Southern Illinois University and the University of Illinois Urbana Champaign are teaming up with community organizations to compost Halloween pumpkins.

Prairie Fire is on the road this month, and we visited The Great Pumpkin Patch to celebrate the harvest season and catch up with the owner Mac Condill. 

The Chicago Teachers’ Union is on strike, and classes are canceled today. But they’re not the only teachers walking off the job in Illinois. We check in with other teachers who are striking across the state. Plus, a new art exhibit in Urbana explores the invisible ways that radioactivity and nuclear waste affects all of our lives. And, Illinois produces more pumpkins than any other state. Now that fall is here, we’ll speak with two Illinois farmers about this year's pumpkin crop. 

Illinois farmers grow a lot of corn and soybeans.  But the state leads the nation when it comes to growing pumpkins. Despite unusually heavy rains and dry, hot days during the growing season, it’s turning out to be a good year for the crop.   

On the 21st: We check in on this year’s pumpkin crop with some Illinois farmers. Plus, it’s officially Pumpkin Spice season. We talk about the spice some people love, and others love to hate. And, the Chicago International Film Festival has started. Michael Phillips gives us his picks. But first, we sit down with Congressman Rodney Davis a few weeks before the midterm elections.