The 217 Today Podcast

217 Today: Monday, Feb. 8, 2021

Brian Moline and Olivia Butts
 
The COVID-19 testing site at State Farm Center on the University of Illinois campus.

The COVID-19 testing site at State Farm Center on the University of Illinois campus. Christine Herman/Illinois Newsroom

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Monday Feb. 8, 2021

Today's headlines: 

  • Single-digit temperatures and another coating of light snow are making travel conditions a bit tricky this morning across central Illinois. The Illinois Department of Transportation says roads in Champaign County are partially to mostly snow and ice-covered as of Monday morning.

  • Several Illinois university presidents are calling on Governor JB Pritzker to include higher education employees in the state’s current phase of COVID-19 vaccine distribution.

  • Every class looks different during the pandemic – but P.E. teachers are faced with one of the most unique challenges.

  • University of Illinois officials report 23 new COVID-19 cases from tests conducted on Saturday. There have been 568 new cases since students began returning to campus on January 18th.

In today's deeper dive, the University of Illinois has identified more than 550 COVID-19 cases linked to the Urbana campus just three weeks into the semester. Illinois Newsroom’s Christine Herman spoke with University of Illinois epidemiologist Becky Smith about the impact of the vaccine and what’s on the horizon.

217 Today is produced by Olivia Butts. Reporting today contributed by Hannah Meisel, Derek Cantu, Peter Medlin, and Christine Herman.