Good afternoon. Here’s the latest news you need to know in Chicago. It’s about a 5-minute read that will brief you on today’s biggest stories.
Some snow is in the forecast for this afternoon, which will otherwise be cloudy with a high near 32 degrees. The snow, along with some freezing rain, continues tonight; 2 to 4 inches of accumulation is possible as temperatures rise to 34 degrees by 5 a.m. Tomorrow will be rainy and snowy, with a high near 38 degrees.
Top story
Nearly a third of CPS staffers scheduled to return to schools next week asked to work from home or take leave — but most rejected
Most of the Chicago Public Schools teachers and staffers who are scheduled to return to classrooms next week for the first time in nine months haven’t raised any qualms about doing so with the district — but almost a third of them requested to work from home or take a leave of absence.
That’s according to data released by the district today on the 7,002 pre-kindergarten and special education cluster program employees who were asked to return to work Jan. 4 after the unprecedented coronavirus pandemic closure.
Two-thirds of those employees — 4,684 of them — didn’t ask for leave or accommodations.
Another 2,010 employees did apply to stay home or take leave. The district granted 861 of those requests and rejected 1,149 of them, or about 16% of all returning workers. An additional 308 requests are pending, according to CPS.
The 7,002 pre-K and cluster employees make up the first wave of returning CPS workers, followed by K-8 teachers Jan. 25. Hybrid in-person learning for K-8 students is scheduled to resume Feb. 1.
CPS spokeswoman Emily Bolton noted about 79% of the first wave of returning employees either didn’t ask for any accommodations — or received them. All 527 employees who requested leave of absence due to a personal underlying health condition were granted it.
“Health and safety are the district’s highest priorities and accommodations for remote work have been granted to all teachers and staff who have documented medical conditions as defined by the CDC, and where possible, accommodations were also granted to staff who live with someone with a high-risk medical condition, or who face child care challenges,” Bolton said in a statement.
But of the 790 employees who made requests because they reported living with someone who has a serious medical condition — and therefore would be more vulnerable to COVID-19 — only 148 requests were approved, or about 19% of them, while 642 were rejected.
The district said it’s revisiting that number, though, because the initial request process “did not distinguish between individuals living with medically-vulnerable individuals and those who are caregivers.” Primary caregivers will be prioritized in a new process.
“While the district cannot guarantee every one of these caregiver requests will be granted a remote work accommodation, we expect that we will grant the vast majority of their requests,” CPS said in a statement.
The district received 513 requests from employees who reported issues finding childcare accommodations; just 59 were approved and 454 were rejected.
Read Mitchell Armentrout’s story here.
More news you need
- The city’s top public health official, Dr. Allison Arwady, rolled up her sleeve for the coronavirus vaccine today as she opened Chicago’s first mass vaccination site at Malcolm X College. “Honestly, can’t even feel it,“ said Arwady, moments after getting the jab. “I’m so pleased right now.”
- A lawyer for Anjanette Young, the victim of a botched 2019 raid by Chicago police officers, canceled an upcoming meeting with Mayor Lori Lightfoot yesterday, saying the mayor’s apologies “without action ring hollow and fall on deaf ears.” Young had proposed meeting with Lightfoot Wednesday to discuss the raid and the city’s response.
- The Chicago Transit Authority plans to offer free disposable face masks on several city bus routes. The pilot program will place mask dispensers at the front of nearly 200 buses on 20 different routes.
- Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle opened up the option of picking a new public defender in March, and today she announced the formation of a selection committee to review candidates. Preckwinkle called the public defender’s office “critical to our criminal justice system.”
- Longtime WGN-TV and WGN Radio sports editor Jack Rosenberg died earlier this week at age 94. Rosenberg, who was a force behind WGN’s sports programming, is credited with helping form the modern sports broadcast. He started working at WGN in 1954.
A bright one
Movies under the stars were among 2020’s very good things
2020 will be remembered as the year the cultural arts world came to a grinding halt in Chicago and across the globe. Millions of artists on stage, on screen and behind the scenes in the entertainment industry found themselves out of work. Hollywood closed down film and TV series productions for much of the year; Broadway remains shuttered.
Still, there were glimmers of hope born of determination, perseverance and the will to bring some semblance of normalcy to the lives of theater, music, dance and movie fans. Whether it was virtual concerts, play readings, informational panels, audio performances or podcasts, the shows did go on via streaming (and a few in-person, socially distanced events).
But there was one more player in the mix: the drive-in theater. The rebirth of that remnant of the 1940s and 50s, when more than 4,000 screens dotted the country’s landscape managed to provide a night out for Chicagoans throughout the summer and even into the winter, with holiday screenings happening through the end of December.
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The summer saw makeshift drive-ins pop up in the parking lots of theaters, outdoor sports arenas and neighborhood venues. These included the ChiTown Movies drive-in located in the parking lot adjacent to the massive ChiTown Futbol facility at 2343 S. Throop St. in Pilsen; the Drive-In at Lincoln Yards at 1684 N. Throop St. near the Fleet Fields soccer space; the Lakeshore Drive-In adjacent to the Adler Planetarium and the Chicago Drive-In Theaters at SeatGeek Stadium in Bridgeview and the Now Arena, formerly Sears Centre, in Hoffman Estates.
Even Soldier Field got into the drive-in mood, with Wednesday and Sunday night movies throughout the summer shown on a big screen outside the South Lot festival area.
“I don’t know that the concept is here to stay necessarily,” said Louie Mendocino, a fixture on Chicago’s music scene and co-owner/program director for Chicago Drive-In theaters, “because when the world gets back to normal and every other avenue is at your fingertips the nostalgia might wear off. But it’s definitely been a good outlet for people at a time when they really needed it.”
Read Miriam Di Nunzio’s full story here.
From the press box
The Blackhawks’ forward group took another big blow today with the concerning news that captain Jonathan Toews is out indefinitely due to an unknown illness. “This offseason, I’ve been experiencing symptoms that have left me feeling drained and lethargic,” Toews said in a statement released by the team. “I am working with doctors so I can better understand my condition.“
And with the Bears’ playoff push entering its final stretch, Patrick Finley offers up seven key factors that will decide whether they’re in or out.
Your daily question ☕
How do you plan on celebrating New Year’s Eve this year?
Email us (please include your first name and where you live) and we might feature your answer in the next Afternoon Edition.
Yesterday, we asked you: What was the best gift you received for the holidays this year? Here’s what some of you said…
“It was a gift to Zoom call with my daughter, brothers, sisters, nieces and nephews.” — Cheryl Wittorp Debner
“A portable turntable from my son. Brought back so many memories…had to bring all my vinyls out of storage bins.” — Yvonne Moore
“The gift of life! So many people lost their lives that how could you not see life as the best gift of 2020 and best gift ever!” — Yesenia Arocho
“A diamond tennis bracelet that was my mom’s. She passed and my brother passed it on to me.” — Lynn Patz-Nance
“Having my son and daughter-in-law home from the Air Force.” — Tracey Woody
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