Madison Angell

Gambling addiction can cost people massive amounts of debt and disrupt relationships and careers. But it’s not as identifiable as substance addictions, according to Mercedes Kent. “It’s not a matter of willpower,” she said. “This is a brain disease.” Kent is a treatment provider and supervisor at Gateway Foundation, which runs addiction treatment centers, including […]

“In all my years I have never seen anything like fentanyl,” said Marnell Brown. He is the founder of a harm reduction organization focused on drug use and violence prevention in Chicago. Brown has been in recovery for nearly two decades, and said he has been working in prevention for about the same amount of […]

The Illinois Senate has added to the call for the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) to waive spring assessments, such as the Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT), for students, as it did in 2020. State Sen. Cristina Pacione-Zayas, D-Chicago, spearheaded a resolution, approved March 17, calling for testing waivers. She said many students have been learning […]

“For far too long families of color have endured the hardships of an economic system designed to hold them back,” said state Sen. Doris Turner on March 23. Turner, a Democrat from Springfield, was with Gov. JB Pritzker and other lawmakers at the Union Baptist Church in the capital city for the signing of four […]

Springfield educators are brainstorming ways to bring more diverse staff to the district and address teacher shortages. Roy Gully, a social science teacher and football coach at Springfield High School, said teachers with the Springfield Education Association union know that lack of diversity is a major problem. Gully was recruited to be a part of […]

A new proposal would set a standard award amount of $50,000 for each year an exoneree was wrongfully imprisoned. On March 16, Illinois legislators passed the measure out of a committee. John Horton, an exoneree from Rockford, testified during the hearing. He received a Certificate of Innocence (COI) in 2018, after another man confessed to […]

On March 9 the Sangamon County Board approved a $62,700 plan to partner with SIU School of Medicine in Springfield for a vaccine media campaign. The goal is to “increase vaccine confidence among communities of color,” Rikeesha Phelon, SIU Medicine’s executive director of marketing, communication and engagement, said during the county board meeting. Phelon told […]

A recent outbreak of norovirus in Springfield is confirmed to have sickened nearly 100 residents. Arby’s on Dirksen Parkway was identified as the source. The building – 3009 S. Dirksen Pkwy. – closed its doors a second time last week and will remain closed through the end of March, according to an Arby’s spokesperson. The […]