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Heidi Mueller, who previously served as the state’s director of the Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice, was named director of the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services on Wednesday.

Former director Marc Smith will stay on until Feb. 1.

WCBU, member NPR stations across the country face funding uncertainty after executive order

NPR member stations across the country are facing a period of unknowns after an executive order from President Donald Trump called for an end to NPR and PBS funding through the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

Pro-government armed civilians block streets in Caracas, Venezuela, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, after U.S. President Donald Trump announced that President Nicolás Maduro had been captured and flown out of the country. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)

Illinois political leaders react to U.S. capture of Venezuela’s president

Republican U.S. Rep. Darin LaHood is praising the U.S. military operations in Venezuela, which included the capture of its president Nicolás Maduro and his wife. Democratic U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth, a former combat veteran, calls the Trump administration's actions unconstitutional.

A man in a suit speaks on the floor of the Illinois Senate

How Central Illinois lawmakers voted on the $56 billion budget that just passed in Springfield

Here's how local lawmakers like state Sens. Dave Koehler and Chris Balkema and Reps. Sharon Chung and Ryan Spain voted on the budget package that passed in Springfield early Monday morning.

Support Grows For 'Los Angeles Times' To Return To Local Ownership

The Boston Globe, The Washington Post and the Minneapolis Star Tribune have all been bought by billionaires. One of the country's most-read dailies, the Los Angeles Times, might join the list.

Participants recite the Oath of Allegiance during a naturalization ceremony for new U.S. citizens in Seattle on July 4, 2025. Under the Trump administration, new applicants for naturalization will have to take a more difficult civics test that the government says is intended to ensure that only immigrants who are "fully assimilated" will become new citizens. (Photo by David Ryder/Getty Images)

The test for U.S. citizenship is about to get harder

The Trump administration says more difficult questions, and other changes to the naturalization process, will ensure only immigrants who are "fully assimilated" will gain citizenship.

The test for U.S. citizenship is about to get harder

The Trump administration says more difficult questions, and other changes to the naturalization process, will ensure only immigrants who are "fully assimilated" will gain citizenship.

'His Light Still Shines' in Heritage Ensemble's 25th annual 'Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Choral Celebration'

On this week’s episode of Out and About, Dr. Mae Gilliland Wright of ArtsPartners of Central Illinois is joined by Sharon Samuels Reed, founder and artistic director of The Heritage Ensemble, to discuss their 25th annual "Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Choral Celebration". This event will take place on Sunday, Jan. 19 at 3 p.m. at the Illinois Central College Performing Arts Center.

President Obama delivers his final State of the Union address last week at the Capitol. He said one of the regrets of his presidency was that the "rancor and suspicion between the parties has gotten worse."

For Growing Partisan Divide, The Bridge Is Still Out

President Obama has spoken frankly about his regret at the broken politics in America, and he's not alone in his concern. There's no shortage of finger-pointing about the roots of the partisan rancor.

(Left) Flooded neigborhoods can be seen in New Orleans in 2005. (Right) Flooded homes are shown near Lake Houston following Hurricane Harvey on Aug. 30.

Harvey Feel Like Katrina Déjà Vu? Not So Fast

As Houston starts to recover from the flooding, many see similarities between the two massive hurricanes and the damage they wrought. But there are some key differences.

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