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JANA WIERSEMA

Reporter

Indexed articles, last 90 days
9
Latest publication
Oct 1, 2026
Outlet visibility, for The News-Gazette
Top 500K sites
Earliest in this view
Jul 8, 2026

Latest articles

  1. Article · Oct 1, 2026 · JANA WIERSEMA jwiersema@news-gazette.com

    UPDATE: Autopsy set for Friday for 29-year-old found near Alma Mater (opens the original)

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    URBANA — Emily Phelps found out at about 10:40 a.m. Monday that her 29-year-old son, Alex Rodriguez, had been found dead on the University of Illinois campus. “Plano Police Department went to my ex-husband’s house, which is Alex’s last Plano address, and then he came over and he told me,” she said Thursday from her home in the northern Illinois city. As of Thursday afternoon, Phelps said she still hadn’t received a clear answer about when her son’s autopsy would take place. “Unti

  2. Article · Oct 1, 2026 · JANA WIERSEMA jwiersema@news-gazette.com

    Champaign County clerk seeking more election judges (opens the original)

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    URBANA — The Champaign County Clerk and Recorder’s Office is seeking more election judges for the Nov. 3 midterm, with officials reporting that there are currently only enough judges to staff 37 polling locations on Election Day — as opposed to the 64 sites that the clerk’s office plans to provide. “As it stands, we currently have 148 judges who have been trained and signed up to work on Election Day,” the clerk’s office said. “We need a minimum of 270 judges and would love to ha

  3. Article · Sep 30, 2026 · JANA WIERSEMA jwiersema@news-gazette.com

    UI professor and alum each win MacArthur grants (opens the original)

    Excerpt · Positive tone · English

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    URBANA — Two individuals with ties to the University of Illinois have been awarded “genius grants” from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. Kaiyu Guan, the Levenick Professor of Sustainability at UI’s College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences, and UI alumnus Liangfang Zhang have both been named 2026 MacArthur Fellows, UI officials announced Tuesday. The fellowship comes with an unrestricted $800,000 stipend. According to the MacArthur Foundation, fellows

  4. Article · Sep 29, 2026 · JANA WIERSEMA jwiersema@news-gazette.com

    Pekara to open downtown Thursday (opens the original)

    Excerpt · Neutral tone · English

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    CHAMPAIGN — Pekara Bakery & Bistro will open its new downtown location Thursday with a limited menu. The full menu will be available starting Saturday, the business shared on Facebook. Pekara is now located at 500 N. Walnut St.; the business closed its previous location at 811 W. Springfield Ave. on Sept. 27. The News-Gazette mobile app brings you the latest local breaking news, updates, and more. Read the News-Gazette on your mobile device just as it appears in print.

  5. Article · Sep 17, 2026 · JANA WIERSEMA jwiersema@news-gazette.com

    Just Hamburgers' Monticello location set to open Sept. 30 (opens the original)

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    MONTICELLO — About 15 months after Paxton's Just Hamburgers announced its plans to open a second location in Monticello, that restaurant finally has an opening date. The grand opening is set for Sept. 30, with a ribbon-cutting ceremony in the morning and customers welcomed in at 11 a.m., said co-owner Todd Thorstenson. "We appreciate everyone's patience," he said, adding that the business is "thrilled" to be serving up its burgers and fries to the community soon. The new restaurant is locate

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