What’s New

The Chicago Bears made a big move by hiring Big Ten commissioner Kevin Warren as the team’s next President and CEO.

Warren replaces longtime leader Ted Phillips who is retiring. Warren will be tasked with helping the Chicago Bears potentially build a new stadium in Arlington Heights, Illinois along with overseeing the job general manager Ryan Poles is doing.

This hiring is going to dramatically alter the way the Chicago Bears do business. By tabbing Warren to run the NFL’s charter franchise, it means the mom-and-pop shop days are over.

Warren is the first team president with no direct prior ties to the franchise.

The McCaskey’s are finally signaling to the world that is time to act like a big-market franchise operating in the 21st century instead of thinking it is still 1921.

Outside of maybe hiring Theo Epstein, this is the best hire team chairman George McCaskey could have made. Warren is the man who expanded the Big Ten into the West Coast. He negotiated a huge television contract for the conference as well.

Warren also was a tremendous asset in the Minnesota Vikings front office as their chief operating officer.

The Bears have the chance to go from a sleeping giant franchise to revenue power. Warren was instrumental in helping the Vikings build US Bank Stadium.

Looking at building a new stadium, the Chicago Bears went out and hired the most obvious choice to help them achieve this goal. Phillips did his best to help the McCaskey’s secure ownership for future generations but that was about all he did.

Phillips’s legacy is getting Soldier Field renovated but it was an unimaginative retrofit that left the Bears with one of the smallest stadiums in the NFL.

Warren has a proven track record for developing a world-class facility that is more than just a football venue. It made sense to go big and get the Big Ten commissioner to come and run the team.

This hire is going to help the Chicago Bears become a powerhouse NFL team.

Warren has a track record for making an NFL franchise a lot of money. He also has a record for making an entire conference a ton of cash as well.

You can bet NFL commissioner Roger Goodell is going to tap into Warren’s ability to negotiate television contracts especially as the league continues to deal with streaming services.

He has the potential to morph the Bears into a franchise on par with the New England Patriots, the Dallas Cowboys, and the Los Angeles Rams as a power broker franchise.

This is a man who believes okay is not okay. Okay has been a normal business practice in Lake Forest ever since Mike Ditka left town.

He demands excellence and that is something that has been lacking at Halas Hall ever since Papa Bear George Halas passed away in 1983.

To be fair, the McCaskey family wanted to win they just did not know how. The history of their hiring showed they were never interested in networking and being connected in league circles to bring in the best people to make football decisions. In fact, they were always doing what others told them to do.

The problem is when you pay consultants like Bill Polian or Ernie Accorsi to help make big-picture decisions, they are not going to stick around to make sure the choice works out.

Consulting with the other family-owned franchises like the Rooney’s, the Mara’s, and the Bidwell’s is also turning to people that might not have your best interest at heart.

Now the Bears have a person in place who can tap into an abundance of resources for feedback and advice if he needs it. He may not need a lot as Warren is well-connected and has the experience needed to accomplish the goals he is being tasked with.

He has enough NFL experience to be able to properly assess the job Ryan Poles is doing. He has the relationships and expertise to get a start-of-the-art stadium built.

Also, let’s not overlook the historical significance this hiring has made. The Bears now have a black president, general manager and starting quarterback.

The Chicago Bears are making all sorts of progress. It is good progress which is something that does not get said about the franchise a lot over the last 40 years.

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JOBS

Touch of Beauty Supply, Inc seeks a Corporate Controller. Mail resume 2 E 154th St, Harvey, IL.

Software Developers, Schaumburg, IL: Develop the proof of concepts, contributes to the documentation as bi-weekly sprint cycles of Agile Scrum methodology workflow through grooming and Involved in sprint planning meetings which demonstrates to the business. Followed the best practices for creating the organization structure, Rules (code) creation, framework reuse while implementing the application. Travel/reloc to various unantic locs. Send res to: Rigelsky, Inc. at 120 W Golf Rd, Suite 106, Schaumburg, IL 60195 or email: [email protected]

LEGAL NOTICE

Public Notice Of Name ChangeI file to change my name from John Earl Poole to John Mwalimu Kali Mwindaji with the State Of Illinois Circuit Court in Cook County.

PROFESSIONALS & SERVICES

CLEANING SERVICES CHESTNUT ORGANIZING AND CLEANING SERVICES: especially for people who need an organizing service because of depression, elderly, physical or mental challenges or other causes for your home’s clutter, disorganization, dysfunction, etc. We can organize for the downsizing of your current possessions to more easily move into a smaller home. With your help, we can help to organize your move. We can organize and clean for the deceased in lieu of having the bereaved needing to do the preparation to sell or rent the deceased’s home. We are absolutely not judgmental; we’ve seen and done “worse” than your job assignment. With your help, can we please help you? Chestnut Cleaning Service: 312-332-5575. www.ChestnutCleaning.com

RESEARCH

Have you had an unwanted sexual experience since age 18?Did you tell someone in your life about it who is also willing to participate? Women ages 18+ who have someone else in their life they told about their experience also willing to participate will be paid to complete a confidential online research survey for the Women’s Dyadic Support Study. Contact Dr. Sarah Ullman of the University of Illinois at Chicago, Criminology, Law, & Justice Department at [email protected], 312-996-5508. Protocol #2021-0019.

COMMUNITY

BIG EARS MUSIC FESTIVALI am going to BIG EARS MUSIC FESTIVAL – Knoxville Tenn 3/30-4/2. I would like to share transport and Hotel expenses. Please respond if you are or know someone. I am in Arlington Hts. [email protected]

PERSONALS

Dominick Defanso rocks classic rockM. Choice, Tracy Guns, Britney Beach Spears with GNR reports. Will be the jungle . . . for beach house fun. M. Crue, Poison said what a night for T. Swift – country great. June 2, 2023. Will be watching as Aerosmith, B. Joni, B. Sabbath, ACDC, J. Bieber, Lady G. Pop stars, rockstars, & country.Fun times with classic rock.Guns N RoseHollywood RoseBunny Beach, Rock Star Bunny

ADULT SERVICES

Danielle’s Lip Service, Erotic Phone Chat. 24/7. Must be 21+. Credit/Debit Cards Accepted. All Fetishes and Fantasies Are Welcomed. Personal, Private and Discrete. 773-935-4995

Want to add a listing to our classifieds?

See classified advertising information at chicagoreader.com/ads.

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JOBS

Touch of Beauty Supply, Inc seeks a Corporate Controller. Mail resume 2 E 154th St, Harvey, IL.

Software Developers, Schaumburg, IL: Develop the proof of concepts, contributes to the documentation as bi-weekly sprint cycles of Agile Scrum methodology workflow through grooming and Involved in sprint planning meetings which demonstrates to the business. Followed the best practices for creating the organization structure, Rules (code) creation, framework reuse while implementing the application. Travel/reloc to various unantic locs. Send res to: Rigelsky, Inc. at 120 W Golf Rd, Suite 106, Schaumburg, IL 60195 or email: [email protected]

LEGAL NOTICE

Public Notice Of Name ChangeI file to change my name from John Earl Poole to John Mwalimu Kali Mwindaji with the State Of Illinois Circuit Court in Cook County.

PROFESSIONALS & SERVICES

CLEANING SERVICES CHESTNUT ORGANIZING AND CLEANING SERVICES: especially for people who need an organizing service because of depression, elderly, physical or mental challenges or other causes for your home’s clutter, disorganization, dysfunction, etc. We can organize for the downsizing of your current possessions to more easily move into a smaller home. With your help, we can help to organize your move. We can organize and clean for the deceased in lieu of having the bereaved needing to do the preparation to sell or rent the deceased’s home. We are absolutely not judgmental; we’ve seen and done “worse” than your job assignment. With your help, can we please help you? Chestnut Cleaning Service: 312-332-5575. www.ChestnutCleaning.com

RESEARCH

Have you had an unwanted sexual experience since age 18?Did you tell someone in your life about it who is also willing to participate? Women ages 18+ who have someone else in their life they told about their experience also willing to participate will be paid to complete a confidential online research survey for the Women’s Dyadic Support Study. Contact Dr. Sarah Ullman of the University of Illinois at Chicago, Criminology, Law, & Justice Department at [email protected], 312-996-5508. Protocol #2021-0019.

COMMUNITY

BIG EARS MUSIC FESTIVALI am going to BIG EARS MUSIC FESTIVAL – Knoxville Tenn 3/30-4/2. I would like to share transport and Hotel expenses. Please respond if you are or know someone. I am in Arlington Hts. [email protected]

PERSONALS

Dominick Defanso rocks classic rockM. Choice, Tracy Guns, Britney Beach Spears with GNR reports. Will be the jungle . . . for beach house fun. M. Crue, Poison said what a night for T. Swift – country great. June 2, 2023. Will be watching as Aerosmith, B. Joni, B. Sabbath, ACDC, J. Bieber, Lady G. Pop stars, rockstars, & country.Fun times with classic rock.Guns N RoseHollywood RoseBunny Beach, Rock Star Bunny

ADULT SERVICES

Danielle’s Lip Service, Erotic Phone Chat. 24/7. Must be 21+. Credit/Debit Cards Accepted. All Fetishes and Fantasies Are Welcomed. Personal, Private and Discrete. 773-935-4995

Want to add a listing to our classifieds?

See classified advertising information at chicagoreader.com/ads.

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This story was co-published with The TRiiBE.

Today, Mayor Lori Lightfoot told The TRiiBE that it was a mistake for a member of her campaign  to send emails to Chicago Public School teachers to encourage them to help with her re-election campaign in exchange for school credit. 

On Wednesday evening, Mayor Lightfoot’s campaign came under fire after asking Chicago Public School (CPS) teachers to encourage students to help her get re-elected in exchange for school credit. WTTW Politics Reporter Heather Cherone first reported the story. 

“Late yesterday afternoon, I learned that in an effort to recruit young people to the campaign . . . a campaign staffer accessed publicly available email addresses for CPS teachers,” Lightfoot said in a one-on-one interview with The TRiiBE before a Thursday afternoon press conference. “Obviously, that was a mistake. From day one, we erected not just a line but a wall, between the campaign political side and any official side,” she said. 

The campaign staffer “understands the magnitude of the issue that has been created,” Lightfoot added.

“I explained to her personally why this could not happen, and what the implications were. I think she gets it. We have reiterated our ethics standards, and why that wall is important to the entire staff again today.”

“It was a mistake, it shouldn’t happen. And I’m confident that won’t happen again.”

Mayoral candidates such as Brandon Johnson and Paul Vallas were quick to issue statements condemning the emails. Alderpersons Daniel LaSpata, Carlos Ramirez-Rosa, Rossana Rodriguez-Sanchez and Byron Sigcho-Lopez issued a joint statement today that characterized the emails as “coercion of government employees to support her re-election campaign.”

On Thursday, CPS inspector general Will Fletcher announced an investigation of the incident. “[W]e are currently gathering information to determine which, if any, policies have been violated,” he told WGN News. 

The district has ethics guidelines for political activity. They state, “A political campaign should not be using the CPS email system to solicit volunteers and donations. Please report the behavior and forward the emails to Ethics Advisor.”

The Chicago Board of Ethics plans to discuss the matter at its next meeting, scheduled for Jan. 23, according to WTTW. 

Lightfoot said it is unclear how many emails were sent to CPS teachers. 

Lightfoot will host a press conference at 3:00 pm with reporters. 

This is a breaking news story; stay tuned for updates.

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