and Latino communities, where the odds of a fentanyl-involved overdose have significantly increased in recent years.

The devastating impact of fentanyl. Upgrading the Illinois International Port District. Some big tech winners. And what to know about the city's new minimum wage.

The impact of the Supreme Court ruling on affirmative action in college admissions. Traffic stops targeting Black drivers. And the Festival of Life kicks off in Washington Park.

Some workers in Cook County will find a little more in their paychecks starting this month.

Chicago buckles down for this weekend’s NASCAR race. City residents choke down the world’s worst air quality. The president visits Chicago amid a major week of Supreme Court rulings. And Connor Bedard becomes a Hawk.

The lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois accuses the Chicago Police Department of making more than 1 million traffic stops between 2016 and 2022 based on dubious evidence of minor violations that took direct aim at Black and Latino Chicagoans but spared White Chicagoans.

Organizers said the four-day festival will be a “grand celebration” to bring community together. The event celebrates African and Caribbean art, cuisine, dance and music.

Gov. J.B. Pritzker on Friday signed House Bill 3882, which will phase out the “Temporary Visitor Driver’s License,” or TVDL, which noncitizens currently use to drive legally in Illinois. The new law takes effect July 1, 2024.

The court ruled 6-3 for designer Lorie Smith despite a Colorado law that bars discrimination based on sexual orientation, race, gender and other characteristics. Smith had argued that the law violates her free speech rights.

The 6-3 decision, with conservative justices in the majority, effectively killed the $400 billion plan, announced by President Joe Biden last year, and left borrowers on the hook for repayments that are expected to resume by late summer.

The national average for regular gasoline dipped to $3.55 a gallon on Thursday, according to AAA. A year ago, a gallon of regular sold for an average of $4.87 a gallon.

A member of Chicago’s famed Second City comedy troupe, Arkin was an immediate success in movies and peaked late in life with his win as best supporting actor for the surprise 2006 hit “Little Miss Sunshine.”

The number of homes searched by Chicago Police officers dropped nearly 90% since 2019, the same year a botched raid left social worker Anjanette Young handcuffed while naked and pleading for help, according to new data.

A bombshell Supreme Court ruling upends affirmative action. We’re live in Grant Park just days before the NASCAR street race begins. And what to know about new laws taking effect soon.

It’s almost go time for NASCAR in Chicago. The 12-turn, 2.2-mile street course will run on Lake Shore Drive, Michigan Avenue and South Columbus Drive. People are feeling all sorts of emotions — from excitement to curiosity to concern.

Andre Castro is making his NASCAR Xfinity Series debut this Saturday in Chicago. He’s used to street racing and skyline views, but stock cars will be a new one for him.

Get ready to pay more for gas and groceries. Illinois rings in the fiscal new year on July 1, which brings with it changes.

The court's conservative majority overturned admissions plans at Harvard and the University of North Carolina, the nation's oldest private and public colleges, respectively.

The judges on the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals are being asked to decide whether Illinois’ recently enacted assault weapons ban violates the Second Amendment’s right to bear arms. 

Baseball, fireworks and “Star Wars” usher in the weekend. Here are five things to do in and around Chicago.

The seventh semiannual report from the team led by attorney Maggie Hickey urges police brass and city leaders to “urgently address” staffing shortages, a lack of supervision for officers and poor data collection, analysis and management.