Illinois
Three Illinois high school students win inaugural SIU Creative Futures art contest
Work (above) by Mia Brooks, a senior at Washington Community High School, won top honors in 3D art in the Creative Futures online high school art contest sponsored by the SIU Carbondale School of Art and Design. Other winners were Rebecca Yee, a senior at Belleville Township East High School in 2D art and Destiny Foronda, a senior at Larkin High School in design/digital art. (Images provided)
March 01, 2024
Three Illinois high school students win inaugural SIU Creative Futures art contest
CARBONDALE, Ill. — The talents of Illinois high school juniors and seniors are on display with the Southern Illinois University Carbondale School of Art and Design statewide online art competition.
Winners in the first Creative Futures were announced Feb. 23. Five entries received top honors along with 11 honorable mentions selected by SIU faculty in areas from each of the three categories — 2D art (painting, drawing, printmaking and photography), 3D art (ceramics, glass, metals and sculpture), and design and digital art (web/graphic design, industrial design, animation and video).
In all, there were 99 entries from students in 27 high schools from throughout Illinois.
“This was a wonderful inaugural online high school art competition,” said Antonio Martinez, associate professor and head of undergraduate studies. “The success of this inaugural competition belongs to the dedicated high school art teachers who encourage and foster creative young minds to express and to represent how they see the world around them.”
The online exhibition will be available for viewing through Feb. 14, 2025.
Martinez said the final selections in each category were difficult to narrow down “because there were technical strengths and aesthetic merits in each piece.”
“When evaluating art, jurors typically focus upon immediate visual impact, originality, and the degree of craftsmanship or control of materials and processes,” he said.
The honored students are:
2D art
First place — Rebecca Yee, senior, Belleville Township East High School; art teacher, Breanne Pelker. “Decomposition.”
Second place — Amy Kramarczyk, senior, Larkin High School, Elgin; art teacher, Christine Watts.
Third place — Evelyn McElya, junior, Murphysboro High School; art teacher, Caitlin Langellier. “The Mycologist’s Bones.”
Honorable mention
- Yahri Edmond, senior, Carbondale Community High School; art teacher, Jennifer Kennedy. “Contrast of Self.: A Chiaroscuro Self Portrait.”
- Elmedina Kurtovic, junior, James B. Conant High School, Hoffman Estates; art teacher, Jamie Patterson. “Mirrored.”
- Alyssa Rouse, senior, Eldorado High School; art teacher, Ashley Priddy. “Egress Through the Universe Embroidery Hoop.”
- Danica Scoma, senior, LaSalle-Peru Township High School; art teacher, Julie Jenkins. “Desensitized.”
- Lillian Seresbeno, senior, Marion High School; art teacher, Amber Akes. “From Rags to Riches.”
- Morgan Viggers, senior, Metamora Township High School; art teacher, Steve Danner. “Fields in Late May.”
- Kaydn Ward, junior, Goreville High School; art teacher, Jennifer Ingram. “Octopus.”
3D art
First place — Mia Brooks, senior, Washington Community High School; art teacher, Jayme Banzhoff. “Umi no ue de no seikatsu.”
Honorable mention
- Bella Signore, senior, Metamora Township High School; art teacher, Tiffany Wyse-Fisher; “Genesis.”
- Kimber McMurray, senior, Sesser-Valier High School; art teacher, Anthony Evetts.
Design, digital art
First place — Destiny Foronda, senior, Larkin High School, Elgin; art teacher, Christine Watts.
Honorable mention
- Paige Severs, junior, Goreville High School, art teacher, Jennifer Ingram. “Fallen Angel.”
- Elaina Williams, senior, Marion High School; art teacher, Amber Akes. “You! You There! Can you Explain the Inner-Machinations of your Mind?”
Martinez said he hopes the online competition can reach neighboring states in the future and noted that the School of Art and Design is establishing a recruitment fund that will help support initiatives and events such as Creative Futures.
Illinois special teams coordinator Robby Discher is reportedly heading to Columbus.
CBS Sports reported Saturday that Discher will take over the same position for Ryan Day’s staff at Ohio State.
Discher’s career has taken him to Tulane, Georgia and Louisiana before Illinois, where he arrived in 2023.
Over the last two seasons, Illinois’ special teams unit ranked No. 16 and No. 30 in the nation by ESPN’s efficiency metric.
No word on who will take over on Bret Bielema’s staff, but it appears it’s the only coordinator spot he will have to fill this offseason, as Aaron Henry and Barry Lunney Jr. have stayed put so far.
The Illinois Department of Labor filed a complaint against Gino and Marty’s in which it says the now-shuttered restaurant owes its former employees more than $20,000 for unpaid or underpaid wages.
The complaint, filed in Cook County Circuit Court, names the restaurant’s management company, White Glove Service and Management LLC, and several individual owners and managers. The Fulton Market restaurant closed last summer after opening in 2022.
Between December 2023 and August 2025, at least nine employees weren’t paid their tips or gratuities, and others were paid at a rate below the minimum wage, according to the state labor agency, which says they’re owed more than $20,000 in unpaid wages. The agency said it is pursuing other damages that could be owed under state law.
“Illinois law is clear: workers must be paid fully, fairly and on time,” Illinois Department of Labor Director Jane Flanagan said.
Illinois’ population has grown for the third consecutive year, according to new estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau.
Between July 1, 2024, and July 1, 2025, Illinois added 16,108 residents – an increase of more than 100,000 residents since 2022.
“Illinois recorded its third consecutive year of population growth, as the state remains focused on strengthening the factors that help people choose to stay and build their lives here,” said Gov. JB Pritzker. “That’s why we are focused on making long-term investments in education, public safety, and economic opportunity — so families can raise their kids here, workers can build careers, and entrepreneurs can start and grow businesses across Illinois.”
Illinois population growth in the last year was in part due to natural population gains and slowing domestic outmigration. The state’s birth rate continued to outpace its death rate with approximately 125,000 births and 114,000 deaths, for a net gain of about 11,000 residents. The domestic outmigration fell to its lowest level in 15 years, with 40,017 residents leaving Illinois between July 2024 and 2025.
Recent population estimates also reflect ongoing efforts from state officials to improve the accuracy of Illinois’ census data. Following the 2020 Census, the U.S. Census Bureau’s Post-Enumeration Survey found Illinois was undercounted by approximately 250,000 people, reflecting Illinois crossing 13 million residents. A subsequent Post-Census Group Quarters Review also identified more than 46,000 additional residents now incorporated into population estimates in later years.
Security guard shoots man after being fired upon outside bar in Detroit’s Corktown neighborhood
A new pro volleyball team wants in on San Francisco’s women’s sports boom
Dallas Police Use License Plate Reader To Bust Stolen Mercedes, Mail Theft Suspect
5 potential first-round draft picks Dolphins’ fans should get familiar with
Syracuse lacrosse vs. Boston University: Live score, updates
Florida High School Football Rankings: Top 25 teams – Oct. 21
Cleary's 21 help Le Moyne down Central Connecticut State 69-64 in OT
How old is Bo Nix? What to know about Oregon quarterback ahead of 2024 NFL Draft
99th annual Pony Swim held in Virginia
Indiana Members Credit Union announced as new anchor tenant at Bottleworks District
Trump says Iran ‘seriously talking to us’ as military ships head to Middle East
Campaign to boycott Israel looks to future after Gaza ‘ceasefire’
Democrat Taylor Rehmet wins a reliably Republican Texas state Senate seat, stunning GOP
Chicago mayor Brandon Johnson puts ICE ‘on notice’ with executive order seeking prosecution of agents
Bomb cyclone could drop 10 inches of snow on Southeast
-
Pennsylvania6 days agoRare ‘avalanche’ blocks Pennsylvania road during major snowstorm
-
Massachusetts16 hours agoTV star fisherman, crew all presumed dead after boat sinks off Massachusetts coast
-
Tennessee1 day agoUPDATE: Ohio woman charged in shooting death of West TN deputy
-
Technology1 week agoRing claims it’s not giving ICE access to its cameras
-
Movie Reviews5 days agoVikram Prabhu’s Sirai Telugu Dubbed OTT Movie Review and Rating
-
News1 week agoVideo: Jack Smith Defends His Trump Indictments During House Hearing
-
Politics1 week agoWhite House explains bruise on Trump’s hand
-
Politics7 days agoTrump’s playbook falters in crisis response to Minneapolis shooting