Jennifer Smith Richards – Page 7

Kansas Treatment and Learning Center is operated by Eastern Illinois Area Special Education, a regional special-education district that documented nearly 1,100 isolated timeouts in 15 months.

Daywatch special edition: We reported on children being locked away alone in schools across Illinois. One day later, the state ended the practice.

July 25, 2024 at 2:09 p.m.

This special edition of Daywatch is a collaboration between the Tribune's Jennifer Smith Richards and ProPublica Illinois' Jodi S. Cohen and Lakeidra Chavis. Get investigations like this with ProPublica's weekly...

Mark Klaisner, president of the state's Association of Regional Superintendent of Schools, addresses the issues concerning seclusion in Chicago Public Schools during a meeting of the Illinois State Board of Education at the Thompson Center in Chicago on Nov. 22, 2019.

Isolated timeouts have been temporarily banned in Illinois schools. What’s next?

June 14, 2024 at 6:42 p.m.

This story is a collaboration between the baiduhai and ProPublica Illinois. Two days after Gov. J.B. Pritzker ordered Illinois schools to immediately stop secluding children alone in timeout rooms,...

A seclusion room is shown Oct. 11, 2019, at Braun Educational Center in Oak Forest, which is operated by the Southwest Cook County Cooperative Association for Special Education.

Illinois to take emergency action to halt isolated timeouts in schools

June 14, 2024 at 6:42 p.m.

The Illinois State Board of Education announced Wednesday that it will take emergency action to end the seclusion of children alone behind locked doors at schools, saying the practice has...

Kayla Siegmeier plays with her son, Carson, at his school's playground in August 2019. Their Crystal Lake school district has not sent seclusion data to the federal government in recent years. "What they are doing is harming the kids and the parents by not allowing them to understand what is truly happening across the whole district," Siegmeier said.

The federal government collects data on how often schools seclude children. The numbers don’t add up.

July 25, 2024 at 2:05 p.m.

In fall 2015, Glacier Ridge Elementary School in Crystal Lake first used its Blue Room, a padded space that allows school workers to place students in "isolated timeout" for safety...

Documents obtained through public-records requests show that Braun Educational Center in Oak Forest isolated students in seclusion rooms nearly 500 times over one and a half school years. About 150 students with disabilities attend programs at Braun.

How we reported this story: Creating a first-ever database of thousands of seclusion incidents in Illinois

July 25, 2024 at 2:07 p.m.

The state of Illinois does not collect any data on how often public schools put students in seclusion, why they do it or for how long. Though state rules require...

A woman catches a Lyft ride-sharing car in Chicago's Loop on May 29, 2019. The number of vehicles involved in ride-sharing for Uber, Lyft and Via has skyrocketed in the last three years.

Uber and Lyft said ride-sharing would cut traffic congestion and supplement public transit. But has it worked?

June 16, 2019 at 4:09 p.m.

Ride-share companies like Uber and Lyft promised they would supplement public transit and help ease traffic congestion. But data collected by the city and now made public shows almost half...

The Illinois State Capitol building on May 21, 2019, in Springfield.

State lawmakers poised to pass changes following Chicago Public Schools sex abuse scandal

May 28, 2019 at 5:01 a.m.

State lawmakers appear poised to vote on a sweeping bill they say will protect Illinois students from sexual abuse and assault at school following nearly a year of negotiations on...

Murder charges filed in drive-by shooting of 15-year-old boy

May 27, 2019 at 6:30 p.m.

A 29-year-old man was ordered held without bond Monday after being charged in the drive-by shooting death of a teenager on the Far South Side two weeks ago. Antawan Smith...

Hubbard High School is shown on May 13, 2019. In recent months, CPS moved to fire four current or former Hubbard teachers for misconduct.

CPS moves to fire Hubbard teachers for sexual misconduct; ex-principal put on do-not-hire list

June 14, 2024 at 6:41 p.m.

Heightened scrutiny of abuse allegations in the Chicago Public Schools has prompted significant changes and disciplinary actions at Hubbard High School, which was spotlighted by the Tribune in its "Betrayed"...

Gov. J.B. Pritzker, alongside other lawmakers and stakeholders, announces a major step forward to legalize cannabis, at Black United Fund of Illinois on Saturday May 4, 2019. The bill also looks to expunge thousands of Class 4 felony marijuana convictions.

Illinois marijuana legalization bill would allow possession up to 30 grams, 5 plants grown at home

May 23, 2019 at 2:03 a.m.

A proposed law to legalize recreational use of marijuana in Illinois would allow possession of up to 30 grams of the plant for residents 21 and over, a $20 million...

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