WGLT's Sound Ideas - Full Episodes

Bloomington Normal is in the hunt for a massive economic development project...a billion dollar electric battery factory on the west side of Normal. It could bring 32-hundred jobs to the twin cities. There have been rumors for a couple years about what extra business Rivian might bring to Bloomington Normal. Last week there was a hint the community is in the running for a big get. Then today Dick Durbin named the prospect, Samsung. Hear reaction from Bloomington Normal Mayors, economic development and transportation leaders, and a state lawmaker for the community.

On today's episode, regional schools superintendent Mark Jontry talks about another unusual back-to-school period. A leader with the Back 2 School Alliance talks about this year's school supply giveaway. Carle Health's CEO explains their new vaccine requirement. And a new book explores the musical genre of Americana.

The drenching downpours of Sunday brought anguished howls of 'not again!' from some Bloomington Normal residents who haven't fully cleaned up from sewage backups and flooded basements in June. And restoration company backlogs mean there's not much help available . The Regional Superintendent looks at how and who will enforce the mask mandate in schools. A very smart dog learned to take the train to go all over central Illinois in the early part of the last century. Rags was a dog of uncertain pedigree and affable character. Hear the story of a long ago dog's journey into Bloomington, Springfield, and other towns in the latest episode of McHistory. And learn about the entwined history of chocolate and racism from an ISU Fulbright scholar.

Nationally ranked disc golfers come to central Illinois for a big tourney. For the record, fon't call it frisbee golf or even worse FROLF. The Illinois Arts Station is close to opening its new home in Normal. At certain long term care facilities in Bloomington Normal less than a quarter of the staff have taken the Coronavirus vaccine. Dive into why that is. Plus, a big long term care facility operator backtracks on its requirement that staff get vaccinated. Heritage Health would love it if the government took the question of mandates out of company hands.

Governor JB Pritzker says he's disappointed so many school districts had planned to make masks optional for the fall. He's taking that choice out of their hands. There's now a statewide mask mandate - daycare through high school. It's tough to put out a car fire in an electric vehicle because you have to keep the battery cells that aren't on fire cool enough so they don't go up. Normal firefighters say it takes ten times the usual amount of water to put out an EV car fire. They're studying up for a lot more EVs on the road. And Team Mercury is on the road. Illinois State University's solar car racing team has a very quiet engine.

The Mayor of Normal warns looming federal limits on water system phosphorus emissions could be a development killer if area residents have to pay for 160-million-dollars in improvements without federal help. There are a lot of pets turned in to shelters in McLean County right now. But the reason for the furry glut might not be post pandemic pet purging after all. And a soon to be abolished tent city on Bloomington's west side raises the profile of the homeless in the twin cities.

The City Manager of Normal tries to ease council nerves that the $24 million underpass project will cost more. And the present furor over critical race theory aside, it's not a new thing for politics to shape the material taught in social studies classes. Liberation Colorized is an online journal launched to give students a voice during a particularly turbulent time in Bloomington Normal politics. These young people are not just listening to adults, they're telling. And a famed McLean County dairy family gets a memorial in a new book.

The McLean County Emergency Management Agency usually spends a lot of time preparing for disasters. But most of the last year and a half have been consumed by, well, emergencies. And they're shorthanded. A great tune and a little reinvention has kept this opera popular for nigh on 300 years. MIOpera begins its season in Bloomington Normal with the Barber of Seville. And, the band Good Morning Bedlam has close harmonies on stage and in the rest of their lives.

There's an Illinois State University connection to Olympic gymnast Simone Biles. As Biles withdrew from the competition one of the highest profile defenses comes from former redbird gymnast and now coach, Andrea Orris. The Simone Biles matter is also raising awareness that high level athletes sometimes need help just as much as the rest of us to stay on an even keel. ISU Sports psychologist Sam Kurkjian has more. And most of the members of the Illinois Shakespeare Festival theater company this year are Black Indigenous or people of Color. Hear how a diverse cast inflects the plays of the Bard.

The latest trend in wind power is taller turbines with longer blades. That's important for people near two central Illinois wind farms under construction. And a new mental health concern has emerged in Bloomington Normal, re-entry anxiety. A lot of people are eying the sale of Illinois State University's 26 acre Shelbourne Apartments in Normal as a big opportunity. Normal City Manager Pam Reece says any new housing should probably not all be single family homes nor perhaps dense student housing. Plus, central Illinois scientists have found a way to convert wasted bread into a compound found in everything from food to pharmaceuticals, vitamin C.