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Whatever you are interested in, we've got it covered.

Inkspot

Whatever you are interested in, we've got it covered.

Inkspot

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Chamber choir to be featured on Channel 25 WEEK’s ‘Sounds of the Season’

Chamber choir performance to be featured on NBC, ABC broadcasts Dec. 24, 25
Malachi McCool, Staff Writer
Dec 15, 2023

A special chamber choir performance will be broadcast as part of  Channel 25 WEEK’s “Sounds of the Season” holiday segment on Dec. 24 and 25.  Community, one of several area high schools invited to appear on the special, recorded their performance in Grace Presbyterian Church in Peoria on...

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While Raksha Bandhan traditionally honors literal sisters and brothers, event participators tied rakhi around each others wrists as a more symbolic gesture of brotherhood and unity.

Raksha Bandhan celebration ties community together

Abby Ruebush, Editor-in-Chief
Sep 4, 2023

Ekal Helping Hands, the youth service branch of Bloomington’s Ekal Vidyalaya Foundation chapter, is focused on making a difference in the community. It brought that mission to Community in observation of Raksha Bandhan–a Hindu festival of brotherhood–on Aug. 30. Organized by Helping Hands’...

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Unit 5s text selection policy identifies the criteria on which the districts libraries adopt books for circulation. The policy seeks to provided students with texts that: support and enrich students’ personal interests and learning; meet high standards in literary, artistic, and aesthetic quality; are appropriate for the age, emotional development, ability level, learning styles, and social, emotional, and intellectual development of the students for whom the materials are selected; incorporate accurate and authentic factual content from authoritative sources; earn favorable reviews in standard reviewing sources; exhibit a high degree of potential user appeal and interest; and represent differing viewpoints on controversial issues. provide a global perspective and promote diversity by including materials by authors and illustrators of all cultures.

Illinois outlaws book bans, adds ‘another layer of protection’ to Unit 5 policy

Illinois became the first state in the nation to prohibit book bans on June 12 when Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed House Bill 2789 into law.  Illinois public libraries that restrict or ban materials based on “partisan or doctrinal” disapproval will lose their eligibility for state funding...

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Now through August 31st, teens between the ages of 14-19 can work out for free at Planet Fitness.

Free Planet Fitness membership available for teens, scholarship opportunities

Marielsie Iglesias, Senior Staff Reporter
May 18, 2023

Students can now register for Planet Fitness’ High School Summer Pass, a free summer membership for teens, valid through Aug. 31.   The fitness center is offering the memberships as a “solution for teenagers to stay active during the summer when school is out,” it said in a press release. Teens,...

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Sophia Feeney helped lead the Iron girls basketball team to a State Farm Holiday Classic Title this season. 
Now, she is being recognized as Holiday Classic Scholarship award winner for her on- and off-the-court excellence.

Iron basketball’s Sophia Feeney wins Holiday Classic Scholarship

Brayden Blackwell and Libby Price
May 12, 2023

Sophia Feeney was announced as a 2023 Holiday Classic Scholarship award recipient on May 4. The scholarship, which recognizes seniors who participated in the 2022 State Farm Holiday Classic basketball tournament, awards Feeney $1,500 towards her college tuition next year.  The tournament, Feeney...

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Avani Rai, Kellie Chen, Abby Ruebush and Dylan Wehmeyer pose on stage at the IHSA State Journalism competition. The four were joined by Marielsie Iglesias in the annual State Final at Heartland Community College.

Journalism program brings home IHSA State medalists, earns IJEA recognition

Anna Dunne, Senior Staff Reporter
May 12, 2023

Three students medaled at the IHSA Journalism State tournament on April 21 at Heartland Community College. The three individual top-six finishers matches the journalism program’s best State performance. At the competition, high schoolers showcase various real-world journalistic skills — writing,...

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35 potential employers attended the College and Career Centers career fair on May 3, highlighting some of the employment opportunities available to students post-high school.

College and Career Center’s career fair showcases over 30 employment paths

BJ Dumas and Zachary Knox-Doyle
May 11, 2023

The College and Career Center hosted over 30 potential employers during May 3’s half-day. The event, organized by CCC counselor Mrs. Karrin Hawkins, showcased a variety of career paths available to students. Representatives from 35 organizations–local businesses, trades, military branches and...

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The district will go forward with the implementation of the National School Breakfast and Lunch Program at both high schools, a program that offers low-cost nutritious, balanced meals at both high schools. 
The program offers the district a funding source through the government.

Unit 5 School Board reverses majority of budget cuts for 2023-24

BJ Dumas and Zachary Knox-Doyle
May 1, 2023

The McLean County Unit 5 School Board unanimously reversed the majority of cuts set to take effect in the 2023-24 school year at a special board meeting April 11.  The district will continue implementing several budget measures approved at the Jan. 31 board meeting, including limiting the number...

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Several Community seniors were eligible to vote for the first time in Aprils election, helping pass  the Unit 5 tax referendum.

Community seniors turn out in support of Unit 5 tax referendum

Libby Price and Brayden Blackwell
May 1, 2023

The Unit 5 tax referendum drew several Community seniors to the polls on April 4, the second time the issue was on the ballot. More than 53% of voters rejected the referendum in November’s midterm elections when the majority of the Class of 2023 was ineligible to vote. In April, the referendum...

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During the FFAs 3rd annual tree drive, paper leaves with the names of donators hung outside the main office.

FFA’s tree drive takes root at Community

Anna Dunne, Senior Staff Reporter
Apr 21, 2023

The Normal FFA’s third annual tree drive raised $465, allowing the organization to plant 93 trees across Mclean County as part of the Ecology Action Center’s 10,000 tree-planting initiative. After planting 662 trees in Bloomington Normal over the last two years, FFA sponsor Mrs. Liz Harris said,...

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Following Holi traditions, attendees arrived to the celebrations in white attire.

South Asian Performing Arts’ ‘Holi Moli’ celebrates community, inclusion

Avani Rai, Editor-in-Chief
Apr 17, 2023

Karthika Nair has lived in the United States her entire life. Yet, there are very few days, the senior said, she “truly feel[s] at home” in Bloomington Normal. That feeling of home, that sense of acceptance, Nair said, comes when she can celebrate her culture with the community. For two...

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Five members of the journalism program qualified to compete in the 2023 IHSA Journalism State Finals. Journalism II students Avani Rai (left) and Abby Ruebush (right) return to State for the second straight year. Marielsie Iglesias (second from left) failed to advance past Sectionals last season. Journalism III student Dylan Wehmeyer (second from right) qualified for State in two events in his first Sectional Competition. [Not Pictured: Kellie Chen]

Inkspot staff sends five to IHSA Journalism State Finals

Inkspot Staff
Apr 7, 2023

When five Inkspot staff members competed in the IHSA Journalism Sectionals April 1, the student journalists went from reporting the news to making it themselves. Each of Community's five individual competitors boasted a top-three finish to secure a spot in the IHSA State Final, where they will compete...

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JV girls basketball coach Mr. Mike Goodwin addresses Community during a December game against Urbana. 
While Community may be able to increase the number of athletes on a JV roster, varsity girls basketball coach Dave Feeney said, “That means theres more kids and less adult supervision, less instruction, less coaching,”

Community coaches express concerns over athletic program cuts

To reduce the district’s multi-million-dollar budget deficit, the School Board voted to eliminate junior high and freshman athletics and reduce the number of competitors attending out-of-town contests. Those cuts, several veteran Community coaches believe, are detrimental. While the cuts will...

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This April’s ballot includes two issues with potential large-scale impact on Unit 5 students: the election of members to the Unit 5 School Board and a vote on the Unit 5 tax referendum.

Voter registration drive promotes local political participation

Avani Rai, Editor-in-Chief
Mar 24, 2023

Community held its second voter registration drive of the school year March 3. The event, organized by Ms. LaTishia Baker, registered 13 students in-person and several others virtually ahead of April 4's Consolidate Municipal Elections.  Baker first organized a student voter registration drive in...

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At the Hindu Temple of Bloomington-Normal, more than sixty people participated in the final day of this years Yogathon.

Yoga rekindles heart-healthy practices, spreads cultural awareness

Abby Ruebush, Editor-in-Chief
Feb 14, 2023

In 2020, 697,000 Americans died — not of COVID-19, but of heart disease. The leading cause of death in the U.S. every year for the last 70 years, heart disease remains an epidemic in itself. An epidemic that only worsened when heart disease fatalities increased by four percent in 2020 —  reversing...

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