The show “Wild Travels” is back with a new season premiering this week, and viewers can expect a showcase of eccentric places across the U.S. from pierogi fests to a unicycle football team. We’re joined by the host and the executive producer. 

According to district data from Chicago Public Schools, over 12,818 students are in quarantine, and 2,355 adults are also staying home due to a positive case.

The number of Americans 55 and older who died from an opioid overdose surged 1,886% from a little over 500 deaths in 1999 to more than 10,000 deaths two decades later, according to a new report.

City and state officials are advising people to be on the lookout for untrustworthy COVID-19 testing sites. What you should know before walking into a pop-up testing site. 

Labor peace for the time being at CPS but will it last? Omicron numbers start to plateau. Art Institute workers unionize. The race for governor starts to heat up. And a goldfish goes for a drive. 

Rank-and-file CTU members on Wednesday signed off on the deal, two days after the union’s elected delegates voted to suspend a labor action that saw the vast majority of teachers refusing to work in person amid a spike in COVID-19 cases.

A man receives the first pig heart transplant. Astronomers witness a star go supernova. Researchers identify a biomarker of depression. And a goldfish goes for a drive. 

Employees at the School of the Art Institute voted to unionize Wednesday, one day after workers at the Art Institute also voted to form a union. It’s the first major museum union in Chicago and will represent more than 200 Art Institute employees including installers, curators, custodians, librarians and retail workers.

As COVID-19 hospitalizations surge, more than 2,000 health care workers will be sent to hospitals to help care for those who are ill. 

While people with disabilities are at high risk for COVID-19, a report from the National Council on Disability finds they haven’t been prioritized for vaccines in some states. 

The latest on CTU labor action as students are set to return Wednesday. Plus, the fight over voting rights. Illinois House speaker's one-year anniversary. And a local radio news anchor signs off after 51 years.

Illinois House Speaker Emanuel Chris Welch reflects on his first year on the job. Welch’s historic win followed Michael Madigan’s decadeslong hold on political power in the Illinois House. 

Rank-and-file members of the Chicago Teachers Union are in the process of voting on the deal reached by the union and the city on new COVID-19 mitigation efforts. Chicago Teachers Union Vice President Stacy Davis Gates said she expects the vote to be complete by the end of the week.