* ICYMI: Illinois’ eighth graders outperform their peers in all but one state in national math and reading test. Tribune…

- Third through eighth graders showed the highest English proficiency rate to date, which, according to Pritzker, is “a testament to the great strides Illinois students are making academically,” the governor said in a Wednesday news release.
- According to the report, 70% of eighth-graders performed at or above grade level while 33% of students achieved proficiency, which in the assessment is described as a more “aspirational” level of performance beyond grade level.
- For the state’s fourth graders, 59% performed at or above grade level in both math and reading, while 30 expressed proficiency.

* Related stories…

∙ Chalkbeat Chicago: NAEP scores: How did Illinois students do on the ‘nation’s report card’ in 2024?
∙ Press release: Illinois’ 8th Grade Students Outperform National Averages in Both Reading and Math on ‘The Nation’s Report Card’
∙ WIFR: Illinois students beat national math, reading scores

*** Isabel’s Top Picks ***

* WSIL | Brick thrown through window of State Representative Severin and State Senator Bryant’s joint office building: Both Severin and Bryant say they condemn the violent incident at their office and shared the following statement… “It is our honor to represent the people of Southern Illinois, and we take our responsibility to be their voice seriously. Our commitment has always been to advocate for policies that improve the lives of our constituents and all Illinoisans. Acts of violence like the one committed against our district office this morning will not deter us from that mission – instead, it only strengthens our resolve.

* NYT | In Tense Call, Governors Push Schumer to Fight Harder Against Trump: Gov. JB Pritzker of Illinois and Gov. Maura Healey of Massachusetts each told Mr. Schumer that Senate Democrats should not vote for Mr. Trump’s nominees after the administration issued a memo freezing the funding.

* WBEZ | Illinois settles two lawsuits linked to prison education programs: The department agreed to pay $90,000 to five men who say officials retaliated against them for debating parole reform in front of state legislators. In the other settlement, the state will pay $5,000 to a peer educator fired for teaching about racist Jim Crow literacy tests. Both cases involved prison education programs, and both showed prison officials struggling to respond when those programs prompted incarcerated people to engage with sensitive political and social issues.

*** Statehouse News ***

* WBBM | Gov. JB Pritzker yet to decide on run for third term: “Families of politicians go through a lot that they shouldn’t have to,” he mused. “They didn’t choose, necessarily, to be in that life. So that’s part of the decision-making process. And of course, the other part is… what’s ahead? What could we accomplish if we kept going?”

* Tribune | Assessor Fritz Kaegi says Chicago properties worth a combined $50.8 billion in 2024, calls for bill relief in Springfield: Kaegi touted the need to pass “circuit-breaker” legislation in the General Assembly during Wednesday’s appearance. Supporters have floated several forms of a circuit-breaker program in recent months. Most involve a rebate or credit to low- or fixed-income homeowners who see their property tax bills rise above a certain percentage. Kaegi’s plan would apply to “the bottom half of people who are experiencing spikes of 25% or more,” he said Wednesday. “We know the key is making it a priority in Springfield.”

*** Statewide ***

* Journal & Topics | Del Mar Resigns As State GOP Co-Chair Effectively Immediately: In early December, Del Mar announced his intention to resign from his role as state party co-chair. At the time, he told the Journal he planned to explore a run for a statewide office and would step down as state party co-chair in January or February. […] Del Mar in his letter Wednesday said: “I can no longer, in good conscience, remain in this role while awaiting a successor and facilitating a transition. To be clear I will remain in my duly elected role as state central committeeman, (of the) 5th Congressional District.” Del Mar is also the Palatine Township Republican committeeman and is running for reelection as Palatine Township highway commissioner in the April 1 election.

* Crain’s | After Trump’s opening volley on grants, Illinois’ research universities on alert: NU ranks 30th in the country, having received $678 million in federal support in 2023, according to data from the National Science Foundation. Data for 2024 is not yet available. UChicago, 41st, and U of I, 43rd, were awarded $477 million and $460 million in 2023, respectively. About 40% of funding for basic research, much of it done at universities, comes from the federal government, according to the NSF.

* Crain’s | Trump’s moves to curb abortion spending spell trouble for Illinois: “It’s going to increase the retribution that the federal government will take on the state of Illinois,” said Margie Schaps, executive director of the Health & Medicine Policy Research Group. “They’ve shown themselves to be vindictive.” Asked today how it was responding to the Trump administration’s recent actions, a Pritzker office spokesman told Crain’s: “During this time when reproductive health care has been under assault, Illinois will remain a state where every person is entitled to the full range of reproductive health care, including family planning services, birth control and abortion.”

* WTVO | Illinois receives 2 F’s on tobacco control report card: Illinois received an F grade in tobacco prevention and cessation funding as well as an F in restrictions on flavored tobacco products. Graders gave the state an A grade for having smoke-free air and access to cessation services, in addition to a C grade for tobacco tax.

*** Chicago ***

* WBEZ | New CPS Board president says he took the volunteer job because ‘I love this city’: Sean Harden says he knows this question is on many people’s minds. The 51-year-old single man with no children says he pursued becoming president of the Chicago Board of Education because he saw an area where he could step up. […] Harden faced an avalanche of criticism last week after it surfaced that he had requested a CPS driver and a car that would cost the school district $150,000. FOX News’ Paris Schutz reported that story based on internal CPS documents shared by sources. Harden points out that past board presidents have had cars and drivers, though the last two did not. The last president to have the service was Frank Clark, but he ended it some time between 2015 and 2018, CPS said. And budget crises are, as history shows, nothing new for CPS.

* Sun-Times | Text from Johnson to firefighters’ union president could ignite stalled contract talks: Asked what it will take to bring negotiations to a close, Cleary said: “Don’t give me what I could have gotten three-and-a-half years ago: an average, b.s. contract. Give me a good contract. Reward us for waiting so long.” Johnson directed his negotiating team to draft a substantive proposal on the outstanding issues of pay, benefits, staffing and equipment. Cleary wouldn’t reveal details of that latest proposal, which will be the subject of this week’s talks. The goal is to narrow to a handful the number of outstanding issues that must be decided by an independent arbitrator.

* Tribune | ‘I did something wrong’: Chicago man arrested by ICE asks forgiveness, victim’s mother supports possible deportation: In another video shared on social media, Pavuluri is shown sitting inside a black sedan as a federal agent opens the door and allows a reporter from the pro-Donald Trump website Frontline America to stick a microphone in the 31-year-old man’s face and question him. Pavuluri, who was born in India, explained he had been in prison since 2018, serving an eight-year sentence for a drunken driving incident that killed 20-year-old Mariyah Howard of Beecher. He had been released from prison only 16 days earlier, according to Illinois Department of Correction records. Looking into the camera, he asked for a “fair chance” and pleaded for grace from no one in particular. “I did something wrong,” said Pavuluri, who was in the country on a student visa at the time of the crash. “I’m sorry about what I did.”

* Sun-Times | Historian Shermann ‘Dilla’ Thomas partners with DuSable Black History Museum and Education Center: “We are thrilled that Dilla is joining our DuSable team,” Perri Irmer, DuSable’s president and CEO, said in a statement. “His knowledge of Chicago’s rich history and his dynamic approach to social media and storytelling will be a wonderful avenue to reach and engage with our community and with new audiences. We are excited for the future and look forward to the impact he will make in this new role.”

* Sun-Times | Gene Schroeder, NFL’s oldest known living ex-player who was once close to George Halas, dies at 95: In the summer of 1952, a young Gene Schroeder, fresh off his first season with the Chicago Bears, found himself at a party in Washington D.C. He was “kind of famous” among the partygoers for his sports ability by then, Carole Schroeder, his eldest daughter, told the Chicago Sun-Times. There he met his future wife, Doris Richey. They fell in love, and married only months later. Their connection laid the foundation for much of his life. When later asked how he managed to sustain a long and healthy life, he’d always give the same answer: “Sixty wonderful marriage years to a wonderful woman and a wonderful family.”

*** Cook County and Suburbs ***

* Sun-Times | Thornton Township board ‘deeply disturbed’ over brawl during meeting attended by Tiffany Henyard: Henyard’s lawyer said Wednesday says she was “verbally assaulted and her personal safety threatened” at the Tuesday night meeting. Thornton Township trustees issued their own statement bemoaning what they described as “chaos and violence.” “We are deeply disturbed by the events that transpired during last night’s board meeting,” the trustees said Wednesday morning.

* Daily Herald | ‘We were a little shocked’: As ICE knocks on doors in the suburbs, immigrant groups push solidarity: Last weekend, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers “were just knocking on doors at an apartment complex in Waukegan,” Ortiz said. If the agency is “targeting people with criminal backgrounds, why aren’t they holding warrants?” Immigrant Solidarity DuPage Coordinator Cristobal Cavazos headed to Palatine on Sunday after hearing of a contingent of ICE officers parked near a popular Hispanic grocery store. “They say, they’re just looking for criminals, don’t worry. But in the process, they nab anybody that they can get,” Cavazos said.

* Daily Herald | Forest preserve district sues to acquire property, while West Chicago wants housing there: The district is seeking to acquire roughly 43 acres or so on the north side of North Avenue, a bit west of Route 59. The tract is adjacent to the existing Pratt’s Wayne Woods Forest Preserve, and contains a remnant old oak ecosystem with more than 200 mature oak trees, noted Executive Director Karie Friling. “Some of these trees are more than 100 years old and are part of a unique, undisturbed ecosystem critical for supporting diverse wildlife, including insects, birds, and mammals,” Friling said in a written statement. “Adjacent development would degrade the ecological value of existing protected lands within Pratt’s Wayne Woods, diminishing its role as a sanctuary for wildlife and a resource for the community.”

*** Downstate ***

* SJ-R | Springfield may have new procedure for appointing vacant city positions: An ordinance about a new procedure to appoint certain vacant positions within the city of Springfield is up for debate after a debate of its own at Tuesday’s committee of the whole meeting. The ordinance, which will be taken up by the full city council on Feb. 4, seeks to create a formal appointment procedure when appointing a new mayor, treasurer or clerk. Public comment would be an active part of the process prior to a vote.

* WCIA | Rantoul mayor says village needs change to keep up with growth in community: Mayor Charles Smith said it could cost millions, and it all has to do with infrastructure. He said with several big businesses opening up in town and more on the way, they need a complete overhaul. The village currently has construction crews working on water and sewer expansion. Smith said the village also provides its own electrical service to the community and some of the system is outdated.

* WTVO | These neighbors are suing the Winnebago Landfill over littering, odor complaints: Illinois passed two new laws last year, requiring landfills to have cleaning facilities for trucks, and for garbage truck drivers to secure tarps over their load to prevent litter from escaping. However, DeBlauw said he hasn’t seen much of a change since the laws were enacted. “I don’t think that they abide by any cleaning of the truck,” he said. “They come out and … if it’s muddy or whatever they spread their mud out on the road…and you pick it up on your car when you drive by. And I don’t see where, if there are those laws, I don’t see where they’re following them.”

*** National ***

* ABC | Bird flu is ‘widespread’ among birds in Massachusetts, state officials say: There has been a history of intermittent bird flu outbreaks in Massachusetts since early 2022, officials said. In early January, an outbreak of bird flu was suspected of causing the death of Canada geese, swans and other birds in Plymouth. Now, more positive cases are being reported, officials said.