PP News
Father-daughter accomplish goals together
By BETH ZUMWALT Chief Deputy Zack Orr, a 26-year veteran of the Pike County Sheriff’s Department, recently achieved a significant academic milestone. Returning to college at Western Illinois University, Chief Deputy Orr earned his master’s degree in public safety administration.In a unique family achievement, his daughter, Chloe Orr, was also enrolled at Western Illinois University during this time,…
Read MoreCounty Board votes to transfer tort liability funds to pay operating expenses
By DAVID CAMPHOUSE At its August 25 meeting, the Pike County Board voted to dip into the county’s tort liability fund to offset its ongoing budget shortfall. The board approved a $250,000 transfer from the tort liability fund to the county’s general fund, so that the funds can be used to pay for day-to-day operating…
Read MoreRepresentative Davidsmeyer Receives 2025 IARF Champion Award
State Representative Christopher “C.D.” Davidsmeyer (R-Murrayville) was presented the 2025 IARF Champion Award by Josh Evans, President & CEO during the Association’s 2025 IARF Educational Conference & Expo, held Aug. 27-29 at the Bloomington Normal Marriott Hotel and Conference Center. The IARF Champion Award recognizes individuals, groups, and/or organizations that put forth significant effort(s) to…
Read MoreRiver County News print publication begins next week
By Steven Spencer Next week will be the first issue of the River County News. As announced last month, Better Newspapers, Inc. and River County News are combining the five county papers produced at the Jerseyville office into one weekly publication. Starting on Wednesday, Sept. 10, the Calhoun News-Herald, Greene Prairie Press, Jersey County Journal,…
Read MoreGovernor Pritzker Addresses Estate Tax and Fuel Policy
On the first day of the Farm Progress Show, Governor JB Pritzker visited the Illinois Soybean Association (ISA) and IL Corn, “Your Demand Destination” tent to discuss issues impacting farmers across Illinois. Illinois Soybean Association discussed two very important issues with him—the estate tax and support for biofuels, including concerns with how proposed low carbon…
Read MoreTrump threatens Illinois’ federal funding for eliminating cash bail
By Ben Szalinski Capitol News Illinois President Donald Trump signed an executive order Monday aimed at pushing Illinois to reverse its law that eliminated cash bail. The order calls on the U.S. attorney general to come up with a list of states and other jurisdictions that “substantially” eliminated cash bail and requires the Office of…
Read MoreDaley, LaHood discuss rebooted ‘fair maps’ campaign in Illinois
By Peter Hancock Capitol News Illinois Two veteran federal officials from Illinois are relaunching an effort to amend the Illinois Constitution and end partisan gerrymandering in state legislative districts. Bill Daley, a Democrat from Chicago who served as secretary of commerce under President Bill Clinton, and Ray LaHood, a former Republican member of Congress from…
Read MoreU.S. agricultural trade deficit reaches new record high
By TAMMIE SLOUP FarmWeek The U.S. ag trade deficit climbed to a new high the first half of 2025. The deficit hit a record $28.6 billion through June, according to USDA data released this month. Ag exports through June totaled $85.6 billion with imports totaling $114.1 billion, a deficit of nearly $29 billion compared to…
Read MoreJWCC fall enrollment rebounds to pre-pandemic levels
By DAVID CAMPHOUSE John Wood Community College (JWCC), according to a report presented at the August 20 Board of Trustees meeting held at the College’s Bella Ease Center in downtown Quincy, is seeing a resurgence in student enrollment, with numbers returning to pre-pandemic levels. Interim President Josh Welker shared first-day fall enrollment figures showing a…
Read MorePIKE: Pleasant Hill schools looking to the future
By BETH ZUMWALT The Pleasant Hill School board welcomed representatives from Greene and Associates, an architectural firm, who presented potential projects for consideration in the school’s master facility plan at their Aug. 20 meeting. A master facility plan is a comprehensive, long-term stradegy that evaluates the current buildings and infrastructure to determine what improvements, renovation…
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