Peoria Public Schools

Peoria Mayor Rita Ali says she supports the idea of streamlining the process for approving housing projects, but proposed statewide zoning regulations would go too far.

Plans for a 200-home residential neighborhood at the former Exposition Gardens site in Peoria are taking shape after the City Council approved a land exchange with Peoria Public Schools to make the property more attractive to developers.

Peoria City Council member Kiran Velpula sees a new medical and educational partnership as a way to build the city’s health care workforce and boost the regional economy.

Sarah Howard likely will join Andy Diaz as the two newcomers on the Peoria Public Schools Board of Education.

The Peoria Public Schools Board of Education gathered Monday evening for a meeting that stretched well over two hours, marked by a student showcase, a contract debate, and a bittersweet goodbye to outgoing Superintendent Sharon Desmoulin-Kherat.

Sarah Howard leads Doug Shannon by 44 votes to replace Larry Ivory and represent the Northern District of the seven-member Peoria Public Schools board.

Emily Dawson, a Peoria Public Schools teacher who also advises an afterschool research club as she pursues a third master’s degree at Western Illinois University, received a $10,000 Chocolate History grant from Mars, Inc., for a project examining cacao grown in Hawaii.

The principal of an elementary school on Peoria’s South Side is among seven Illinois finalists for the Golden Apple Award for Excellence in Leadership award.

The program, hosted by the school’s Future Teachers Club, featured student-crafted displays honoring important Black figures as part of a “living museum,” as well as musical selections and dance and spoken word performances.

Under the proposal, Peoria Public Schools’ outdoor cameras would be added to the police department’s Axon Fusus camera integration platform in an effort to improve the response to any active emergencies or credible threats.