Coronavirus in Illinois updates: Here’s what’s happening Tuesday with COVID-19 in the Chicago area
COVID-19 #COVID-19
Illinois is starting to see a consistent downward trend in new daily COVID-19 cases. Yesterday, state officials reported 933 new cases, which brought the seven-day average to the lowest number it’s been since late July.
Officials also said Monday that 65% of adults in the state have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, which is nearing President Joe Biden’s goal of 70% of adults with one at least one shot by July 4.
Meanwhile, in an effort to get more people to get their shots, companies have been offering incentives that range from free doughnuts to free rolled joints. Now, Chicago-based United has joined in on the encouragement, offering free flights to some vaccinated customers.
Do you have coronavirus questions? The Chicago Tribune will talk with the University of Chicago Medicine’s Dr. Allison Bartlett on Wednesday in a Facebook Live conversation about vaccines and children. Here’s how to participate.
Here’s what’s happening Tuesday with COVID-19 in the Chicago area:
10:18 a.m.: U-46 to set up online learning ‘academy’ for students who are not vaccinated and have medical conditions
District U-46 School Board members approved plans Monday to create an online remote learning “academy” in the fall that will be open only to unvaccinated students who have approved medical conditions.
The decision comes in the wake of an Illinois State Board of Education resolution that calls for a complete return to in-person classes in the 2021-22 school year. The only exceptions would be for those children for whom COVID-19 could be health-threatening.
According to the resolution, “all schools must resume fully in-person learning for all student attendance days, provided that … remote instruction be made available for students who are not eligible for a COVID-19 vaccine and are under a quarantine order by a local public health department or the Illinois Department of Public Health.”
U-46 board member Melissa Owens criticized the state’s move at Monday night’s board meeting.
“Where I’m getting a little tripped up is the fact that we still will have a sizable population coming back on Aug. 16 that most likely will not have access to the vaccine,” Owens said.
“We have so many families that are multigenerational households where they have family members that may be at risk should a child come to school, especially a more-crowded condition, even though we’re going to try to live by social distance guidelines as much as possible,” she said.
Read more here. —Mike Danahey, Elgin Courier-News
7:40 a.m.: Moderna says its COVID-19 vaccine effective in kids as young as 12, will seek FDA approval
Moderna said Tuesday its COVID-19 vaccine strongly protects kids as young as 12, a step that could put the shot on track to become the second option for that age group in the U.S.
With global vaccine supplies still tight, much of the world is struggling to vaccinate adults in the quest to end the pandemic. But earlier this month, the U.S. and Canada authorized another vaccine — the shot made by Pfizer and BioNTech — to be used starting at age 12.
Moderna aims to be next in line, saying it will submit its teen data to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and other global regulators early next month.
The company studied more than 3,700 12- to 17-year-olds. Preliminary findings showed the vaccine triggered the same signs of immune protection in kids as it does in adults, and the same kind of temporary side effects such as sore arms, headache and fatigue.
Read more here. —Associated Press
6 a.m.: Illinois colleges are losing Black students. The pandemic has exacerbated enrollment struggles.
With Black student enrollment at Illinois colleges and universities in a steep decline, a new coalition of educators, business executives, politicians and students have unveiled their proposals for closing the equity gap between Black and white students in higher education.
The Equity Working Group for Black Student Access and Success in Illinois Higher Education released its action plan Monday, a framework to help understand root causes of educational disparity for Black students and to tackle issues such as college affordability, preparedness and support that helps keep students enrolled.
Recommendations from the group, which launched last summer, include anti-racist academic advising to increase student success, grants and need-based funding to make higher education more affordable and access to college credit courses and career exploration for high school students.
The number of Black students enrolled in Illinois college and universities — including public, private and for-profit — fell almost 30% between 2013 and 2018, with community colleges seeing a drop in Black enrollment of more than 33%, according to a 2020 equity study by the Illinois Board of Higher Education. Overall enrollment dropped by about 16% during that time, with Black students making up a declining portion of the total student population during those years.
The pandemic has only exacerbated enrollment struggles as health and financial strain have kept students from attending school. But it has affected Black students in a “more significant” way than other groups, said Zaldwaynaka “Z” Scott, president of Chicago State University and co-chair of the working group.
“Higher education is a game-changer” for closing the wealth gap, Scott said. “We have to be even more intentional about our strategies for engaging and supporting our minority communities in coming through the pandemic, particularly around higher education.”
Read more here. —Clare Proctor
Kane County program aims to help residents having trouble paying rent due to pandemic
Kane County, in partnership with the Illinois Rental Payment Program, is offering an emergency rental assistance program designed to help households in the county that are unable to pay rent due to the financial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Housing providers and landlords who have rental units in Kane County may initiate a joint application with their tenants through Monday, June 7, Kane County officials said in a press release Monday. Tenants will have until Monday, June 14, to complete their portion of a landlord-initiated application.
“This is truly a win-win,” Kane County Board Chairwoman Corinne Pierog said. “It’s a unique opportunity for tenants who have been adversely affected by the pandemic and need assistance with their rent, and it’s a way for landlords in Kane County to recoup some of the revenue lost during these difficult times.”
The program is a joint venture between Kane County and the Illinois Housing Development Authority, the state’s housing finance agency, according to the release.
Read more here. — Aurora Beacon-News staff
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