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An analysis by The Associated Press, Stanford University’s Big Local News project and Stanford education professor Thomas Dee found an estimated 240,000 students in 21 states whose absences could not be accounted for. These students didn’t move out of state, and they didn’t sign up for private school or home-school, according to publicly available data.

As the consent decree prepares to enter its fourth year, progress has been anything but rapid, with the city in full compliance with 3% of its requirements, according to data released by the Chicago Police Department. Meanwhile, the future of Chicago policing has taken center stage in the mayoral race. 

Recapping last night's WTTW News mayoral forum and assessing where the race stands now. The latest on an officer-involved shooting. And a south suburban forest preserve transformed into a bird sanctuary faces new threats.

“There are places you walk where you see sky touching the earth, and you can imagine this as the gateway to the Grand Prairie,” site steward Pat Hayes said of Orland Grassland.

Things got heated between the candidates at the WTTW News mayoral forum this week. Our politics team weighs in on that story.

A visual look at the WTTW News Mayoral Forum. On topics ranging from police reform and crime to Chicago Public Schools and affordable housing, candidates shared their views on the biggest issues facing the city. 

Aaron Guerrero, 27, was charged Wednesday with reckless homicide and aggravated street racing, months after he allegedly struck and killed 40-year-old Shawman Meireis, a Florida woman visiting Chicago last August.

More than 233,000 Cook County residents applied to be part of the $42 million program, and 3,250 households won a lottery to participate in the two-year program.

Oak Street runs care centers mostly for lower-to-middle income people with Medicare Advantage plans. Those are privately run versions of the federal government’s program for people aged 65 and older.

President Joe Biden checked those boxes, and a few more, during his speech to a joint session of Congress on Tuesday night. In part, he seemed to be laying the foundation to run for a second term. “We’ve been sent here to finish the job,” he said.

Police Superintendent David Brown said the shooting occurred just after 3 a.m. in the 3700 block of North Troy Street. The man who was killed has not yet been identified.

Bridgeport residents watched the WTTW News mayoral forum live Tuesday. Some expressed concern over environmental justice issues, while others looked to business issues and the ongoing fight to establish a community high school with an ESL program.

Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot defended her record on police reform at the WTTW News mayoral forum and accused her challengers of throwing “bombs from the cheap seats.”

Austin residents watched the WTTW News mayoral forum live Tuesday. Among their top priorities was a commitment to working with West Side communities that have experienced disinvestment.

Logan Square residents watched the WTTW News mayoral forum live Tuesday. Some in the audience said they felt a disconnect from candidates, while others said candidates were giving talking points — not real answers.

The candidates for Chicago mayor take on critical issues facing the city in our WTTW News forum. And we're live from the community as residents pose questions to the candidates.

With Valentine’s Day around the corner, animal rights advocates are asking the Cook County Forest Preserve District to have a heart and release “Rocky” the coyote.

The UIC United Faculty on Tuesday announced its members had voted in favor of the new deal, which applies to all 1,500 members of the tenure and non-tenure bargaining units.

His speech before a politically divided Congress comes as the nation struggles to make sense of confounding cross-currents at home and abroad — economic uncertainty, a wearying war in Ukraine, growing tensions with China among them — and warily sizes up Biden’s fitness for a likely reelection bid.

Why some former Lightfoot allies are backing other candidates. The latest on the deadly earthquake in Turkey. Previewing Tuesday’s WTTW News mayoral forum. And remembering a civic giant who died this weekend.

The race for mayor is heating up and the attack ads are beginning to fly but in a nine-candidate field, how do you stand out from the crowd? Political analyst Jason DeSanto says math, message and money should be the focus. 

Aid organizations say the next few days are crucial when it comes to rescue operations. One local organization is leading its own emergency response team in Turkey. 

Crews released toxic chemicals into the air from five derailed tanker cars that were in danger of exploding  and began burning it after warning residents near the Ohio-Pennsylvania state line to leave immediately or face the possibility of death.

The true magic of the opera “The Factotum” is rooted in its seamless interweaving of countless musical styles that take operatic voices into the realm of funk, rap, hip-hop, gospel, R&B, barbershop quartet and even electronic.

Authorities feared the death toll would climb as rescuers searched through tangles of metal and concrete for survivors in a region beset by more than a decade of Syria’s civil war and a refugee crisis.

According to Chicago Police Department data, 20 people were shot in 18 separate shooting incidents between 6 p.m. Friday and 11:59 p.m. Sunday.