PEORIA, Ill. (WMBD) — A large crowd gathered on the corner of Main and University Street in Peoria Friday to stand against Immigration and Customs Enforcement. After the recent ICE shooting in Minnesota and the death of Renee Good, Peoria residents decided to hold a vigil for peace and a call to action against ICE agents.

NAACP Peoria hosted an open-house for high school students to sign up and be paired with a mentor for the annual ACT-SO program.

The NAACP Peoria Branch hosted an open house to introduce the ACT-SO program, which encourages excellence in academics, the arts and STEM, to high school students and families in the area.

A Peoria man was sentenced to 12 years in prison last month after he pleaded guilty on aggravated robbery charges stemming from his involvement in the robbery of four pairs of shoes from a man who listed them on Facebook Marketplace last year.

According to the report, the woman, who has not been identified, was taking her baby for a walk when she was approached by a stranger later identified as 43-year-old Matthew Cardon. The report stated that Cardon approached her with his arms open and asked for a hug.

Peoria Unified School District is considering closing and consolidating schools in order to meet a necessary $21 million reduction in its budget.

The Peoria County sheriff said Thursday that he wants Gov. JB Pritzker to consider reform of a landmark public safety bill in order to further protect the public from violent crime.

In 2024, we reported that Paradise Valley Unified School District voted to close two elementary schools and one middle school. On their website, Phoenix Elementary School District said they closed Paul Laurence Dunbar School and Maie Bartlett Heard Elementary School at the end of the 2024-2025 school year.

The annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Freedom March and Commemorative Service and Leadership Awards Ceremony in Peoria will be paused in 2026 and resume in 2027, with the committee using the year as a planning year.