Cover Story
District 186 report card was a “gut punch”
The COVID-19 pandemic may be officially over, but its effects linger throughout the state’s education system. That’s one takeaway from the Illinois State Board of Education’s (ISBE) 2023 Illinois Report Card, a detailed annual summary that shows how the state, and each school and district, are progressing on a wide range of educational goals, based…
Rethink candidate endorsement questionnaires
Imagine a lobbyist approaching a legislator and promising that if the member voted for a specific bill the lobbyist would contribute to their campaign committee. Lobbyists have been convicted here for doing just that, going back to at least 1982. Legislators would be violating state law if they made that deal. The statute prohibits legislators,…
Letters to the editor 12-07-23
YOUR FAULT So sorry you were too negligent to check the distance from your soon-to-be home to that of children similar to ones you have a past history of drugging and molesting, but moms are more than happy that our state requires you to find somewhere else to prowl (“State Supreme Court weighs constitutionality of…
Family Story #4
Family Story #4 Ron and Trever, 10 and 8, are naked playing in the back pasture making a mud dam in the crick to create a pool; their cousin Carl has arrived from afar dressed in fancy pantaloons befitting a special visit; he’s sent down to the crick where his cousins…
December-land music
NOW PLAYING | Tom Irwin Here we come a-wassailing and there we go, too, as the holiday-tinged experiences of December music fill the air with lots of jolly stuff and plenty of holly-ish things as well. We see blowup Santas and plastic nativity scenes decorating lawns, outdoor trees inside the house decorated to the max…
New Godzilla examines post-war trauma, Dream Scenario a daring social commentary
Franchise best Godzilla Minus One examines Japan’s post-war trauma Far more than just a simple monster movie, Takashi Yamazaki’s Godzilla Minus One is a moving examination of a nation dealing with societal trauma, the Japanese populace attempting to recover from massive damage inflicted on their land as well as their national psyche. Taking place just…
What do top-scoring and bottom-scoring schools look like?
Here is an in-depth look at four Springfield School District 186 schools based on their ISBE Report Card ratings. Two of them were highly rated “commendable” schools, Owen Marsh and Enos Elementary, while two, Jefferson Middle and Southeast High, were rated among the lowest-performing five percent of schools in Illinois. Owen Marsh Elementary School, Commendable…
Delicious gifts
I finally got my act together this year and got a head start on holiday baking preparations. Last weekend’s blustery weather practically begged me to bust out the stand mixer, put on some jaunty carols and get to work. I’ve been making holiday treat boxes for friends and family for years and always find myself…
Empowering the east side
Mentoring, recreation, financial literacy and employment-readiness training for children and young adults on Springfield’s east side are among activities that could be funded with $645,000 in grants approved in November by the Springfield City Council. The three organizations in line to receive the grants – part of $3 million in special state funding for the…
Police pay to increase
The total 21% increase in pay that Springfield police will see by the end of a new four-year union contract – including a 13% raise in the current fiscal year – will help recruit and retain officers and put their salaries more in line with comparable Illinois cities. That was the consensus of representatives from…
Editor’s note 12-07-23
This week’s cover story on the disappointing state report card for Springfield’s public schools is a study in frustration. Students, teachers and administrators trying their hardest aren’t moving the education needle much. A frustrated community may blame the schools, but these are good schools, or it may blame parents, but most parents take heroic measures…
Healing racial divisions
The speaker stood before the group of central Illinois nonprofit executives and posed the question: How would you define racism? The attendees shifted uncomfortably trying to define one of the most intractable problems facing the nation. Finally, someone said, “Bias without evidence.” The attendees, who were Black, white, Hispanic and Asian, nodded their heads appreciably…
