Welcome to the Reader‘s morning briefing for Monday, June 20, 2016.
- Â Weather: Hot, with storms and rain possible
It will be hot again Monday, with a high of 88 and a low of 66. Thunderstorms or showers are possible throughout the day. [AccuWeather]
- Â Â Â Â Â Meet Hillary Clinton’s key Chicago-based fund-raisers
Bundlers—fund-raisers who tap into their networks for political donations and pool them all together—are a key part of a presidential campaign, and there are several influential Chicago bundlers working for Hillary Clinton. Venture capitalist and Hyatt Hotels heir J.B. Pritzker, who could single-handedly bundle as much as $1 million for Clinton, has even hosted the candidate at his Gold Coast home. Hillary and Bill Clinton will swing through Chicago within the next week for more big-ticket events. [Sun-Times ] [Sun-Times]
- Â Â Â Â Humboldt Park charter school closes its doors due to budget issues
The ongoing state budget impasse has claimed a new victim: Galapagos Charter School in Humboldt Park. With the current Chicago Public Schools budget in limbo over state funding, the school can’t afford to open again in the fall. The school’s 236 students (97 percent of them poor) and 30 staff members will be affected. [Sun-Times]
- Â Â Â Dennis Hastert to report to prison in Minnesota Wednesday
Former U.S. House speaker Dennis Hastert will start his prison sentence at the Rochester Federal Medical Center in Minnesota Wednesday. Hastert has the distinction of becoming “highest-ranking elected official in American history to serve time behind bars,” according to the Daily Herald. The disgraced politician pleaded guilty to breaking federal banking laws in order to pay hush money to a man, one of five he is alleged to have sexually molested while working as a teacher at Yorkville High School in the 60s and 70s. [Daily Herald] [Sun-Times]
- Â Â Â Â Keeping up with the CPS lead problem: 23 schools have “dangerous” levels
The number of Chicago Public Schools with elevated levels of lead in their water supply has risen to a disturbing 23. DNAinfo Chicago put together an article with everything you need to know about the issue, from what CPS is doing about it to the effects of lead exposure on children to a list of the upcoming hearings on the issue. Â [DNAinfo Chicago]
- Â Â Â Â Â Maintenance company SMS Assist becomes an unlikely “unicorn” with $1 billion value
The latest privately held Chicago company to gain the coveted “unicorn” status, with a worth of $1 billion, isn’t a start-up based at tech incubator 1871 but an 18-year-old maintenance company. SMS Assist is run by 60-year-old Michael Rothman, whose expertise and experience in maintenance has gained him respect from investors. Banking firm Goldman Sachs just invested $150 million in the company, which “wrangles maintenance companies like landscapers for businesses with lots of locations,” according to Crain’s Chicago Business. [Crain’s Chicago Business]