“More than coaches” – A Chicago West Side high school is turning players into men

By Chris Cadeau Medill Reports He knows violent gangs offer his West Side players a pass as they trek through bullet-riddled cityscape hauling their football pads to and from practice, while they dream of a life outside of Chicago. D’Angelo Dereef and his coaching staff at Al Raby high school on the city’s West Side […]
Looming state budget cuts set up cultural clash at centers for students of color

By Alex Ortiz Brittney Hopgood graduated from the University of Illinois at Chicago in 2014 with a degree in industrial design. The high point? Getting a part-time job as a African-American Cultural Center marketing assistant. She had struggled to find an internship within her major to gain experience, and there, she found opportunity — and […]
Teacher recruitment aims to diversify ranks, reflect communities, boost pupil outcomes

By Emily Olsen David Gregg has been working at Nicholas Senn High School for more than a decade, watching the “very diverse” school transform from academically struggling to a well-regarded neighborhood high school. The Edgewater school is filled with students from all over the world, around 65 different nationalities, including large populations of African-American and Hispanic […]
Clinton ‘Firewall’ in South Carolina primary resonates in Illinois

By Caroline Kenny In the wake of her virtual tie in Iowa and a 20-point loss to Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) in New Hampshire last night, Hillary Clinton is looking to the next stop on the campaign trail, South Carolina, to lock down the votes in a more diverse state. Iowa has not always been kind […]