Calendar

Children and adults alike will feel the Halloween spirit when they come to hear three master storytellers spin spooky tales of the season. The evening will be led by Jacksonville’s own Mike Anderson ’74, whose combination of music, storytelling and humor has made him a much sought-after performer throughout the Midwest. Mike will be joined by two of our favorite storytellers, Sherry and Bobby Norfolk of St. Louis, who will tell their tales in separate campus locations, with the audience rotating between the three venues.

Join us October 1-31 for an entire month of NEW vegan options all over Springfield!

During this time, restaurants throughout the Springfield area will feature special vegan menu items. Diners have the opportunity to go visit restaurants, enjoy meals, vote, comment, and post photos of the delicious vegan meals they have ordered.

This month-long event brings all diners—not just vegans, together to appreciate the remarkable talents of Springfield chefs.

Check out our website at:
veganchefchallenge.org/Springfield

The University of Illinois Springfield Visual Arts Gallery is pleased to present A More Perfect Union, an exhibition by St. Louis-based artist John Early. A More Perfect Union will open on Monday, October 21 and run through Thursday, November 14.

Coinciding with the 2024 U.S. Presidential Election, A More Perfect Union is a sculptural installation made for a nation teetering on the precipice. Its focal point consists of a massive, fragile panel of compressed earth held up by a wooden frame and cinderblocks. Pierced with fifty holes, the dirt sign sits in front of a bay of windows, thus allowing natural light to shine through an otherwise impenetrable plane. The sculpture evokes old roadside billboards and DIY signage found throughout the Midwest countryside, yet it makes no pronouncements. Rather, it offers an invitation. To reflect, to connect, and, perhaps, even to hope amidst the precarity of the present moment.

John Early (b. 1978, Richmond, VA) is a multidisciplinary visual artist whose site-based work explores the textures, layers, and histories of place. Much of his recent work addresses power structures of inequity found in the recreational landscape of St. Louis’s public parks. Since 2021, Early has collaborated with sports studies scholar Noah Cohan on Whereas Hoops, an interdisciplinary project combining public scholarship, archival research, spatial interventions, and activism to address the absence of basketball courts in St. Louis’s Forest Park. In April 2022, Early’s essay about a basketball court in North St. Louis was included in the edited volume, The Material World of Modern Segregation: St. Louis in the Long Era of Ferguson. He is currently a Senior Lecturer in the Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts at Washington University in St. Louis and is a Faculty Affiliate at the University’s Center for the Study of Race, Ethnicity & Equity.

The Underground Gallery, the newest featured space to the SAA Collective showcases over forty community artists with strange, eerie, and bizarre artwork perfect for the Halloween season. Open Wednesday - Saturdays from 11 AM - 5 PM.

A more than two decades-long effort to develop a Master Plan for Downtown Springfield and the Mid-Illinois Medical District is nearing completion.

The final product is expected to guide future development in Springfield's inner core.

The public is invited to events where details will be released and questions will be answered.

“We are looking forward to sharing this Master Plan with the community as we expect it to serve as a blueprint for the Springfield’s downtown and the Mid-Illinois Medical District for ongoing and future projects,” said Springfield Mayor Misty Buscher. “This document will guide city staff, officials, and community stakeholders in decision making and visioning for downtown Springfield.”

Listen each weekday October 21 through November 1 to hear selected essays air each weekday during Morning Edition with Michelle Eccles at 7:45 a.m. and during All Things Considered with Sean Crawford at 4 :45 p.m.

Join us October 1-31 for an entire month of NEW vegan options all over Springfield!

During this time, restaurants throughout the Springfield area will feature special vegan menu items. Diners have the opportunity to go visit restaurants, enjoy meals, vote, comment, and post photos of the delicious vegan meals they have ordered.

This month-long event brings all diners—not just vegans, together to appreciate the remarkable talents of Springfield chefs.

Check out our website at:
veganchefchallenge.org/Springfield

**You're invited to attend A Free Career and Resource Fair**

Proudly sponsored by the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library & Museum (ALPLM), Central Illinois Chapter, Society of Human Resource Management (CIC SHRM), Illinois Department of Central Management Services, and University of Illinois Springfield, Career Development Center.

Employers, got job & internship opportunities? We want you! Sign up for a booth!! Advance employer registration is required as space is limited.

Jobseekers, students & the community at large are invited to attend! Registration is encouraged but not required.

Learn more and register here: https://go.uis.edu/CareerResourceFair

October is National Disability Employment Awareness Month! On site resources available to support your needs.

Participating employers include:

Bank of Springfield
Express Employment Professionals
Horace Mann Insurance Company
Illinois Community College Board
Illinois Department of Central Management - Human Resources
Illinois Department of Children and Family Services
Illinois Department of Corrections
Illinois Department of Innovation and Technology
Illinois Department of Veterans Affairs
Lutheran Child and Family Services
Office of Statewide Pretrial Services
Prairie State Bank & Trust
Simplex
SIU Medicine
Springfield Police Department

Additional resources include:

Job Readiness Support
Career Coaching / Resume Assistance
How to apply for State of Illinois Jobs
Networking opportunities

Mark your calendars now and meet us there!

Got questions or need a specific accommodation? Please email: alplm.hr@illinois.gov

The University of Illinois Springfield Visual Arts Gallery is pleased to present A More Perfect Union, an exhibition by St. Louis-based artist John Early. A More Perfect Union will open on Monday, October 21 and run through Thursday, November 14.

Coinciding with the 2024 U.S. Presidential Election, A More Perfect Union is a sculptural installation made for a nation teetering on the precipice. Its focal point consists of a massive, fragile panel of compressed earth held up by a wooden frame and cinderblocks. Pierced with fifty holes, the dirt sign sits in front of a bay of windows, thus allowing natural light to shine through an otherwise impenetrable plane. The sculpture evokes old roadside billboards and DIY signage found throughout the Midwest countryside, yet it makes no pronouncements. Rather, it offers an invitation. To reflect, to connect, and, perhaps, even to hope amidst the precarity of the present moment.

John Early (b. 1978, Richmond, VA) is a multidisciplinary visual artist whose site-based work explores the textures, layers, and histories of place. Much of his recent work addresses power structures of inequity found in the recreational landscape of St. Louis’s public parks. Since 2021, Early has collaborated with sports studies scholar Noah Cohan on Whereas Hoops, an interdisciplinary project combining public scholarship, archival research, spatial interventions, and activism to address the absence of basketball courts in St. Louis’s Forest Park. In April 2022, Early’s essay about a basketball court in North St. Louis was included in the edited volume, The Material World of Modern Segregation: St. Louis in the Long Era of Ferguson. He is currently a Senior Lecturer in the Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts at Washington University in St. Louis and is a Faculty Affiliate at the University’s Center for the Study of Race, Ethnicity & Equity.

The Underground Gallery, the newest featured space to the SAA Collective showcases over forty community artists with strange, eerie, and bizarre artwork perfect for the Halloween season. Open Wednesday - Saturdays from 11 AM - 5 PM.