![schools sd122 fine arts center schools sd122 fine arts center](https://southwestregionalpublishing.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/schools-sd122-fine-arts-center.jpg)
Grand opening of District 122 Fine Arts Center
Local News
![Bill blocking libraries from state funding if they ban books clears General Assembly Giannoulias](https://southwestregionalpublishing.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/img-BOOK-BANS-Giannoulias-230503-PQH2-4aG57M-1024x703.jpeg)
E-Notary makes things easier, Giannoulias says
Spread the love. From staff reports Illinois residents will no longer have to notarize documents in person under a new Electronic-Notary system administered by Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias’ office. Electronic Notarization, or “E-Notary,” will radically change the way people and use notary services, Giannoulias predicted. Without leaving the home or office, an individual or…
![reporter 4-16-24 oak lawn coloring contest photo 4-11 Fire Bureau Chief David Wheeler (from left), Mayor Terry Vorderer and Police Chief Daniel Vittorio congratulate the winners of the 2023 Fire and Safety Coloring Book Contest during the April 9 Oak Lawn Village Board meeting. (Photo by Joe Boyle)](https://southwestregionalpublishing.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/reporter-4-16-24-oak-lawn-coloring-contest-photo-4-11-1024x683.jpg)
Oak Lawn honor Fire and Public Safety Contest winners
Spread the loveBy Joe Boyle The Oak Lawn Chamber of Commerce presented awards to the winners of the 2023 Fire and Public Safety Coloring Book Contest at the Oak Lawn Village Board meeting on April 9. Fire Bureau Chief David Wheeler and Police Chief Daniel Vittoro were on hand to present the plaques, along with Oak…
![CRRNH_AbdelnasserRashid_062222 Abdelnasser Rashid](https://southwestregionalpublishing.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/CRRNH_AbdelnasserRashid_062222-1006x1024.jpg)
Rashid scolds TV news orgs on climate change
Spread the love. From staff reports State Rep. Abdelnasser Rashid (D-21st) recently scolded major news organizations for what he called a lack of attention to climate change. “Last year was marked by alarming climate extremes, from record-breaking heat waves to devastating floods, droughts and wildfires,” Rashid wrote earlier this month in a letter to his…
![RichMiller Rich Miller](https://southwestregionalpublishing.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/RichMiller.jpg)
Lawmakers push back against ‘lefty’ CTU
Spread the love. By Rich Miller . Just eight of 78 Illinois House Democrats openly sided last week with the once-indomitable Chicago Teachers Union. The CTU hotly opposed a bill to halt all public school closures and prevent disproportionate budget cuts and changes to admissions criteria at Chicago’s selective enrollment schools until a fully elected…
![biz ross coming to walt's spot in Tinley Park Ross Dress for Less is taking some space in the former Walt's Food Store in Tinley Park. (Photo by Bob Bong)](https://southwestregionalpublishing.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/biz-ross-coming-to-walts-spot-in-Tinley-Park-1024x427.jpg)
Comings & Goings: Ross to replace Walt’s at Tinley Park Plaza
Spread the loveBy Bob Bong When Walt’s Foods closed its Tinley Park location almost three years ago, it left a giant hole in the Tinley Park Plaza near 159th Street and Harlem Avenue. That hole will soon be filled with a new 22,000-square-foot Ross Dress for Less store and a 9,800-square-foot Five Below store. A…
![reporter 4-16-24 Community members and parents with kids at Iftar dinner This family was one of many that attended an Iftar dinner at Simmons Middle School in Oak Lawn. (Photos by Nuha Abdessalam)](https://southwestregionalpublishing.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/reporter-4-16-24-Community-members-and-parents-with-kids-at-Iftar-dinner-1024x768.jpg)
SD122 celebrates end of Ramadan at Simmons Middle School
Spread the loveBy Nuha Abdessalam As Ramadan was drawing to a close for Muslims worldwide, District 122’s Superintendent Joseph Matise, Oak Lawn Community High School’s Muslim Students Association club, and the district’s Parents Committee came together to create history. They hosted the first-ever Iftar dinner at Simmons Middle School on April 8, a significant event…
![1 Theresa Marketti, Green Committee member of the Orland Park Public Library, is happy to announce the launch of the library's first-ever Candy Bar Recycling Program. Candy wrappers can be dropped off at the library, 14921 S. Ravinia Ave., Orland Park. (Supplied photo)](https://southwestregionalpublishing.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/1-16-1024x683.jpg)
Orland Park Library collecting candy wrappers
Spread the loveBy Kelly White Candy has taken on a whole new life at one local library. The Orland Park Public Library, 14921 S. Ravinia Ave., Orland Park, is happy to announce the launch of its very first Trash or Treasure candy wrapper recycling campaign. The Trash or Treasure program helps reduce the waste that…
![reporter 4-16-24 Hickory Hills Andre Showers with fiance Destiny pinning him Andre Showers’ fiancée Destiny pins the police badge on his uniform at last week’s Hickory Hills City Council meeting. (Photos by Nuha Abdessalam)](https://southwestregionalpublishing.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/reporter-4-16-24-Hickory-Hills-Andre-Showers-with-fiance-Destiny-pinning-him-1024x768.jpg)
Hickory Hills adds new police officer
Spread the loveBy Nuha Abdessalam Hickory Hills Police Chief Jason Bray welcomed Andre Showers as the city’s newest police officer during last week’s city council meeting. Aldermen and the community at the April 11 meeting helped celebrate the induction of the Showers, 21. He’s an Army veteran and a 2023 Cook County Correctional Camp graduate…
![1 Marist High School, 4200 W. 115th St., Chicago, hosted its second annual Celebration of Culture Night on March 14. (Supplied photo)](https://southwestregionalpublishing.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/1-1024x584.png)
Marist celebrates cultural diversity
Spread the loveBy Kelly White Marist High School appreciates the wide array of culture that walks its campus hallways on a daily basis. In order to celebrate, the high school, 4200 W. 115th St., Chicago, hosted its second annual Celebration of Culture on March 14. During the free event, students, faculty and staff represented their…
![regional 4-16-24 gigi's playhouse regional 4-16-24 gigi's playhouse](https://southwestregionalpublishing.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/regional-4-16-24-gigis-playhouse-1024x494.jpg)
Palos Heights Knights of Columbus donate to GiGi’s Playhouse
Spread the loveGrand Knight John Laskey and Past Grand Knight Brian Mellenthin of St. Theodore Guerin Knights of Columbus Council 14057 presented a check for $1,500 to GiGi’s Playhouse of Tinley Park, one of several donations to local groups resulting from the Knights of Columbus’ Fall Tootsie Roll Drive. One of the most recognizable activities…
Neighbors
![Illinoisans can now get documents notarized online Illinoisans can now get documents notarized online](https://southwestregionalpublishing.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/240423-SOS-AA2-oMhZz3-1024x682.jpeg)
Illinoisans can now get documents notarized online
By ALEX ABBEDUTO Capitol News Illinois abbeduto@capitolnewsillinois.com Illinoisans who need a notary public can now access those services online through a new “E-Notary” portal launched by the secretary of state’s office. This process is one of the latest initiatives of Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias’ ongoing effort to modernize the office and its services. Notaries…
![Prairie Band Potawatomi becomes 1st federally recognized tribe in Illinois Prairie Band Potawatomi becomes 1st federally recognized tribe in Illinois](https://southwestregionalpublishing.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Rupnick-1-240222-pqh-HMVfb4-1024x726.jpeg)
Prairie Band Potawatomi becomes 1st federally recognized tribe in Illinois
By HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois hmeisel@capitolnewsillinois.com Nearly 200 years after Native Americans were forced out of Illinois, the Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation has become the first federally recognized tribal nation in the state after a decision from the U.S. Department of the Interior last week. The move represents the first victory in the tribe’s…
![Remembering Lee Milner Remembering Lee Milner](https://southwestregionalpublishing.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/MILNER-0038-J2QXy0-1024x682.jpeg)
Remembering Lee Milner
NEWS TEAM Capitol News Illinois news@capitolnewsillinois.com On Wednesday, April 17, the Springfield, Illinois Capitol and journalism communities lost a devoted friend and advocate when Lee Milner passed away. As Dean Olsen wrote in his piece in the Illinois Times earlier this month, “Readers of Illinois Times often have seen Milner’s work as a freelance photojournalist. But…
![Capitol Briefs: Expansion of postpartum coverage, ban on kangaroos among hundreds of measures to pass House Capitol Briefs: Expansion of postpartum coverage, ban on kangaroos among hundreds of measures to pass House](https://southwestregionalpublishing.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/MORGAN-jn-0224-L9MtfF-1024x682.jpeg)
Capitol Briefs: Expansion of postpartum coverage, ban on kangaroos among hundreds of measures to pass House
By ALEX ABBEDUTO & COLE LONGCOR Capitol News Illinois news@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – Illinois kangaroo owners are one step closer to being forced to surrender their marsupials this week after the House passed a bill criminalizing their possession. That was one of more than 300 bills to pass the House ahead of a Friday procedural deadline.…
![Pritzker says state ‘obviously’ needs to change 2010 law that shrunk pension benefits Pritzker says state ‘obviously’ needs to change 2010 law that shrunk pension benefits](https://southwestregionalpublishing.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/PRITZKER-jn-03841-7ziCcf-1024x682.jpeg)
Pritzker says state ‘obviously’ needs to change 2010 law that shrunk pension benefits
By HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois hmeisel@capitolnewsillinois.com With a month-and-a-half left in the General Assembly’s spring session, Gov. JB Pritzker’s administration is readying its proposal to address Illinois’ chronically underfunded pension system. But the governor this week also acknowledged in the strongest terms yet that any plans to finally get the state on track toward…
![Pritzker’s health insurance reforms targeting ‘utilization management’ clear House Pritzker’s health insurance reforms targeting ‘utilization management’ clear House](https://southwestregionalpublishing.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/PRITZKER-MOELLER-jn-04371-5uBcTd-1024x682.jpeg)
Pritzker’s health insurance reforms targeting ‘utilization management’ clear House
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois phancock@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – Gov. JB Pritzker celebrated a partial legislative victory Thursday night when the House passed his initiative to end some practices health insurance companies use to control the amount and cost of health care services individual patients receive. The “Healthcare Protection Act,” House Bill 5395, cleared the…
![Lawmakers, cannabis industry calls for ban on ‘delta-8’ and other psychoactive hemp products Lawmakers, cannabis industry calls for ban on ‘delta-8’ and other psychoactive hemp products](https://southwestregionalpublishing.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/DELTA-8-LEAD-jQPbWZ-1024x698.jpeg)
Lawmakers, cannabis industry calls for ban on ‘delta-8’ and other psychoactive hemp products
By HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois hmeisel@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – Illinois’ largest cannabis business association is pushing to ban the sale of delta-8 THC, an increasingly popular psychoactive substance that’s popped up in corner stores across the country in recent years. New legislation filed in Springfield this week revives an ongoing debate over delta-8 and other…
![As state continues to inventory lead pipes, full replacement deadlines are decades away As state continues to inventory lead pipes, full replacement deadlines are decades away](https://southwestregionalpublishing.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/240412-LEAD-MAP1-BMGHHn-1024x511.jpeg)
As state continues to inventory lead pipes, full replacement deadlines are decades away
By COLE LONGCOR Capitol News Illinois Clongcor@capitolnewsillinois.com Lead pipes in public water systems and drinking fixtures have been banned in new construction since 1986, when Congress amended the Safe Drinking Water Act, but they are still in use across the U.S. and in Illinois. The presence of lead pipes has persisted due in part to…
![Capitol Briefs: Bill creating new early childhood agency among 244 to advance Capitol Briefs: Bill creating new early childhood agency among 244 to advance](https://southwestregionalpublishing.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/LIGHTFORD1-FnDABx-1024x576.jpeg)
Capitol Briefs: Bill creating new early childhood agency among 244 to advance
By ALEX ABBEDUTO HANNAH MEISEL & COLE LONGCOR Capitol News Illinois news@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – Gov. JB Pritzker’s plan to create a new state agency to oversee Illinois’ various early childhood programs moved forward on Friday after the state Senate’s unanimous approval. It was one of 244 bills that cleared the Senate this week. Early childhood…
![INVESTIGATE MIDWEST: Farmers have clamored for the Right to Repair for years. It’s getting little traction in John Deere’s home state INVESTIGATE MIDWEST: Farmers have clamored for the Right to Repair for years. It’s getting little traction in John Deere’s home state](https://southwestregionalpublishing.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Midwest_Right_to_Repair_63-WE6zWz-1024x682.jpeg)
INVESTIGATE MIDWEST: Farmers have clamored for the Right to Repair for years. It’s getting little traction in John Deere’s home state
By Jennifer Bamberg, Investigate Midwest Originally published April 10, 2024 During the 2023 harvest season, one of Jake Lieb’s tractors quit working. A week later, his combine stopped working, too. Both were new — and he was locked out from making any repairs himself because of software restrictions embedded in the machines. Instead, a technician…