City Cast Chicago

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Meet the Chicago Scientist Studying UFOs Aug 25, 2021

Show notes

In June, the U.S. military issued a report saying that out of 144 sightings of unidentified aerial phenomena, they were only able to explain one of them. Or put another way: The government has admitted to encountering UFOs that defy explanation. This report may have brought renewed attention toward the sky, but Chicago is home to the nation’s first organization dedicated to the scientific study of UFOs. The Center for UFO Studies (CUFOS) was founded in the 1970s by a born-and-bred Chicagoan who had studied these phenomena for the government. Host Jacoby Cochran talks with current CUFOS head Mark Rodeghier about his work, including the investigation of a UFO sighting at O’Hare Airport in 2006.

Guest: Mark Rodeghier, President and Scientific Director, Center for UFO Studies (CUFOS)

Some good news to get you through: Jacoby will be at Chicago Sun-Times' "Local Lives" virtual event Wednesday night. He'll be performing alongside other local storytellers and artists under the theme "Making Chicago Home."

At ‘Refugee High’ Students and Teachers are Like Family Aug 24, 2021

Show notes

On Monday, City Cast Chicago host Jacoby Cochran talked to Elly Fishman, author of "Refugee High: Coming of Age in America,”about Sullivan High School. Sullivan has hundreds of refugee students, and more than 40 languages are spoken at the school. Today, Jacoby talks to Sarah Quintenz, aka Ms. Q, who runs the school’s English Language Learner program and is a pillar for the new students who are tackling big questions beyond the classroom — like being the only English speaker in the family, working to put food on the table, and understanding big cultural shifts. Jacoby also sits down with “Sam,” one of Ms. Q’s former students who came to Sullivan from Syria during the Syrian civil war.

Students Find Their Place at 'Refugee High' Aug 23, 2021

Show notes

In 2017, after former President Donald Trump’s travel ban on citizens and refugees from seven predominately Muslim countries, journalist Elly Fishman started thinking about refugee families who were already in Chicago. She then learned about Sullivan High School in Rogers Park, which is also referred to as “Refugee High.” Hundreds of refugee students attend and more than 40 different languages are spoken there. Fishman documented the school for a Chicago magazine article that then turned into a book. We talk to Fishman about what she learned at Sullivan, and how the students’ unique and arduous backgrounds were just one part of these multi-faceted young people who just wanted to be teenagers.

Guest: Elly Fishman, Author, "Refugee High" (@Elly33)

School Questions, Essential Workers, and a Hot Dog Contest Aug 20, 2021

Show notes

City Cast Chicago producer Simone Alicea is in the host chair with Lead Producer Carrie Shepherd and City Bureau Deputy Editor Arionne Nettles to talk about the Chicago stories they couldn’t stop thinking about, stories that should have more coverage in the news, and their moments of joy from the week.

ICYMI: Stephen Colbert’s Chicago Roots Aug 19, 2021

Show notes

Before he became the host of The Late Show and The Colbert Report, and was a correspondent on The Daily Show, Stephen Colbert got his start like so many other comedians, writers, and performers—at The Second City. Colbert went from Northwestern University’s theater department to The Second City, where he now serves on the board of directors. He tells host Jacoby Cochran about his early days with the historic theater, his lasting impressions of the city, and how he went from being afraid of going shirtless on stage to performing a duet with his pants.

**A version of this interview was first published on City Cast Chicago on June 30, 2021**

Shifting Demographics Means Shifting Political Power Aug 18, 2021

Show notes

The 2020 census numbers are in, and Chicago remains the country’s third-largest city. But the demographics are shifting. Latinx people are now the city’s second-largest racial or ethnic group, surpassing the city’s Black population. These shifts have big implications for city politics and for Black and brown communities. WBEZ's Alden Loury tells host Jacoby Cochran about how Chicago got here and what the shifts could mean as aldermen begin remapping the city's wards.

Guest: Alden Loury, Senior Editor, WBEZ's Race, Class and Communities Desk (@AldenLoury)

A Chicago Teacher Feels COVID Deja Vu Aug 17, 2021

Show notes

Chicago students and teachers are set to return to classrooms on Aug. 30, making it the third school year affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. That means CPS and the teachers union are once again negotiating COVID safety protocols. But as cases rise and amid concern over the delta variant, one teacher tells host Jacoby Cochran she’s feeling just as anxious as she did when the pandemic began. Norma Noriega teaches sixth grade math at Stevenson Elementary on the Southwest Side, and she shares her hopes and fears for the start of the school year.

Can Reasonable Doubt Get This Man Out of Prison? Aug 16, 2021

Show notes

James Allen has spent most of the past 52 years behind bars. He’s in prison on three separate murder charges, but he claims he’s innocent. Allen has a chance this month to take a step toward getting one of those convictions overturned. In her Chicago Reader story “Reasonable Doubt,” Maya Dukmasova details Allen’s case. She talks with host Jacoby Cochran about how the stories the state has told about Allen just don’t seem to add up.

Guest: Maya Dukmasova, Senior reporter, Injustice Watch (@mdoukmas)

Today's good news to get you through: A Wednesday night discussion about Latinas in the cannabis industry followed by a screening of "Selena" at the Davis Theatre in Lincoln Square.

Delta Spread, ShotSpotter Qs, and The Bud is Back Aug 13, 2021

Show notes

City Cast Chicago producers Carrie Shepherd and Simone Alicea sit down with host Jacoby Cochran to talk through the week’s top stories, under-hyped stories, and of course, their moments of joy. They talk about the Delta variant numbers, new questions about Chicago’s contract with ShotSpotter after City Cast Chicago reported the city had extended their contract with the company that operates gun detection technology, and the return of the Bud Billiken Parade.

Want to Impact the City Budget? Fill Out This Form Aug 12, 2021

Show notes

Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced Wednesday the city is facing a $730 million shortfall in its 2022 budget forecast. The city is expected to spend upwards of $12 billion next year. The news comes as city officials have been hosting public forums on the South, West and North sides to hear how Chicagoans wants the money spent. Thursday's event in Uptown is the last one. WBEZ politics reporter Mariah Woelfel covered this weekend’s event in Washington Park, and tells us what she heard from the public, and how—or if—the city actually puts these recommendations into action.

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