* How was your eclipse experience?…

∙ STLPR: Solar eclipse plunges Illinois and Missouri into darkness as the celestial spectacle dazzles
∙ SJ-R: Feel a chill during the eclipse? A look at how much temperatures dropped in central Illinois
∙ Tribune: ‘I know why a lot of people chase them.’ Solar eclipse lives up to its hype in Illinois.
∙ NYT: Highlights From the Total Solar Eclipse’s Dark Path Through the U.S., Mexico and Canada
∙ Sun-Times: Sky high: Solar eclipse ‘holiday’ sparks exhilaration and emotions across Chicago, southern Illinois
∙ CBS Chicago: Eclipse watchers pour into Carbondale as Southern Illinois welcomes 200,000

* Isabel’s top picks…

* ABC Chicago | Process begins to find replacement for Cook County Clerk Karen Yarbrough after her death: Bunting hangs over the Cook County buildings in the Loop in memory of Yarbrough. As a loyal foot soldier to the local and state Democratic Party, Yarbrough’s rise in politics was a quick one as she became a fixture in democratic politics for decades. “She worked very closely with Mike Madigan, and she was part of his leadership team. And that was when she was still in the legislature and then she moved on to the Cook County recorder of deeds office, and then the clerk,” said ABC7 Political Analyst Laura Washington.

* Tribune | Rivian hosts R2 open house in Normal, its new production home: The low-key but festive event showcased the midsize R2 SUV, which will be built in Normal after Rivian delayed plans for a second plant in Georgia. The smaller and sportier R3 crossover, whose production plans have yet to be announced, was also on display. Rivian revealed both new models last month, while announcing that the R2, at least initially, will be made in Illinois. The company received more than 68,000 preorders for the $45,000 R2 within 24 hours of its online debut.

* Daily Southtown | Dolton trustees hire former Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot as special investigator: Under the terms of her hiring agreement, Lightfoot will provide regular updates to trustees, and when her billing totals $30,000 will give a full summary of her investigation to trustees. A law firm representing the village, the Del Galdo Law Group, sent a letter Monday to attorney Burt Odelson, whose firm serves as legal counsel to the Village Board, warning that hiring Lightfoot is beyond the trustees’ authority.

* Norma Fuentes has been named Partner at Fuentes Consulting…

Fuentes Consulting Shatters Glass Ceiling: First Latina Sister-Run Lobbying Firm in Springfield Welcomes Norma Fuentes as Partner

Norma Fuentes has been named Partner at Fuentes Consulting. Norma’s addition marks a historic moment for the firm, becoming the first Latina sister-run and operated lobbying firm in Springfield. Norma brings a wealth of experience. Since 2020, she has honed her skills as a lobbyist at Stricklin & Associates, advocating for clients and navigating the complexities of the legislative process. Norma is poised to become one of the few Latina lawyers in the lobbying space as she stands on the cusp of graduating from law school next month in May.

Governor Pritzker will be in Chicago to launch the second stage of the Illinois Grocery Initiative at 10:30. At 3:05 the governor will celebrate the tastytrade office expansion. Click here to watch.

* Here’s the rest…

* Tribune | Gov. J.B. Pritzker taps northwest suburban lawmaker to run state insurance department: State Sen. Ann Gillespie of Arlington Heights will step down from her legislative post to lead the agency as acting director. Her appointment requires confirmation by the state senate. She replaces Dana Popish Severinghaus, who assumed the department’s top post in 2021 and will be leaving the position next week.

* Daily Herald | Giving people a place to go for help: DuPage County breaks ground on new crisis center: County leaders on Monday will celebrate the start of a $25.8 million project to build the DuPage Crisis Recovery Center. The new 24/7 center will be on the grounds of the DuPage County Health Department and will act as a behavioral health triage center where patients experiencing a mental health or substance abuse crisis can be assessed and provided a plan of action within 24 hours.

* News-Gazette | Urbana voters paying price for 1998 decision: Urbana voters foolishly decided in 1998 to elect school board members from municipal subdistricts rather than at-large. There’s nothing inherently wrong with that idea — at least in theory. But in practice, it’s been another story. The problem? There has been a disappointing lack of candidates in most of Urbana’s seven subdistricts to provide voters a real choice between competing candidates.

* Tribune | Secret Service, CPD start bracing residents, businesses for impact of this summer’s Democratic National Convention: While it will be months before details such as parking restrictions, street closures and other security measures affecting day-to-day life for city residents are released, agencies charged with protecting delegates and the general public during the Aug. 19-22 convention have started to meet those living and working around McCormick Place south of the Loop.

* WBEZ | Principals get first look at impact of Chicago’s new school funding formula: These are the first school budgets under a new funding formula that shifts to focusing on the needs of schools, rather than enrollment. Under this new “equity-based” formula, principals are mostly being given positions, rather than pots of money, as was done under the old formula.

* Tribune | In Chicago, President Joe Biden raises millions, assails Donald Trump over abortion rights: Biden’s remarks came hours after Trump made his highly anticipated statement on abortion, stopping short of calling for nationwide federal limits on the procedure but saying he supported the decision of the conservative Supreme Court majority he appointed while president that sent decisions on legalizing the procedure back to the individual states.

* Tribune | CTA said more train service would be coming. Most riders will have to wait longer for that to happen: The CTA’s latest schedules come after years of frustration about unreliable bus and train service, which has left riders with long wait times and crowded vehicles. An October Tribune analysis found the CTA slashed schedules on some train lines by as much as 25% to 30% compared with 2019 service levels.

* Block Club | Antisemitic Flyers With Rat Poison-Like Pellets Found In Lincoln Park, Alderman Says: The small bags included light brown pellets that “I believe has the intent to appear like rat poison, whether it is or not,” Ald. Timmy Knudsen (43rd) said. It’s the latest similar antisemitic incidents on the North Side.

* Tribune | Northwestern gets initial application OK’d by Evanston for temporary football field, with conditions: The stadium, which hosts the university’s competitive men’s and women’s soccer and women’s lacrosse teams, would be used while the university executes its $800 million rebuild of the 98-year-old Ryan Field. Construction on the stadium is expected to be completed in 2026.

* Sun-Times | Chicago man released from prison after serving 11 years for a murder he did not commit: In late 2012, Robinson was shot multiple times in the leg and foot, and endured multiple painful surgeries and a long recovery that left him unable to walk without crutches. In January 2013, just weeks after his surgery and still needing crutches to walk, he was identified by police as a gunman who sprinted after Kelvin Jemison in front of the Washington Park Homes and gunned Jemison down.

* Seattle Times | How Boeing put Wall Street first, safety second ahead of Alaska Air blowout: The arc of Boeing’s fall can be traced back a quarter century, to when its leaders elevated the interests of shareholders above all others, said Richard Aboulafia, industry analyst with AeroDynamic Advisory. “Crush the workers. Share price. Share price. Share price. Financial moves and metrics come first,” was Boeing’s philosophy, he said. It was, he said, “a ruthless effort to cut costs without any realization of what it could do to capabilities.”

* Crain’s | Music equipment marketplace moving HQ to the Salt Shed: Online music-equipment seller Reverb has leased about 25,000 square feet in a two-story brick building along the northern edge of the Salt Shed at 1357 N. Elston Ave., the company confirmed. Reverb is slated to move its main office to the building next year from its current home in a slightly larger space on Lincoln Avenue in the Roscoe Village neighborhood.

* Screen Mag | Steph Curry TV Series ‘Mr. Throwback’ Begins Filming in Chicago in May: When Chicagoans hear “Steph Curry is coming to Chicago” they might quickly leap to the conclusion that the legendary NBA sharpshooter is being traded to the city’s beloved Chicago Bulls. No, Stephen Curry is not being traded to the Bulls. But he is reportedly coming to the Windy City to co-star in a mockumentary project entitled Mr. Throwback that has been ordered straight to series at Peacock.

* WBEZ | Women saw red flags, one man saw defamation: Attorney Marc Trent said his client, D’Ambrosio, is one of dozens of men across the country who have been harmed by false claims about them made in online groups like “Are We Dating The Same Guy?” […] But experts dismissed the lawsuit as a “bad idea” that is aimed at groups that help keep women safe. “The service that [the groups] provide outweighs the danger that they could potentially pose to somebody that’s posted on them,” said Michele McBride Simonelli, an attorney specializing in internet defamation.

* NYT | What Researchers Discovered When They Sent 80,000 Fake Résumés to U.S. Jobs: Two companies favored white applicants over Black applicants significantly more than others. They were AutoNation, a used car retailer, which contacted presumed white applicants 43 percent more often, and Genuine Parts Company, which sells auto parts including under the NAPA brand, and called presumed white candidates 33 percent more often.

* AP | Tesla settles lawsuit over man’s death in a crash involving its semi-autonomous driving software: The amount Tesla paid to settle the case was not disclosed in court documents filed Monday, just a day before the trial stemming from the 2018 crash on a San Francisco Bay Area highway was scheduled to begin. In a court filing requesting to keep the sum private, Tesla said it agreed to settle the case in order to “end years of litigation.” Shares of Tesla Inc., down 30% this year, slipped 1% before the market opened Tuesday.

* Daily Beast | Read Elon Musk’s Wild Deposition in Neo-Nazi Brawl Case: A transcript of the two-hour deposition from March 27 was made public on Monday, and was first obtained by HuffPost. In it, Musk admitted that he had a “limited understanding” of Brody’s allegations against him, to the extent that he originally believed Brody’s attorney was the plaintiff in the case. He also said he did no research of his own before tweeting last June that a brawl between two right-wing extremist groups in Portland, Oregon had actually been “a probable false flag situation,” and that Brody had been involved.