The annual report from the Illinois State Board of Education revealed how the COVID-19 pandemic affected student enrollment. Also, many districts are forced to deal with vacancies.

The Illinois State Board of Education released its new report card on Wednesday. That name makes it sound like gives schools a grade, which it does. But there’s much more to it than that.

On The 21st: Making sense of the 2017 Illinois Report Card for public schools. Plus, author Johnathan Eig joins us to discuss his new book, “Ali: A Life,” and we learn about the first-ever Obama Foundation summit in Chicago. Also: More fall travel tips from some of our listeners.