In the Loop with Sasha-Ann Simons

Beth Kobliner, author of the new book Make Your Kid a Money Genius, stops by the Morning Shift to share her tips on giving kids their best chance to be financial experts for life.

You’ve probably heard that this week the Chicago Auto Show but did you know that just a few blocks west of the convention center sits what was once the heart of Chicago car culture? 

Unbroken Glass starts a weeklong run at the Gene Siskel Film Center on February 17. Morning Shift talks to Dinesh Sabu about his documentary.

Governor Bruce Rauner delivers his third budget address Wednesday in Springfield. Rauner and legislators have not agreed on a budget since he’s been in office, based on his pledge that he wouldn’t sign an unbalanced budget. But as Senate leaders try to hash out a compromise, Rauner hasn’t been at the table. WBEZ Statehouse reporter Tony Arnold has some background on main points of contention, and what we can expect to hear Wednesday afternoon.

The long-running war over education funding between the Rauner administration and the Chicago Public Schools ramped up Tuesday afternoon when the Chicago School Board, acting on behalf of CPS families, sued the Republican governor, alleging the state’s system of funding teacher pensions is discriminatory. The suit hinges on the fact that CPS makes up roughly 20 percent of the state’s school children but only receives 15 percent of the state’s education funding. In a statement, the Rauner administration said it was still reviewing the lawsuit. Morning Shift talks to Chicago Public Schools CEO Forrest Claypool about the state of school funding in Illinois and takes calls from listeners.

In 2014, Chicago approved a plan to increase the minimum wage from $10 to $10.50 per hour, despite this ordinance being in effect thousands of workers have not received their increase. According to an investigation by The Chicago Reporter the city has only investigated a minimal amount of the 454 wage complaints and recovered lost pay for only a few dozen employees. The investigation also estimates that thousands of workers have been left behind because of exceptions in the law including 1,300 crossing guards.

The shootings in Chicago make for dramatic headlines, as well as tweets from the president. But far more people die each year in Illinois from opioid overdoses than from homicides. Brigid Sweeney of Crain’s Chicago Business dives into some local universities are working toward a new understanding of—and treatment for—pain that doesn’t involve popping highly addictive pills.

In her play Straight White Men, director and playwright Young Jean Lee explores privilege and stereotypes as they apply to that title group of characters. As Lee explains, for time immemorial straight white males like them were the default human, but in our current culture, they’re being analyzed and called out for the first time. Morning Shift talks to Lee about her process for researching and writing the play and what she’d like theatergoers to take away from the play, which is on stage at the Steppenwolf Theatre through March 19.

What’s the dating scene like in Chicago? That’s the question our friends at Curious City tried to answer for one curious listener. Morning Shift talks to producer Sarah Geis about what she learned exploring Chicago’s singles scene for WBEZ’s Curious City.

With pitchers and catchers reporting for their first workout of spring training Wednesday, WBEZ sports contributor Cheryl Raye Stout sat down with Epstein to discuss his earliest memories as a baseball fanatic, how he’s put together so many winning teams and what needs to happen for the Cubs to repeat as World Series champions.