* ICYMI: Illinois college hurt by international student drop to drain endowment. Bloomberg…

- The Illinois Institute of Technology, a STEM focused university in Chicago, plans to borrow as much as $200 million from its endowment through fiscal 2028 as it struggles with a decline in international students.
- Its plan prompted S&P Global Ratings to slash the university’s credit rating deeper into junk, to BB from BB+, with a negative outlook. The endowment’s market value was projected at $300 million as of fiscal 2026.
- Schools like Illinois Tech are at risk since they’ve come to rely heavily on students from other countries. International students made up about 50% of total enrollment as of fall 2024, with the majority of its grad students hailing from outside of the US. Graduate enrollment fell 28% in fall 2025, according to S&P, and the university is expecting a 16% drop in total enrollment in fall 2026.

* Related stories…

• PBS: How the Trump administration’s crackdown on international students could affect the economy
• Crain’s Cleveland: International enrollment keeps falling. Here’s what Northeast Ohio universities are losing

* Gov. JB Pritzker has no public events scheduled today.

*** Isabel’s Top Picks ***

* Capitol News Illinois | Illinois regulators move to bring video gambling under self-exclusion program: The Illinois Gaming Board proposed new rules Thursday to bring the state’s video gambling terminals under the program that allows problem gamblers to self-ban by requiring identity verification before players can purchase vouchers at video gambling locations. The new rules would also create new options for cashless wagering and player rewards programs. Gaming Board Administrator Marcus Fruchter said the move was “another critical step forward” in the agency’s goal to bring video gambling under the program’s umbrella.

* Sun-Times | Gov. JB Pritzker doling out big bucks to help Democrats — and boost a 2028 presidential run: Since 2025, Pritzker has given at least $40 million to Democrats and allied causes — including campaigns for Congress, Senate, attorney general, secretary of state, county judges, and state parties in more than a dozen states, as well as ballot fights over abortion rights and redistricting. That figure includes $15 million he contributed to his own PAC called Ready for the Fight, which is running ads in Tennessee, Arkansas, Alabama and Ohio.

*** Statehouse News ***

* Capitol News Illinois | Statewide races: Little-known GOP slate faces uphill battle against mostly incumbent Dems: Aside from the comptroller and Senate races, every other race for statewide office features established incumbents. And unlike 2022, when the Republican slate included two seasoned state lawmakers and a county auditor, the GOP’s candidates in 2026 — save for its repeat nominee for governor — are largely unknown faces in state politics or have achieved perennial status. No Republican even bothered to submit petitions to run for treasurer, leading little-known attorney Max Solomon to wage a write-in campaign to earn a spot on the November ballot.

* Capitol City Now | Bailey says he will keep Logan Correctional Center open if elected governor: Logan will remain open during construction of the suburban facility, but many fear the city will suffer when it closes. “This is not the administration of 20 years ago that abandons properties,” Pritzker said last month. “In fact, our desire here is to use every resource we have in the state of Illinois to grow our economy.”

* Daily Herald | 52nd Illinois House candidates differ on cash bail, school choice and Bears: McLaughlin introduced legislation he said would give the NFL team the property tax certainty it wants, as well as state funding for infrastructure improvements around a privately funded stadium. “If we’re going to have an $8 billion development in the state, particularly 10 minutes from here, I think it’s super important that we actually get off our rear ends in Springfield,” he said. Peterson does not support using public money to build a Bears stadium. She called McLaughlin “Hail Mary Marty,” saying he wants to hurl tax dollars downfield to “save the billionaire Bears,” rather than putting it toward schools and real estate taxes.

*** Chicago ***

* Block Club | Workers Rally Outside Austin Seat Manufacturer To Demand Better Pay, Working Conditions: The rally outside the Freedman Seating Company followed a report published this week by a nonprofit labor advocacy group in which three-quarters of company workers surveyed reported struggling to pay for utilities, food or housing in the last year. The report, published by Jobs to Move America in partnership with University of Illinois Chicago researchers, also detailed allegations of workplace hazards and fears of retaliation.

* ABC Chicago | All elevated CTA stations in the Loop to be closed this weekend for track repairs: The Red and Blue lines are not expected to be effected, but all other lines are. Brown Line trains will stop at the Merchandise Mart. Orange Line trains will stop at Roosevelt.

* NBC Chicago | Caleb Williams throws 2 TD passes as the Bears beat Drake Maye and the Patriots 30-24: “These nights are awesome,” Williams said. “You play against another good team on a primetime game in a short week, these games are awesome because you get to see who you are as a team. That’s who we are. We’re a smashmouth football team, an innovative team. And when things happen and things don’t go our way and the water is rocky, we stay steady.”

*** Cook County and Suburbs ***

* Tribune | Cook County proposing $18 million renewal with controversial vendor Tyler Technologies: If the County Board approves a renewal next month, the Texas-based company will make up to $18 million more. That would bring Tyler’s county taxpayer tab to $56.4 million from 2015 to 2029 for being in charge of a project outgoing Commissioner Sean Morrison described Thursday as “a cluster—-.” Many commissioners, while frustrated with the company, acknowledged they are essentially stuck. Tyler is among the most dominant government tech services contractors in the country, having acquired many of its competitors in recent years. Few, if any, could step in to replace them, let alone immediately.

* Tribune | A year after ‘Broadview Six’ indictment, failed case still reverberates in federal court: Even though all charges were dismissed in May amid allegations of grand jury misconduct by Mecklenburg, the case continues to reverberate at the Dirksen U.S. Courthouse, where U.S. District Judge April Perry is mulling whether others in the office obstructed justice in the case, which could lead to sanctions or even appointment of special counsel and criminal contempt charges. Perry has imposed an Oct. 30 deadline for prosecutors to turn over any internal communications showing whether U.S. Justice Department officials in Washington D.C. had a hand in the case — something Boutros’ office has emphatically denied.

* Tribune | Nurses at Endeavor Health’s hospitals in Evanston, Glenview, Skokie, Highland Park move to unionize: If the election is successful, nurses at Endeavor’s hospitals in Evanston, Highland Park, Skokie and Glenview would be represented by Teamsters Local 743. Endeavor nurses are hoping to unionize because of unsafe staffing levels, heavy workloads and pay that hasn’t kept up with inflation and the cost of living, David Bernt, organizing director of Teamsters Joint Council 25, which represents workers across Illinois and Northwest Indiana, previously told the Tribune.

* CBS Chicago | Thousands of new manufacturing jobs coming to Joliet area as Pritzker, Hyundai announce expansion: In March, the company announced Illinois would be its new home and it was bringing 2,475 jobs to Will County; now they’re doubling down on investment and job creation here. This division of Hyundai makes commercial transportation equipment. It will use two former manufacturing sites, including a former Caterpillar facility, to ramp up production.

* Daily Herald | Amid residents’ concerns, Buffalo Grove considers annexation, 189-home development: Proponents say it would fill a need for housing in the area, especially for seniors. But some of the property’s neighbors are concerned about its potential impact on their neighborhoods and schools. […] The plan calls for 37 single-family homes and 152 townhouses, 38 of them intended for senior residents. The price for the single-family homes is expected to start around $800,000, with townhouses selling from the upper $600,000s into the $700,000s.

*** Downstate ***

* CNI | Proposed closing of 4 low-level prison facilities draws sharp rebuke in Du Quoin: A plan to close four downstate correctional facilities drew strong opposition at a public hearing Wednesday in Du Quoin, where critics cited concerns about future upkeep of the facilities and Illinois’ approach to the incarceration of young and low-level offenders. “We have watered down this program that we built in the late ’80s,” said Ty Petersen, staff representative for the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Council 31. “We have given up on the opportunity to change people’s lives in the Illinois Department of Corrections.”

* WCIA | Champaign School District’s support staff union votes to ratify new contract: Flaningam said the contract guarantees members yearly raises ranging from 5.25% to 9.5%, along with access to paid parental leave and increased health insurance access. “Conversations with the administration were challenging, but remained respectful and productive throughout. We look forward to the board of education’s ratification and working in partnership with administration to build a stronger district together,” said Flaningam.

* WAND | Sangamon County Mental Health Board hosts first community engagement event: The board is new to the community, but newly appointed Director Dr. Tatyana Gardner said this meeting gives the board a chance to connect with residents. “We want the community to have their voice heard. It’s important for me to make sure we’re including what the community needs in our one-year and three-year plans,” Gardner said. “So today is an opportunity for them to come express those opinions to us, so that as we’re drafting these plans, we’re able to include them.”

*** National ***

* AP | Why reported challenges with touchscreen voting machines don’t signal election rigging: Election officials say the touchscreen challenges are almost always the result of user error or an easily fixed screen miscalibration, and say the number of complaints this year isn’t higher than it has been in years past, despite the outsized attention on social media. They emphasize that voters can select a candidate as many times as needed, consult a poll worker for help and review selections before submitting their ballot.

* NYT | Airbnb Says Guests Shouldn’t Have to Do the Dishes Anymore: The policy, announced on Tuesday, will apply to bookings starting Nov. 20 and asks hosts to set “reasonable” house rules and to disclose them in a designated section of their listing. Hosts may not introduce new requirements or requests after a guest books, including through messages, signs in the home or conversations with guests. Checkout chores should not “require significant time or effort, or would typically be performed by a cleaner,” Airbnb said.