WPGU News Summary – Week of April 26th

Happy Sunday, Champaign-Urbana!

The University of Illinois COVID testing data reveals a total of 42 COVID-19 cases on campus over the past week. This puts last week’s campus positivity rate at 0.08%. 

Champaign-Urbana Public Health has administered 161,979 COVID-19 vaccinations and have fully vaccinated 72,454 people.

Here are last week’s top stories to start off your Sunday! Click the link under each story to listen to them on the WPGU News daily broadcast.

Vaccination card to replace on-campus COVID-19 testing in Fall 2021 

By Mac Dudley

From Friday, April 30, 2021

Due to results from studies showing that fully vaccinated individuals have a low chance of spreading COVID-19, the University of Illinois has announced that students will be able to provide their vaccination cards instead of biweekly testing for COVID-19 for the fall semester.

FDA moving to ban menthol cigarettes

By Da Yeon Eom

From Friday, April 30, 2021

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is taking steps to ban menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars within the next year in the hopes of reducing youth initiation, helping current smokers to quit, and addressing health disparities experienced by communities of color, low-income populations, LGBTQ+ individuals, and the black community, who are more likely to use tobacco products due to targeted marketing towards them.

CDC loosens mask requirements for fully vaccinated individuals

By Tara Mobasher

From Wednesday, April 28, 2021

According to a statement made last Tuesday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is allowing those who are fully vaccinated to attend small outdoor gatherings without wearing a mask while still recommending the use of masks in other social situations and urging all people to avoid large indoor gatherings.

UIUC professor named Carnegie fellow, more receive honors

By Josie Alameda and Anne McKeown

From Wednesday, April 28, 2021 and Thursday, April 29, 2021

Gillien Wood, English professor and Associate Director of Education at the Institute of Sustainability, Energy, and Environment at the University of Illinois, was awarded an Andrew Carnegie fellowship on Wednesday for his research in the humanities and social sciences.

This follows National Academy of Sciences and American Academy of Arts and Sciences awards given on Tuesday to more University of Illinois faculty, including chemistry professors Ralph Nuzzo, Wilfred Van Der Donk, and Nancy Makri, physics professor Nadya Mason, education dean James Anderson, and material sciences and engineering professor Kenneth Schweizer.

2020 Census hands Illinois one fewer representative 

By Kayla Mish

From Tuesday, April 27, 2021

The Census Bureau announced on Monday that Illinois will drop to 17 from 18 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives after the 2020 census indicated a 0.1% population loss since the 2010 census.