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AM580 News Headlines:
Three Urbana Elementary School Make AYP; Three Do Not
First Champaign County Swine Flu Case Confirmed
Banks in Danville, Clinton Among Half-Dozen Closed By Regulators
Local Lawmakers Differ on Failed Plan to Use Pension Bonds to Shore Up Budget
Flash Index of Illinois Economy Drops Two Points in June
Ill. Gov. Quinn vetoes budget plan
Indiana Lawmakers, Governor Hurry Two-Year Budget into Place
Illinois Faces New Budget Year with No Budget
Top news features from WILL:
Champaign County Moves to One Administrator
Story air date: Friday, June 19, 2009
For 11 years, Champaign County government has had two administrators -- Deb Busey to look after staffing and finance and Denny Inman to take care of procurement and facilities. But that will change October 1st. The Champaign County Board has voted to switch to a single-administrator system, and to put Busey in the job. After the vote, Busey talked with AM 580’s Jim Meadows about the challenges ahead and about the controversial clause in her contract that bars county board members from publicly criticizing her job performance. But first, Busey talked about the prospect of becoming the county’s sole administrator after sharing duties with Denny Inman for over a decade.
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Story categories: government • Champaign County
Education Writer Weighs In on Student Admissions Outside U of I
Story air date: Wednesday, June 17, 2009
A writer following trends in higher education says the Chicago Tribune reports of a 'clout list' of University of Illinois students admitted via political connections will no doubt yield inquiries at other institutions. But senior reporter Eric Hoover with the Washington-based Chronicle of Higher Education says the issue isn't too far removed from what happens elsewhere. AM 580's Jeff Bossert spoke with Hoover:
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Story categories: education • University of Illinois
Interview with Abner Mikva, Appointed to Head Up Governor's Commission on U of I Admissions
Story air date: Thursday, June 11, 2009
Retired federal judge Abner Mikva says he wants to bring some transparency to the admissions process at the University of Illinois, and ensure that students are admitted on merit and not “political clout”. Mikva has been named by Governor Pat Quinn to chair a seven member commission to investigate U of I admission practices and issue a report in 60 days. The commission was formed after news reports revealed that some less-qualified students had been admitted because of political connections. Mikva talked with AM 580's Jim Meadows about the new commission and its goals.
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Story categories: education • government • Illinois • politics • University of Illinois
Work Begins at Former Goal Gasification Site in Champaign
Story air date: Tuesday, June 09, 2009
A neighborhood in east Champaign is about see the long-awaited cleanup of a former manufactured gas plant get underway. Residents in the area contend that that work will not only stop short of what’s necessary… but say part of the problem is the city’s fault.
AM 580’s Jeff Bossert reports:
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Story categories: environment • government • Champaign • health
UI President Joseph White Denounces 'Clout List'
Story air date: Friday, May 29, 2009
University of Illinois President Joseph White says the idea of listing the names of prospective students at the urging of the politically connected is nothing new.
But he says an article in Friday’s Chicago Tribune, and accompanying e-mails on its web site, could give the impression that less qualified candidates for admission are getting preferential treatment.
AM 580’s Jeff Bossert talked with White, who says any such notion needs to be put to rest:
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Goodbye Bookmobile
Story air date: Friday, May 29, 2009
The Champaign Public Library ends its Bookmobile service Friday, retiring the library-on-wheels after 47 years of service. AM 580’s Marissa Monson sat on the bus for one of the last stops.
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The Movies and Science
Story air date: Friday, May 29, 2009
Researchers have found an opportunity for public education in a Hollywood blockbuster. “The DaVinci Code” offered a rich backdrop of religious history in laying out its plot. And in its sequel “Angels and Demons,” author Dan Brown injects physics – the Vatican is threatened by a bomb planted by the shadowy organization the Illuminati. Its explosive charge is based on antimatter stolen from CERN, the Swiss particle physics laboratory that produces antimatter in its Large Hadron Collider. Physicists want to step in with some caveats. University of Illinois professor Kevin Pitts says CERN, the collider and antimatter are very real, but he tells AM 580's Tom Rogers that antimatter’s potential is just starting to be realized.
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Story categories: arts and culture • entertainment • science • technology
After the Gateway Studios Evictions: What About Next Time?
Story air date: Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Last week’s sudden closure of a residential hotel in Champaign forced dozens of people to look for a place to live on short notice. It also forced the City of Champaign into action – not just to condemn the Gateway Studios for lack of utilities, but to help arrange housing for those residents, most of them low-income. Housing advocates see the evictions – and a similar incident at the Autumn Glen apartment Complex in Rantoul – to call for changes in housing policy in Champaign and Urbana. Former Urbana alderman Danielle Chynoweth has brought a proposal to the Champaign and Urbana city councils to offer cash assistance for relocation to people left homeless by condemnation – the landlord would be held responsible for that money. She spoke with AM 580's Tom Rogers.
The head of Champaign’s Neighborhood Services department, Kevin Jackson, told AM 580’s Jim Meadows last week that while rental help is available from agencies, some of it is based on the applicant’s background. Jackson says the city is open to discussion on permanent policy changes.
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Meadows' interview with Kevin Jackson:
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The full interview with Danielle Chynoweth:
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Story categories: civil rights • economy • government • Champaign • Urbana • urban planning
