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The book tells the story of a Black teen struggling with his own demons as the prospects of walking across the stage on commencement day get smaller and smaller.

It was almost unthinkable at the time, but Hillary Clinton wouldn't be where she is today without taking the bold chance on running for a U.S. Senate seat in a state where she never lived.

An old religiously inspired songbook that uses shape notes for people who can't read music got a major update and is attracting younger singers.

The city of Bloomington has some unpleasant choices ahead. The city council has five options to close a million dollar deficit but is a long way from clarity. Many of the lawmakers in Springfield weren't even born the last time there was a House Speaker NOT named Mike Madigan. Hear an assessment of the new House and Senate leadership performance in the spring session. State Senator Jason Barickman blames the Governor for an evictions moratorium that may cause a spike in evictions when it goes away in late summer. Barickman says the courts should have been trusted to deal with the issue during the pandemic. And Bloomington Normal's largest COVID testing site is closing. Find out who will pick up the load.

ISU's new President says student athletes should not have to go to the food bank. She supports a supreme court ruling allowing athletes to earn from their status. On her first day on the job, WGLT devotes all of Sound Ideas to an interview with ISU's 20th President and first female top executive, Terri Goss Kinzy. The issues we cover include: how ISU can resist the nationwide trend of declining enrollment caused by drops in the number of high school graduates, state funding or the lack thereof, whether society views higher education as a public good any longer, and whether to mandate student Coronavirus vaccinations.

A Bloomington Normal doctor says physicians are seeing cancer and pre cancer in younger and younger patients. That colonoscopy you really don't want at age fifty? Yeah, an influential panel recommends you start at 45 instead. A tall building is a lot like a car. You drive it a while the parts wear out and you either do an expensive rebuild or you get a new one. Hear how to assess Bloomington Normal buildings in the wake of the Miami condo collapse. Plus LGBTQ students get a safe space and living community. ISU designates a part of Watterson Towers as the Rainbow floor. The head of ISU Pride tells you why it's necessary.

The structural deficit for Unit 5 schools is $12.5 million and rising $1.5-2 million a year. Unit 5 Superintendent Kristen Weikle says she hopes to have deficit reduction plans developed by the fall. They will include cuts, new revenue, and efficiencies in existing operations. Plus, the town of Normal will rework zoning rules to allow permanent outdoor on street dining. it proved popular during the pandemic. Hear from City Manager Pam Reece. The prairie state doesn't have a lot of prairie left. Learn more during WGLT's gardening podcast 'Grow.' And Opera Under the Stars comes to an outdoor venue in Normal, courtesy of Prairie Fire Theater.

Some authors published decades ago in a ground breaking ISU based journal of Black Literature are still working today. Hear about Obsidian Literature & Arts. So, you spend a lot of time and effort making your garden look faaaan-tast-ic and get nothing else out of it. Now, you can do that AND grow something you can eat. The pandemic brought fear, uncertainty, stress, boredom, and, it turns out, artistic fuel for a new twin cities exhibit by Susan Emmerson and Lisa Walcott. Finally, hear a hip hop song collaboration between Bloomington and Chicago grassroots art schools.

Bloomington Police say if new gun conversion kits spread, two or three round shots-fired incidents could become gun battles of ninety rounds in five seconds. And a candidate for State Treasurer says he wants to combine the office with state Comptroller. The significance of in-school COVID testing really depends on the district. But other mileage varies as school districts decide how best to reduce quarantine times after direct contacts with COVID positive people. And test supplies might become scarce. There's such a big shortage of substitute teachers school districts even want to use kids from Colleges like ISU as subs. And hear the music of Great Value Jesus.

Instructors at Heartland Community College's new Electric Vehicle Energy Storage training program say they're thrilled to be doing cutting edge work preparing techs for the future. They also say it's nice to see auto training programs come back after high schools and colleges phased them out when they were younger. Suspensions don't help minority students. An ISU scholar says schools are punishing kids who are already suffering and doing so disproportionately. The Masonic Lodge in Normal has survived many decades when many fraternal and social groups across the nation have not by recruiting younger people. The Masons in Normal are celebrating 150 years.