Law, banking, and consulting firms have their choice of some of the smartest people in the world—but what they're really looking for is someone cool to kick back with (or work until 3 a.m. with). Read more
In some of America's largest cities, low-poverty black neighborhoods share similar outcomes to high-poverty white neighborhoods. But there's a glimmer of hope in high-school graduation numbers. Read more
For generations, Chicago's private power brokers have tried to shape the school system according to the management principles of the day, whether it's the hierarchies of 19th-century industry or the disruption of 21st-finance. Read more
The effects of lead poisoning show up on rap sheets and grade books, and Chicago has long had some of the worst problems with it in America. The costs of remediation are substantial, but the savings could be much greater. Read more
The principal-training consultants who received the $20 million contract, the focus of a federal investigation, got seed funding from the Chicago Public Education Fund—whose board is a who's-who of Chicago power brokers. Read more
Four striped hyena specimens, preserved by the legendary taxidermist Carl Akeley, were exiled to a bland, bleak corner of the Reptile Hall for decades. If the museum's Indiegogo campaign goes well, they'll get a new home—and a new story. Read more
Lots of smart people have tried to figure it out; lots of smart people disagree. Chicago's biggest economic development program covers much of the city, but it still remains something of a mystery. Read more
The progressive suburb faced a battle over integration in the 1960s. Mary Barr, author of ‘Friends Disappear: The Battle for Racial Equality in Evanston,’ describes what happened. Read more
The lifelong art, architecture, and design nerd has used his rap career as a "Trojan horse" back into his first love, and SAIC is giving him the recognition. Read more
