Even though they have kids who aren’t yet old enough to be in school, educators from Cook County School District 130 are lending a helping hand to parents who are struggling with “a lack of support, connection and guidance.”

Maria Zaragoza, a parent educator with the school district that serves parts of Alsip, Blue Island, Robbins and Crestwood, is part of a team that makes home visits to make sure parents are getting needed help.

The Families First/Prevention Initiative 0-3 program, which sends these helpers to families who request it, offers developmental screening, information about child abuse prevention, and connects parents with various resources, including nonprofits and therapists who offer focused early intervention services. They also connect parents with food pantries, counseling and domestic violence support.

Zaragoza and two of her five children actually benefited from the program in the district years ago, when one was an infant and the other a toddler.

“We are able to offer resources to our struggling families to help them, and their children thrive,” said Zaragoza of her current role.

Alma Cano, the district’s director of Early Childhood, oversees the parent educators and knows Zaragoza well. She said the ultimate goal is to help their kids succeed in life, and getting an early start is crucial.

Alma Cano, director of Early Childhood for Cook County School District 130 joins Principal Alicia Smith at the indoor playground at Horace Mann School in Blue Island. The district offers resources for parents even before their kids are old enough to attend classes. (Janice Neumann/Daily Southtown)

“We want to intervene early and provide services that would change their trajectory so they are having more of a successful academic future,” she said. “We’re just supporting them in this process. I wish I’d had it when I had my little ones.”

The program is for parents who face various challenges, including being single, speaking only Spanish, or experiencing a lack of income. It’s overseen and funded by the Illinois State Board of Education.

“I think all these resources are essential for parents,” said Cano, who has worked as a teacher, assistant principal and principal in her 27 years in the district. “When we research statistics, these eligibility points (such as being single or speaking only Spanish) are predictors of future academic success.”

The parent educators are trained by Start Early in Chicago.

“Many of the families I work with have no support from their family, some due to living in a different state or country and some due to coming from broken families,” Cano said.

For the first visit, parent educators develop a rapport with the family. During subsequent visits, they check progress and needs. The educators also give tips on how to handle difficulties, such as tantrums or a child not knowing to wait their turn, bringing resources that might help them and which will help when they attend school.

For many, that begins in the district’s preschool program for kids aged 3-5, and the parent educators help connect the children with their new teachers.

“They become a bridge between school and home,” explained Cano.

Though the program has been in the district for roughly 30 years, it faced a lull during the COVID-19 pandemic. It’s picking back up gradually, Cano said. And mental health and safety of the district’s children are becoming more of an emphasis, both at home and when they get to school.

Alma Cano, director of Early Childhood for Cook County School District 130, meets with Safety Director Geoffery Farr, the district’s safety director, at Horace Mann School in Blue Island. Cano and Farr are implementing safety and mental health initiatives in an effort to make sure families feel safe, Cano said. (Janice Neumann/Daily Southtown)

Geoffery Farr, a former Blue Island police chief, was recently hired as the district’s director of safety, overseeing communication between families and local agencies, and training staff and students in emergency responses in case of violence.

“It’s the heads up, eyes open kind of stuff,” said Farr. “I think there’s been an increased emphasis just with the climate in the world.”

Farr said he’s also planning to implement a dog therapy program, which can have a calming effect on staff and students. He said the dogs will be trained in Florida by prison inmates, a common program in prisons to help inmates build skills and empathy and to help shelter dogs have a better chance at being adopted.

“There’s been statistics showing it (having dogs in school) improves absenteeism, de-escalates friction and tension,” said Farr, adding he has three dogs of his own. “You’re going to have your occasional meltdown and the dogs will be there.”

The district also has a 10-week Parent Leadership Class at Horace Mann School in Blue Island using the Abriendo Puertas/Opening Doors curriculum. “Honeybee University,” as the district calls it — the honeybee is the school’s mascot, helps parents of infants through 5 years old improve their child rearing skills. They also get to network and make friends.

“Parenthood can be lonely sometimes,” said Cano. “The parents come in as strangers and they walk out as friends.”

Janice Neumann is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown. 

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/02/13/cook-county-d130-families-first/ 

The Will County Forest Preserve District has applied three times in two years for a type of permit required before undertaking work that might harm endangered species or their habitats.

The most recent application, known as an incidental take authorization, is pending with the Illinois Department of Natural Resources.

“It doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll harm that species,” said Floyd Catchpole, a retired ecologist who has worked on endangered species recovery. “But you can proceed to take whatever action it is that you want to take, with a limit of killing up to whatever number of individuals that your permit allows.”

Businesses and government entities must apply for incidental take authorizations when undertaking certain projects, but it is not common for forest preserve districts to apply.

Only seven of the 318 permit applications received by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources since 2000 have been submitted by county forest preserve districts, according to records available online. Of those, only the Will County Forest Preserve District has submitted more than one.

The Forest Preserve District said in a statement the Illinois Department of Natural Resources is responsible for determining when an incidental take authorization is required.

“(It) should not be viewed as inherently negative,” the statement said. “It reflects the District’s due diligence and close coordination with IDNR, ensuring compliance with state law and protection of endangered and threatened species.”

The authorization process provides structured review, additional oversight and requires conservation measures tailored to the project, often with project modifications, enhanced habitat protections or mitigation measures designed to benefit the species, the statement said.

Applicants are required to include mitigation measures to balance the harm potentially done to endangered species.

The most recent permit application, filed in December, relates to the replacement of a dock on Snapper Pond in the Goodenow Grove Nature Preserve outside Crete. The existing dock is planned to be replaced with a much larger structure.

The planned project could endanger two species: Kirtland’s snake, which is a state threatened species, and Blanding’s turtle, which is a state endangered species. The application states that the loss of up to three snakes and up to one turtle is anticipated.

Another recent application, approved Tuesday, also potentially endangers Blanding’s turtle. That project is intended to build out infrastructure on Isle a la Cache in Romeoville.

Blanding’s turtle is listed as an endangered species on the international Red List, though it has no federal status in the United States. A focused recovery program for the species has been underway in Lake County since 2009.

The third recent Will County permit application, approved in January 2025, also pertains to Kirtland’s snake, again anticipating the loss of up to three snakes. In that project, the Forest Preserve plans to construct a trail connecting Goodenow Grove Nature Preserve and the Plum Valley Forest Preserve.

“All extinction is local,” said Catchpole. “Kirtland’s snake is a Midwestern species. Illinois is pretty much in the heartland of the Kirtland’s snake.”

Kirtland’s snake is mostly found in Illinois, Indiana and Ohio, as well as smaller parts of Missouri, Michigan, Tennessee and Kentucky. It is considered to be threatened or endangered in a majority of the states it is found in.

“If we didn’t have the Will County Forest Preserve, hell, the Kirtland’s snake would probably be gone from the county,” Catchpole said. “Goodenow Grove would be a subdivision, and there would be no Kirtland’s snakes in Will County, end of story.”

elewis@chicagotribune.com

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/02/13/will-county-forest-preserve-endangered-animals/ 

Illinois high school football teams will be able to practice earlier in August to accommodate the expansion of the 2026 season.

The Illinois High School Association announced Friday that member schools voted to move the first practice date to Aug. 5, five days earlier than originally scheduled. That change comes nearly two months after the playoffs were expanded from 256 teams to 384 across eight classes and the start of the regular season was moved up a week to Aug. 20.

Players also will be required to practice for 12 days to be eligible for the first game. Lengthening the season without changing the first practice date would have limited players to nine practices before the first game, prompting concerns about player safety.

“Despite the cumbersome nature of the process, I am confident this outcome is in the best interest of student-athlete safety,” IHSA Executive Director Craig Anderson said in a statement. “We recognize that our member schools may bring forward ideas to alter the 2027 football season schedule as a result, and we welcome that.

“However, given that we are less than six months from the season, we believe this is a positive result that provides scheduling clarity for teams, coaches and student-athletes ahead of the 2026 season, while prioritizing safety.”

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/02/13/ihsa-illinois-high-school-football-practice-earlier-august/ 

PARÍS (AP) — Un hombre que empuñaba un cuchillo intentó atacar a la policía durante una ceremonia bajo el monumento del Arco del Triunfo en París el viernes, y un agente le disparó y lo hirió, informaron las autoridades.

El agresor se abalanzó contra un agente que protegía la ceremonia de reencendido de la llama eterna en honor a los soldados desconocidos en el monumento de la época napoleónica, indicó un funcionario policial. Añadió que otro agente disparó al atacante, quien fue hospitalizado.

Nadie más resultó lastimado en el incidente, añadió la fuente.

La fiscalía antiterrorista de Francia señaló que está investigando el caso y envió a un investigador al lugar.

El Arco del Triunfo es uno de los sitios más famosos de París y se alza en lo alto de la concurrida avenida de los Campos Elíseos.

De momento no se dispone de más detalles.

___________________________________

Esta historia fue traducida del inglés por un editor de AP con ayuda de una herramienta de inteligencia artificial generativa.

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/02/13/polica-hiere-a-tiros-a-hombre-con-cuchillo-en-el-arco-del-triunfo-en-pars/ 

Chris Paul, the “Point God” who was a 12-time All-Star selection and two-time Olympic gold medalist, announced his retirement Friday in the capper of a 21-season career that surely will merit induction into the Basketball Hall of Fame.

Paul, 40, made the announcement on the first day of NBA All-Star Weekend at the home of the Los Angeles Clippers in Inglewood, Calif. Paul spent his final season — an abbreviated one — with the Clippers, who sent him home in December and wound up trading him to the Toronto Raptors earlier this month.

The Raptors knew Paul never would play in Toronto, and that begged the question about whether the Wake Forest legend would try to finish the season with another team in pursuit of the thing he never got — an NBA title.

The answer came Friday. He’s done. He said last summer that he has hated missing events with his children over the last few years, and now he can devote himself much more to his family and other interests.

“It’s time for me to show up for others and in other ways,” Paul wrote on a social media post, announcing the decision.

He strongly hinted earlier this season that this would be his last. Paul was a four-time first-team All-NBA selection and ranks second in NBA history with 12,552 assists and 2,728 steals. He was the first player to score at least 20,000 points while recording at least 10,000 assists; LeBron James and Russell Westbrook have since done that as well.

Paul became arguably the most accomplished player in franchise history while leading the Clippers to six winning seasons from 2011-17, including their first two Pacific Division titles and three playoff series victories. Paul returned to Los Angeles as a free agent in July, rejoining a franchise where he is loved by fans — but it went bad quickly, and Paul’s last game with the Clippers was Dec. 1.

It turned out to be his last NBA game, period.

“While this chapter of being an ‘NBA player’ is done, the game of basketball will forever be engrained in the DNA of my life, spanning three decades,” Paul wrote. “It’s crazy even saying that!! Playing basketball for a living has been an unbelievable blessing that also came with lots of responsibility. I embraced it all.”

Paul is one of seven players to have an NBA career span at least 21 seasons. And he already is in the Hall of Fame: The 2008 Olympic “Redeem Team” was enshrined as part of the 2025 class.

It won’t be long before he goes in on his own as well.

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/02/13/chris-paul-retires-nba/ 

Leftist Vandals Again Hit Chicago Mural Of Murdered Ukrainian Iryna

Tyler Durden
Fri, 02/13/2026 – 14:20

https://www.zerohedge.com/political/leftist-vandals-again-hit-chicago-mural-murdered-ukrainian-iryna 

U-46 names new Larkin principal, director of grants

The District U-46 School Board has appointed a new principal at Larkin High School in Elgin and a new district director of grants for the 2026-27 school year.

Jason Misicka, currently serving as Larkin’s interim principal, will assume the position on a permanent basis, according to a news release.

Prior to becoming interim principal, Misicka was Larkin’s assistant principal of culture and climate for six years and freshman dean of students for two years. He has more than 20 years of experience at the secondary education level.

Angela Marler Conner is the new director of grants and has more than 10 years’ experience in educational finance and nearly 35 years’ experience in education.

For the last two years, Conner has managed budgets and monitored educational programming at Community Unit School District 300. Prior to that, she was the director of federal/state programs for the Gilbert Public School District in Arizona.

This screenshot shows the intersection of Randall Road and Route 72, which borders Elgin and West Dundee, and lists the problems that will be rectified with a construction project that begins Monday. (Kane County Division of Transportation)

Intersection work starts Monday at Randall Road, Route 72

Construction begins Monday, Feb. 16, on improvements to the intersection of Randall Road and Route 72, which borders Elgin and West Dundee.

The project includes the addition of a third lane on both the northbound and southbound legs of Randall to increase capacity and improve intersection safety, a social media post from the Kane County Division of Transportation said.

Additional improvements will be new paths along Randall Road, storm sewer installation, traffic signal modifications, intersection lighting, roadway resurfacing and landscape restoration.

Randall Road and Route 72 will remain open to traffic. However, temporary daily lane closures will be necessary between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday. Flaggers will be present as needed to help direct vehicles.

Work should be completed by the end of December, depending on the weather. For more information, go to kdot.kanecountyil.gov/Pages/Default.aspx.

Carpentersville house fire causes $50,000 in damage

A fire to a home in the 100 block of Hickory Drive in Carpentersville on Tuesday, Feb. 10, caused an estimated $50,000 in damage, officials said.

Firefighters were called to the house about 8 p.m, according to reports. Fire Chief Bill Anaszewicz said the fire started in the bathroom and extended into the attic, with damage leaving the home uninhabitable.

The occupants — two adults, two children and a dog — were able to exit before firefighters arrived, Anaszewicz said. No one was injured in the incident.

The cause of the fire remained under investigation.

Visiting chef to present four-course dinner at ECC

Eric Olson, a noted chef and Elgin Community College alumnus, will present a four-course visiting chef dinner at 6 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 19, in the Spartan Terrace Restaurant, Building H, 1700 Spartan Drive, Elgin.

Olson is culinary director of Bourbon Belly Hospitality, where he oversees kitchen operations for five west suburban restaurants, including The Burger Local in Geneva, according to the ECC website. He will work with a team of ECC students and fellow alumni chefs from the Bourbon Belly Hospitality team in preparing pastrami-cured salmon, sunchoke soup, red wine-braised beef cheek and olive oil cake. Two courses will include wine.

Tickets are $95 per person. For tickets, go to elgin.edu/calendar/art-center-events/visiting-chef-featuring-chef-eric-olson.php.

Township mental health board OKs $1.2M in grants

Hanover Township Mental Health Board has approved awarding a collective $1.2 million in annual funding to 34 agencies.

The funding period runs from April 1, 2026, through March 31, 2027, according to a news release. Agencies receiving money serve Hanover Township residents in the areas of mental health, developmental disabilities and substance abuse intervention and prevention.

Elgin-area agencies include:

Ecker Center for Mental Health, $155,000 for therapy and crisis services.
Easter Seals of DuPage and Fox Valley Region, $80,000 to provide outpatient medical rehabilitation and $20,000 for services for mental health youth treatment and developmental disabilities.
Family Service Association of Greater Elgin, $52,000 for therapy services.
Centro de Información, $57,500 for family-centered mental health services.
About Behavioral Change, $20,000 to provide substance use counseling and education.
Enriching Partnerships for Early Learning, $15,000 for its early childhood parenting program.

For a complete list of the grant allocations, go to www.hanover-township.org.

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/02/13/elgin-randall-intersection-larkin-misicka-chef-dinner/ 

Associated Press

MAIQUETÍA, Venezuela (AP) — Un envío de medicamentos y suministros médicos procedente de Estados Unidos llegó a Venezuela el viernes, lo que refleja el nuevo espíritu de cooperación entre ambos países tras la sorprendente captura el mes pasado del entonces presidente Nicolás Maduro.

Laura Dogu, la principal diplomática de Estados Unidos en el país sudamericano, y el diplomático venezolano Félix Plasencia recibieron el envío, que contenía 6 toneladas métricas de medicamentos, en el aeropuerto a las afueras de la capital de Venezuela, Caracas.

“Es muy importante estabilizar el sistema de salud aquí en Venezuela”, dijo Dogu a los periodistas en el aeropuerto de Maiquetía. Añadió que el envío era “el primero de muchas donaciones” que llegarán “en los próximos días”.

La compleja crisis de Venezuela, que comenzó hace más de una década, provocó el colapso del sistema público de salud del país. Los hospitales están tan mal equipados que se pide a los pacientes que aporten los insumos necesarios para su atención, desde jeringas hasta tornillos quirúrgicos.

Plasencia describió la donación como un “mensaje de cooperación entre dos países soberanos”.

“Estamos haciendo lo mejor para nuestro pueblo”, indicó.

___

Esta historia fue traducida del inglés por un editor de AP con la ayuda de una herramienta de inteligencia artificial generativa.

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/02/13/envo-de-medicinas-y-suministros-mdicos-de-eeuu-a-venezuela-marca-nueva-era-de-cooperacin/ 

The Bigger Problem That The Tim Walz NGO Scandal Has Exposed

Tyler Durden
Fri, 02/13/2026 – 13:40

https://www.zerohedge.com/political/bigger-problem-tim-walz-ngo-scandal-has-exposed