Melissa Esparza is one of about 700,000 teens — or one in 30 high schoolers aged 13 to 17 — who experience unaccompanied homelessness in a given year, according to data from Chapin Hall, a policy and research center based at the University of Chicago. The center also estimates that one in 30 kids between 13 and 17 experience unaccompanied homelessness — meaning they lack both a stable residence and a parent or guardian.

An estimated 10,643 people in Illinois are homeless according to federal data. Many of those are working - but still can’t make ends meet.

Many communities in Illinois have rules that say renters can lose their housing if someone in the home is connected to a crime. City leaders who back the policies say the rules make neighborhoods safer. But fair housing advocates question the tactics.

New tax incentives could help some downstate Illinois cities rehab some old buildings for housing and businesses. But there are a few catches.

A law allows Illinois school districts to use a portion of their transportation funding to help homeless families, and those at risk of becoming homeless, pay for a place to live.

People on electronic monitoring (EM) as a condition of parole can only leave home with explicit permission from a state parole agent.

Slow internet service can slow a business down, adding up to lost time and money. And often the problem is worse in rural areas.

Crumbling sidewalks, gas line failures and cracked concrete — the problems at Brookfield Zoo are a metaphor for what’s wrong with public infrastructure throughout Illinois. As lawmakers begin negotiating a statewide spending plan to fix it, the zoo is among a growing list of those coming to Springfield with their paws out.

In 2018, fewer than 4 percent of incoming medical students in Illinois were black men. It’s a concerning statistic as research suggests a lack of diversity among physicians could negatively impact health outcomes in their community.

Illinois could save millions of dollars on incarceration costs if the federal ban on Pell Grants for inmates was lifted, according to a new report from the Vera Institute of Justice.