The Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) is spotlighting National Black Business Month this August. Illinois is home to more than 148,000 Black-owned businesses, which employ around 196,000 people and contribute $4.6 billion annually to the state’s economy. The DCEO is commemorating this month […]

A recent study from the University of Illinois System reveals that many Illinois students are still struggling to recover from the learning disruptions caused by pandemic school closures. Despite efforts to lessen the impact, the findings indicate that only a quarter of public-school students have returned […]

The 2024 edition of the Illinois State Fair officially opened on August 8. In the morning, there was a formal ribbon-cutting ceremony, followed by the annual Twilight Parade in the evening. One of the event’s longstanding traditions is the construction and unveiling of the butter cow, […]

Significant changes to the state’s controversial Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA) took effect during the week. The law was originally proposed to protect Illinois residents’ biometric data, but it created substantial unintended consequences, including multi-billion-dollar damage awards for situations that were never intended to be targets […]