A U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics report found 201,000 Illinoisans left their jobs in August alone.

But here in Sangamon County, the unemployment rate went from 5.9% in August to 4.9% the next month.

People working in the local job market say things have gotten much better, but we still have a long way to go.

Dr. Kenneth Kriz, a Public Administration professor at University of Illinois Springfield, says the unemployment rate doesn’t necessarily capture the whole picture.

Family Pride Laundry in Springfield has a new spin for its customers: a children's library.

The idea of turning a corner of the laundromat into a place where youngsters can read originated with Amanda Brown, a 20-year-old student at University of Illinois Springfield.

"I was just really attracted to it because I love working with kids. And I thought this would be a perfect way to be able to help the community," said Brown, who is studying elementary education and communications.

The University of Illinois Springfield men's basketball team starts the 2021 season Friday at the Lindenwood Tipoff Classic. The Prairie Stars are hoping to improve on their 8-12 record from last season.

Head coach Matt Brock said the Prairie Stars are excited for the return of fans.

"I'm excited about our team," Brock said. "All of our newcomers can make an impact in one way or the other. We got a lot of players that can play well. We're trying to find the right lineups and right combinations that play the best right now."

The University of Illinois Springfield women's basketball team tips off the season Friday at the Midwest Region Crossover.

The Prairie Stars return from their best Great Lake Valley Conference season record in program history. The 10-11 record is also the second best winning percentage in the NCAA era.

University of Illinois Springfield (UIS) raised the American flag in a ceremony Thursday to commemorate Veteran's Day.

The annual Flag Raising Ceremony honored the holiday's historical connection to World War I.

Following the flag raising, Alicia Tate-Nadeau, the director of the Illinois Emergency Management Agency, gave a keynote address.

This story aired on WICS Newschannel 20 on Nov. 11, 2021.

Blake Jones, Taryn Christy and Wyatt McIntyre have qualified for Nationals this week in Tampa. Channel1450 spoke with the three UIS Prairie Stars about their accomplishment, their goals and even got to know them a little bit better with some fun questions.

This interview happened on Nov. 14, 2021.

Listen to it on Channel 1450.

Six weeks after Lincoln’s death, Frederick Douglass described him as “emphatically the black man’s president, the first chief executive “to show any respect for the rights of a black man, or to acknowledge that he had any rights the white man ought to respect,” the first one to rise “above the prejudices of his times and country.” Lincoln treated each African American “not as a patron, but as an equal.

Springfield firefighters were dispatched to a residential hall at the University of Illinois Springfield at around 3:45 p.m. Monday in response to a reported fire.

When firefighters arrived at the location, they found an extinguished fire in a bathroom, with thick smoke throughout the second floor. They said the fire was extinguished by a university police officer with a dry-chemical extinguisher.

This story appeared on WCIA.com on Nov. 16, 2021.

Illinois lawmakers are pushing once again for fewer tests to become a teacher.

Rep. Sue Scherer, D-Decatur, filed a new bill aimed at increasing the number of teachers by decreasing their testing requirements.

It would get rid of the teacher performance assessments, or "edTPAs."

Dr. Meghan Kessler teaches future teachers at the University of Illinois Springfield.

She says eliminating this test wouldn’t make it easier to become a teacher, but it would make it more accessible.

The University of Illinois Springfield Center for State Policy and Leadership and the Community Health Roundtable will host a free public webinar titled “Overcoming Misinformation during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Mainstream and Social Media, Public Health, and Outreach to the General Public and Disadvantaged Populations” at noon Friday via Zoom.