In the Loop with Sasha-Ann Simons

A 6.3-magnitude earthquake struck the Turkey-Syria border region Monday, just weeks after a two other major quakes devastated the region. Reset hears from humanitarian advocates Amina Demir, COO at Zakat Foundation and Dr. Zaher Sahloul, president and co-founder of MedGlobal, about how to best support their recovery efforts.

With the municipal election next week, Reset is revisiting our “Re-Imagine Chicago” series. Is Chicago's City Council set up to best serve its residents? The "strong mayor" form of government has its pros and cons, but what could a better system look like? Reset explores that question with Dick Simpson, professor of political science at the University of Illinois at Chicago, former aldermen of the...

Rebecca Makkai pulls from her own life to explore the country’s problematic obsession with true crime in her new novel. Reset talks with her about the intersection of cancel culture, systemic racism and the fetishization of the missing white woman in I Have Some Questions For You.

Early in-person voting and mail-in voting are underway for Chicago’s 2023 municipal elections. Whether you’ve dropped off your ballot or are waiting until election day on Feb. 28, we’ve got you covered. Reset breaks down voting options and voter turnout with Max Bever, director of public information at the Chicago Board of Elections.

“We’re not reaching enough families in these vital infant and toddler years,” Gov. JB Pritzker said during his State of the State speech Wednesday. “Smart Start’s expanded home visiting funding will allow us to help even more families.” Reset talks to Katelyn Kanwischer from Lurie Children’s Hospital and Sherneron Hilliard of Family Focus about what home visiting programs are like now and what the...

Rochelle Trotter founded R’Culinare Consulting to help businesses reach their goals in the food and beverage industry. Through her non-profit The Charles and Rochelle Trotter Culinary Endowment, she’s also helping young people break into the industry. Reset talks with Trotter about creating and spreading joy through food.

Gov. JB Pritzker gives the State of the State address and unveils plans for education funding, Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot focuses attacks on Cook County Commissioner Brandon Johnson and the Chicago Bears take a giant leap toward Arlington Heights. We break down these top local stories and more with Brandon Pope, reporter/anchor at CW 26, Corli Jay, reporter with Crain’s Chicago Business and Derr...

WBEZ’s sister station Vocalo features movers and shakers who work to bring healing, joy and inquiry to their communities throughout Chicago as part of the Chi Sounds Like series. Reset highlights a Vocalo feature about painter Ennis Martin.

Ask any new parent and they’ll tell you diapers can be expensive, costing between 80 and 100 dollars a month. New legislation in Springfield could lighten that load for parents. Reset gets the the details from Lee Ann Porter, founder and executive director of Loving Bottoms Diaper Bank and with State Sen. Karina Villa.

Yesterday, Governor Pritzker announced bold plans for Illinois when it comes to early childhood education. Reset digs into the impact these investments could have, what the programs might look like and how the state will pay for them with State Sen. Cristina Pacione-Zayas, UIC senior lecturer and program coordinator Catherine Main and UChicago economist James Heckman.

WBEZ’s sister station Vocalo features movers and shakers who work to bring healing, joy and inquiry to their communities throughout Chicago as part of the Chi Sounds Like series. Reset highlights a Vocalo feature on writer and founder of Sixty Inches From Center Tempestt Hazel.

Around 12 million people in America over the age of 40 have a visual impairment, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. For Low Vision Awareness Month, Reset checks in with Julie Tye and Douglas Walker of the Winnetka-based nonprofit Hadley about its free tools and resources for people with vision loss.

WBEZ’s sister station Vocalo features movers and shakers who work to bring healing, joy and inquiry to their communities throughout Chicago as part of the Chi Sounds Like series. Reset highlights a Vocalo feature on a training coordinator for a nonprofit saving lives through first response training.

We take a listen to Governor Pritzker as he provides an overview of his proposed budget for Illinois. And Reset checks in with WBEZ state politics reporter Dave McKinney and two lawmakers after the speech.

In response to the pandemic, the Illinois Department of Human Services issued emergency allotments to help people pay for food. But those will go away by Feb. 28, even though food prices remain high. Reset talks with advocates Patricia Fernandez, Kellie O’Connell, and Alici McNeal as well as Christina, a recipient of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP.

Vocalo radio, WBEZ’s sister station, features movers and shakers who work to bring healing, joy and inquiry to their communities throughout Chicago as part of the Chi Sounds Like series. Reset highlights a Vocalo feature on a multidisciplinary artist who brings empowerment and joy through connecting youth to their African roots and history.

There were 41 after-school shooting incidents in 2022 near public schools in Chicago involving people 19 years old and younger. And in the last decade, there was an average of three murders of kids under 17 each year, a WBEZ/Chicago Sun-Times analysis found. Now calls are growing louder for city officials and the district to take action. Reset finds out more on what’s behind the spike in shootings...

With nine candidates running in the Chicago mayoral election, it is widely assumed there will be a runoff election, which is all too common in municipal elections here. Some argue that moving to a ranked choice voting system could help prevent runoffs and make voting more democratic. Reset hears from advocates Andrew Szilva and Alisa Kaplan about why they want to see ranked choice voting institute...

Vocalo radio, WBEZ’s sister station on 91.1, is celebrating 15-years of bringing more Chicago artists and stories to the airwaves. Check out Chi Sounds Like for a full list of archived interviews. Reset chats with Ari Mejia who produced the series and the station director, Ayana Contreras to learn more about their programming and features a Vocalo interview with Djedi Ohm

Federal stimulus checks provided a lifeline to many folks earlier in the pandemic, but many didn’t qualify or weren’t able to access payments. The Chicago Resiliency Fund 2.0 aims to distribute one-time $500 payments to people who may have missed out on prior COVID stimulus money. Reset talks to nonprofit workers Katie Durrah and Kathryn Socha about coordinating fund distribution.

Robotics season has begun. Never heard of it? It’s when high school robotics teams meet up to meet the next challenge issued by First Robotics. Reset checks in with the Lane Tech team’s head coach Robert Berg, seniors Gabby Weffer and Joaquin Valencia and junior Jane Bazzell.

The Chicago native brings his personality to life on the dance floor and through his talk show The Rico No Suave Show. Reset checks in with Rico No Suave about embracing his Afro-Cuban heritage, his electrifying salsa skills and what’s bringing him joy.

Three candidates are in a statistical dead heat in the Chicago mayor’s race. UIC faculty have a contract. Locals help earthquake victims. Meanwhile, big changes may be coming for needy parents as lawmakers in Springfield propose a diaper allowance. Reset breaks down these stories and much more with NBC 5’s Christian Farr, former Chicago Sun-Times columnist Maudlyne Ihejirika, and John Fountain, jo...

Recycling fabric is harder than it might seem, as most fabrics are a mix of fibers and material types, requiring different techniques that can’t be done on a large scale. Reset checks in with local weaver Emily Winter, co-founder of the Weaving Mill, who is trying out a community-driven way to deal with textile waste.

From crime to transportation to education, we spent an hour talking about top issues with organizer Ja’Mal Green and Ald. Roderick Sawyer. Reset breaks down our second round of mayoral forums with Mariah Woelfel, WBEZ city government reporter, Chip Mitchell, WBEZ criminal justice reporter and Chris Berry, professor in the Harris School of Public Policy at the University of Chicago.