In the Loop (Segments)

Reset chats with Elliott Charles, head of intercollegiate athletics at CSU. We talk about the mental health of student athletes, the first year for players to get compensated for their names and likeness, and look ahead at what playing during a pandemic will look like this season.

Reset sits down with two Chicago State University students about the return to campus, how the pandemic changed their views about learning and the college experience, and their hopes and worries for the new school year as the university continues to navigate COVID-19.

Reset sits down with Chicago State University President Zaldwaynaka Scott to discuss the return to campus, COVID protocols, equity and access in higher ed for students of color.

Described as a “garden walk on steroids,” the Avondale Gardening Alliance’s Garden and Agriculture Fair invites people to visit neighbors' gardens, learn sustainable skills through interactive workshops and sample local products. The Fair organizer tells Reset why the event is also an act of environmental justice.

When the pandemic shut down performance venues last year, Stephanie Martinez made a bold move: She started a dance company. Reset learns more about PARA.MAR Dance Theatre and how it strives to offer hope and opportunities to artists and the community.

As the Biden administration cracks down on COVID-related misinformation, Facebook is taking a shot at more transparency. They’ve begun issuing a quarterly report of their most popular content.

Chicago Park District Superintendent Michael Kelly has announced suspensions, reprimands and terminations in a major shakeup to the city’s lifeguard program. Reset hears from the journalist who first exposed allegations of sexual misconduct and abuse among Chicago lifeguards.

Reset reflects on Squeak’s contributions to Chicago’s music scene and creative community, and how he was forging his own path in the industry.

The highly contagious Delta variant prompted the state to reinstate indoor mask mandates for people over the age of 2 — regardless of vaccination status. How will this impact restaurant owners and diners?

In honor of National Black Business Month, Reset puts the spotlight on Mark Walker of Oooh Wee! It Is!, a soul food restaurant with two locations on the Southside. Plus, the president of the Illinois State Black Chamber of Commerce talks about the history of Black business in the state.

More employers are mandating their employees get vaccinated, and with the news of the Pfizer vaccine gaining full FDA approval, some companies may see a new wave of religious exemption claims. Reset explores what this could mean for employers and workers moving forward.

The White Sox continue their rise and race towards the playoffs while the Cubs continue to fall in record-breaking fashion. Plus, Bears rookie quarterback Justin Fields put some of his star potential on display Saturday, while his predecessor and opposing QB Mitch Trubisky had a pro bowl day against his former team. WBEZ sports contributor Cheryl Raye-Stout updates Reset on a busy sports weekend.

A new WBEZ report finds that “wealthier areas show much higher teen vaccination rates. With no immunization mandate, local districts face a season of uncertainty.” WBEZ education reporter Sarah Karp joins Reset to share data and insights from her conversations with parents, students, and school staff.

Starting Sept. 20, booster shots will be available in the U.S. New public guidance on boosters, masks and more comes as students — many unvaccinated — are returning in-person to the classroom, and as the Delta variant continues to spread. Reset turns to Dr. Mia Taormina for the latest public health guidance on boosters, schools and more.

This is the last weekend of the fair, so Reset checks in with the Department of Agriculture about what treats they recommend trying.

Nestor “The Boss” Gomez stuttered as a kid. Today, he’s won more than 60 storytelling championships. Reset talks to Gomez about his favorite story he’s ever told, his series of immigration stories and his new book, Your Driver Has Arrived, about his time working for Uber.

Chicago’s Fraternal Order of Police made it clear last year that any of its officers who participated in taking a knee with the Black Lives Matter Movement would face discipline up to and including expulsion from the union. Yet, news about the union defending a white Chicago officer who participated in the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol raised the question of a double standard. A CPD offi...

WBEZ race, class and communities reporter Natalie Moore is in Finland for a two-and-a-half week reporting trip to explore the country’s open prison system. Reset checks in with Moore to hear how the trip’s going, and what she’s learned so far.

The first of R. Kelly’s two criminal trials gets underway in New York. Charges against the R&B singer include sex trafficking, kidnaping and forced labor. Reset talks to the journalist whose years of in-depth reporting exposed Kelly’s illicit behavior.

While world powers question how to move forward with the Taliban’s rise to power in Afghanistan, social media giants have to decide what they’ll do about the group’s presence online.

Commuters have slowly been returning to public transportation after a year-long pandemic slump. But will Chicago requiring masks again indoors put the brakes on that? Will the Delta variant drive down ridership numbers again? Reset hears from the Chicago Transit Authority about safety protocols, as well as rider and driver anxiety during COVID.

A new report examines how climate change is projected to quadruple the exposure of the roughly 32 million U.S. outdoor workers to hazardous heat conditions, while jeopardizing their health and earnings. Rachel Licker of the Union of Concerned Scientists joins Reset to discuss her new co-authored report, “Too Hot to Work: Assessing the Threats Climate Change Poses to Outdoor Workers.”

Reset checks in with WBEZ sports contributor Cheryl Raye-Stout for an update on our favorite Chicago teams.

A new Illinois law aims to prevent hair discrimination in schools. Starting Jan. 1, schools will not be allowed to have dress code and uniform policies on hairstyles historically associated with race or ethnicity. Reset discusses what this move means for students and families across the state, and why it’s important to teach children to take pride in their hair and culture.

Chicago’s Haitian-American community responds to Saturday’s earthquake, killing more than 1,400 in the southern region of Haiti. Reset finds out how Chicagoans can best help those in Haiti.