Vandalia High School did well at this years regional Envirothon Competition at Ballard Nature Center on April 9th. The senior team consisting of Conner McCall, Carson Lotz, Conner Thierry, Kaylee Rosenkoetter, and Kanon Wollermann got first overall and will represent Land Use Council 10 at the state Envirothon Competition in May. The junior team of…

The Illinois Commerce Commission recently approved a stipulated agreement to install new automated warning devices at multiple Fayette County roads that intersect CSX Transportation Inc.’s tracks. The upgraded highway-rail grade crossings will include County Road 2000 East (AAR/DOT #546476J) near St. Elmo; County Road 1950 East (AAR/DOT #546478X) and County Road 1900 East (AAR/DOT #546477R)…

The Illinois State Scholars at Vandalia Community High School this year are, Conner McCall, Isabella LaMonica and Keaton Jones.

Thirteen South Central members went to Salem High School Ag Department to compete in the Marion County Farm Bureau Young Leaders Third Annual “FFA Quiz Bowl” on April 9th. They were tested on their FFA and agricultural knowledge in a format similar to Scholar bowl type of events. South Central Team 1 placed 1st in…

The Illinois Department of Employment Security (IDES) announced today that the unemployment rate was unchanged at 4.8 percent, while nonfarm payrolls increased +12,700 in March, based on preliminary data provided by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), and released by IDES. The February revised unemployment rate was 4.8 percent, unchanged from the preliminary February…

BY Claire Grant Residents of Springfield and central Illinois may soon see increased delays in receiving their mail and packages as the United States Postal Service plans to restructure their postal network outside of Illinois. The United States Postal Service, or USPS, has proposed a new network consolidation plan to change 58 processing and distribution…

Illinois youth turkey hunters harvested a preliminary total of 2,006 birds during the 2024 youth turkey season, breaking the previous harvest record of 1,733 set in 2020. The dates for this year’s season were March 30-31 and April 6-7. A total of 6,001 youth turkey permits were issued this year, compared to 5,283 in 2023.…