School District With Highest Student Arrest Rate in the Nation Agrees to Reform How It Disciplines Disabled Students
Following a ProPublica-Chicago Tribune investigation, the Garrison School in Illinois will change its disciplinary practices and provide services to those who missed class due to being arrested or sent to a seclusion room.
Reporting From the Midwest
Our team in the Midwest covers Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota and Missouri. Based in Chicago, it grew out of our first regional publishing operation, which focused on people living and working in Illinois. Read more.
DOJ Reaches Agreement With Wisconsin Sheriff’s Office to Improve Services for People Who Don’t Speak English
Years after deputies in Dane County, Wisconsin, mistakenly blamed an immigrant worker for his son’s death on a dairy farm, the sheriff’s office has agreed to reforms meant to ensure that residents who speak limited English can get needed services.
A Vexing To-Do List for Michigan’s Gretchen Whitmer
As the governor, now a rising Democratic star, finishes out her final term, key populist pledges have been unfulfilled and her presidential resume is still being written.
Missouri Outlawed Abortion, and Now It’s Funding an Anti-Abortion Group That Works in Other States
With millions in expanded tax credits and direct state funding going to anti-abortion groups, the nonprofit Coalition Life has expanded its operations beyond Missouri and into states where the procedure is still legal.
Midwest News Staff
- Midwest Editor
- George Papajohn
- Deputy Midwest Editor
- Steve Mills
- Reporters
- Anna Clark, Jodi S. Cohen, Vernal Coleman, Duaa Eldeib, Jeremy Kohler, Jessica Lussenhop, Megan O’Matz, Melissa Sanchez and Jennifer Smith Richards
- Abrams Reporting Fellow
- Emily Hopkins
Local Reporting Network Partners
ProPublica is supporting local and regional newsrooms as they work on important investigative projects affecting their communities. Some of our past and present partners in the region:
- Chicago Tribune
- Chicago, Illinois
- The Southern Illinoisan
- Carbondale, Illinois
- WBEZ
- Chicago, Illinois
- The Daily Herald
- Arlington Heights, Illinois
- The Business Journal
- Youngstown, Ohio
- Outlier Media
- Detroit, Michigan
El Departamento de Justicia llega a un acuerdo con un Sheriff de Wisconsin para mejorar servicios para quienes no hablan inglés
Años después de que los agentes del Condado Dane culparan por error a un trabajador inmigrante por la muerte de su hijo en una granja lechera, la oficina del alguacil acordó reformas destinadas a garantizar que los residentes que hablan inglés limitado puedan obtener los servicios necesarios.
Trump Assassination Attempt Laid Bare Long-standing Vulnerabilities in the Secret Service
A Spotlight PA, ProPublica and Butler Eagle investigation found the process for securing campaign events was susceptible to attack for years.
Historic Gun Suit Survives Serious Legal Threat Engineered by Indiana Republicans
A judge ruled that a law passed by Indiana’s GOP supermajority that tried to retroactively prevent cities from suing gun manufacturers goes too far. The decision allows one city’s decadeslong suit against gunmakers to continue.
A Wisconsin Tribe Built a Lending Empire Charging 600% Annual Rates to Borrowers
The Lac du Flambeau tribe is at the center of a $1 billion class-action settlement that comes after years of fending off claims of predatory lending practices.
The Government Spends Millions to Open Grocery Stores in Food Deserts. The Real Test Is Their Survival.
The community of Cairo, Illinois, once a food desert, welcomed its new market last year with balloons and cheers. But the store is struggling — exposing problems with the programs set up to help.
Why We Investigated Matthew Trewhella, the Far-Right Wisconsin Pastor Influencing Republican Politics
Some people said militant anti-abortion activist Matthew Trewhella was a ’90s figure who’s no longer relevant, but our reporting shows he’s influencing policies, bills and movements today.
Federal Law Thwarted Chicago’s Attempt to Sue Gun Makers. But Now It Has a New Strategy.
Taking advantage of a new state law, Chicago's lawsuit accuses Glock of manufacturing pistols with designs that allow modification and failing to make changes that would protect the public.
Two Reporters Covering Education in the Midwest Followed the Money … to a School in New York
Jennifer Smith Richards and Jodi S. Cohen are based in Chicago and cover the Midwest. But when they looked into where vulnerable Illinois students wound up, they found themselves at an unregulated, for-profit school in New York.
The Gospel of Matthew Trewhella: How a Militant Anti-Abortion Activist Is Influencing Republican Politics
The Wisconsin pastor was once a political pariah. But now his book is being quoted by politicians and former Trump officials. One activist is using it to disrupt elections.
The Failure to Track Data on Stillbirths Undermines Efforts to Prevent Them
Fetal death records are often missing cause of death, race and other crucial information. ProPublica found that the problem is only getting worse.
Three States Have Warned Against Sending Students to an Unregulated Boarding School for Youth With Autism
After visiting Shrub Oak International School, officials from Connecticut, Washington and Massachusetts have advised districts of troubling conditions at the school where a ProPublica investigation uncovered reports of abuse and neglect.
Michigan Bottlers Still Get Free Water, Despite Whitmer’s Tough Talk
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer had pledged to crack down on bottled water companies taking water at the same time Flint, Michigan, faced a water crisis. Six years later and in her second term, little has changed.
How Illinois’ Hands-Off Approach to Homeschooling Leaves Children at Risk
At 9 years old, L.J. started missing school. His parents said they would homeschool him. It took two years — during which he was beaten and denied food — for anyone to notice he wasn’t learning.
An Illinois School District’s Reliance on Police to Ticket Students Is Discriminatory, Civil Rights Complaint Says
Two civil rights groups are asking the U.S. Department of Education to force Rockford Public Schools, the third-largest district in Illinois, to stop discriminatory discipline involving police.
¿Qué hago si me lesiono en el trabajo en una granja de Wisconsin?
Esta guía explica sus derechos en ranchos grandes y pequeños. Se basa en entrevistas con abogados y otros expertos.
