Local News
By Jeff Vorva The Village of Orland Park is not the only government body exploring the possibility of erecting a special-needs baseball/softball field in the village. Consolidated High School District 230 Assistant Supt. for Business Services John Lavelle brought up the possibility of tag-teaming with Orland School District 135 to provide a field for special-need…
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By Bob Bong Seven candidates are running for four seats on the school board in District 118 and the new board will definitely have some new faces after next week’s election. Two incumbents, Katie Thomason and James Cantorna, are not running for re-election, which means at least two new board members will be coming in…
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By Dermot Connolly Tony Serratore, president of the District 230 School Board, said that having all students receiving in-person instruction will depend on health guidelines. Responding to a question from board member Mike Hardek during a meeting last Thursday night, Serratore said that the timetable for increasing the percentage of students on campus to 50…
Read MoreBy Dermot Connolly Hundreds of people from throughout the southwest suburbs attended an Orland Park rally last Thursday to reopen schools and sports that was organized by parents of students at Sandburg High School and other local high schools and elementary schools. District 230 announced on Monday that the three high schools it oversees…
Read MoreBy Dermot Connolly District 230 Supt. Dr. James M. Gay informed staff on Aug.10 that he plans to retire at the end of this school year, his 15th as superintendent. The District 230 School Board plans to discuss the next steps regarding the search for his successor at their Aug. 27 meeting, “Today, I share with…
Read MoreBy Dermot Connolly Now that the state has signaled schools can reopen for in-person classes in August, local school districts are working on plans to make that possible while still meeting Illinois Department of Health guidelines for preventing the spread of the COVID-19 virus. Schools have been closed statewide since mid-March due to the coronavirus pandemic, with classes held…
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Board lets Covino, Kingsfield depart to ‘promote from within’ By Bob Bong A changing of the guard is coming to Argo High School this summer when both the superintendent and principal will be replaced. The school board did not renew the contracts for either Principal Chris Covino or Supt. Jill Kingsfield. Their expire on June…
Read More By Dermot Connolly With in-person classes and meetings impossible due to pandemic social distancing restrictions, the District 230 School Board is finding ways to celebrate graduating seniors and retiring staff while planning for reopening schools in the fall. At the monthly board meeting held via Zoom last Thursday, the board hired five administrators to fill…
Read More By Dermot Connolly Local high schools switched to eLearning, or online classes, last week due to state-mandated “stay at home” orders until at least April 7 to contain the novel coronavirus that causes the COVID-19 disease. Several are on spring break this week, including Districts 230 and 218, and Oak Lawn Community High School (District…
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You say you want a resolution? Orland Park has more than a few
By Jeff Vorva At first, William Healy had some doubts. But thanks to “Mad” Anthony Wayne, he believes he and his peers are doing the right thing. The Orland Park Village Board of Trustees has seemingly been drawing up resolutions every meeting, be it to protest the state’s mandates on masking, other COVID-related issues and,…
Overnight closures for Roberts Road and 87th Street
Overnight road closures on Roberts Road and 87th Street with posted detours are scheduled to begin this weekend to accommodate mainline bridge removal work for the Central Tri-State Tollway (I-294) Project. The overnight closures of the local roads are necessary to safely accommodate the removal of the I-294 mainline bridge deck and beams over Roberts Road and 87th Street.…
High School Football: Jake Maziarka runs for 4 TDs in Sandburg’s win over Stagg
By Jason Maholy Sports Editor During the week heading into Sandburg’s matchup with Stagg, Eagles coach Troy McAllister’s message to his players was to not take the winless Chargers for granted. The Eagles were coming off the program’s most significant victory since at least 2015, a 30-27 triumph over powerful Lincoln-Way East in a game…
High School Football: JCA beats Rice in battle of top-rated teams
By Jeff Vorva Correspondent Brother Rice quarterback Jack Lausch has put up some impressive running and passing numbers in both wins and losses this year. The Crusaders, who were ranked No. 1 in the state by the sportswriters in the Associated Press poll heading into Friday’s action, had a 49-46 setback to Class 8A No.…
College Football: Olivet tops Saint Xavier in offensive showdown
By Jeff Vorva Correspondent The number 13 was not lucky the second time. For the second time in as many home games, St. Xavier University faced the 13th-ranked team in the nation in NAIA play according to the coaches polls. While they stunned 13th-ranked St. Francis, Indiana, 38-0, on Sept. 25, the 18th-ranked Cougars had…
Pro Soccer Report: House wins first game at home; Milazzo scores first pro goal
By Jeff Vorva Correspondent It was a weekend of firsts when it came to the area’s professional soccer teams. The Chicago House won its historic first home game Saturday at SeatGeek Stadium in Bridgeview with a 1-0 triumph over San Diego 1904 FC. Sunday night, Orland Park’s Tatumn Milazzo, a defender who doesn’t get many…
Midnight Terror is bigger, better, uglier and scarier
By Jeff Vorva Justin Cerniuk, of Oak Lawn, is 31 but his philosophy is the same at it was when he was 10 years old and started a horror show in his front yard. “I’ve always had the same goals since I was 10 and that’s to have fun with a group of friends building…
Zelda’s Kitchen Witches bring new hope to women in need
By Kelly White For years, the Crisis Center of South Suburbia has been helping women in need. “By the time a victim of domestic violence finds the courage to leave and come to our emergency shelter, they are barely hanging on,” Sarah Tygart, Director of Victim Services at the Crisis Center for South Suburbia, said.…
SD230 joins discussion on special needs field in Orland
By Jeff Vorva The Village of Orland Park is not the only government body exploring the possibility of erecting a special-needs baseball/softball field in the village. Consolidated High School District 230 Assistant Supt. for Business Services John Lavelle brought up the possibility of tag-teaming with Orland School District 135 to provide a field for special-need…
Orland Park says village shortchanged by feds in rescue plan allocation
By Jeff Vorva Orland Park village trustees and Mayor Keith Pekau are now taking issue with the federal government. After months of taking umbrage with county and state government bodies for various reasons, Pekau and Co. are fed up with the Feds for being allocated $5 million from the American Rescue Plan Act when similar…
Illinois News
Report: Nursing homes in crisis with staff shortages
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois [email protected] SPRINGFIELD – A new report released Wednesday says staffing shortages at nursing homes in Illinois have reached crisis proportions and that people of color are most at risk of suffering the consequences. That’s because those individuals are more likely to live in understaffed facilities or in “ward” rooms…
Springfield transportation hub to relieve rail congestion
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois [email protected] SPRINGFIELD – A railway improvement project intended to greatly improve traffic congestion between St. Louis and Chicago reached a milestone Tuesday as work began on a multimodal transportation hub in the capital city. Gov. JB Pritzker was joined at a groundbreaking ceremony by U.S. Sens. Dick Durbin and…
CAPITOL RECAP: Congressional redistricting hearings begin
By CAPITOL NEWS ILLINOIS SPRINGFIELD – The process of redrawing congressional district maps in Illinois got off to a slow start Thursday when only one person showed up to testify at the first legislative public hearing, which was held in Chicago. Ryan Tolley, policy director for the advocacy group CHANGE Illinois, urged the House Redistricting…
Task force considers changes to qualified immunity for Illinois law enforcement officers
By JERRY NOWICKI Capitol News Illinois [email protected] SPRINGFIELD – A new state task force continued discussions Thursday as to what changes could be made to the way state law approaches qualified immunity for law enforcement officers. Qualified immunity is a court doctrine granting protection for law enforcement officers and other government officials from certain civil…
Only one testifies at first congressional redistricting hearing
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois [email protected] SPRINGFIELD – The process of redrawing congressional district maps in Illinois got off to a slow start Thursday when only one person showed up to testify at the first legislative public hearing, which was held in Chicago. Ryan Tolley, policy director for the advocacy group CHANGE Illinois, urged…
Plaintiffs: New legislative maps dilute Latino vote
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois [email protected] SPRINGFIELD – Plaintiffs in two lawsuits challenging the state’s legislative redistricting plan have filed new complaints in federal court charging that the district maps that lawmakers approved in August dilute Latino voting power and thus violate the U.S. Constitution and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. The Mexican…
Officials outline progress in Cairo river port development
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois [email protected] SPRINGFIELD – A proposed river port development in the southern Illinois town of Cairo is drawing much attention and interest from companies that believe it could open up greater access to international markets, officials behind the project said Tuesday. The Alexander-Cairo Port District project has been on the…
Report details disparities faced by aging LGBTQ Illinoisans
By JERRY NOWICKI Capitol News Illinois [email protected] SPRINGFIELD – Many aging LGBTQ Illinoisans face barriers to health care and financial security and fear discrimination in senior communities, according to a combined report from senior and LGBTQ advocacy groups released Tuesday. The Disrupting Disparities: Challenges and Solutions for 50+ LGBTQ Illinoisans report by the senior advocacy…
Law enforcement steps up efforts to fight online child exploitation
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois [email protected] SPRINGFIELD – State Attorney General Kwame Raoul joined local and federal prosecutors Monday to announce new efforts to combat a rise in online child exploitation in Illinois. The efforts include greater outreach and education for parents and teachers, and a new mobile computer forensics unit that will…
Pritzker order aims to end subminimum wage for disabled people in state contracts
By JERRY NOWICKI Capitol News Illinois [email protected] SPRINGFIELD – Gov. JB Pritzker signed an executive order Monday that would prevent companies contracting with the state from paying disabled workers at less than the minimum wage. Pritzker took the action in what he said was a broader effort to try to push federal lawmakers to change…