Hey there! It’s Wednesday, and one of the things I miss from the “before times” is hitting up a theater and then saying something loud and clueless during a movie. Like, “Oh, so that’s why they call him Batman.” Or, “When do we get to see the Licorice Pizza and does it taste good?” Here’s what you need to know today.

1. CPS teachers won’t be paid for the five days missed during the winter standoff over returning to classrooms

The head of Chicago Public Schools today announced he will not extend the academic year by five days, a move that means teachers will not recover lost wages from the January standoff over reopening classrooms.

It will likely be “a sore spot for educators who were upset to lose nearly a week of pay without gaining much in safety negotiations during the city’s omicron surge,” reports the Chicago Sun-Times.

CPS CEO Pedro Martinez said the money saved from not extending the academic year will go toward after-school programming, where teachers could have the opportunity to make up wages lost during the standoff.

Jesse Sharkey, the outgoing leader of the Chicago Teachers Union, said he approved that move but wanted a more defined plan. He estimated the school district saved about $40 million on unpaid wages from the standoff. [Chicago Sun-Times]

2. Biden to announce new sanctions against Russia

President Joe Biden is expected to land in Brussels this evening, meeting with allies from NATO and the European Union to discuss new sanctions on Russia for its invasion of Ukraine.

Biden is looking at one option that targets hundreds of Russian lawmakers, a U.S. official told The Associated Press. [AP]

Meanwhile, Ukraine accused Russian forces of taking “hostage” of 11 buses that were evacuating civilians away from the besieged city of Mariupol, where people describe conditions of a worsening humanitarian crisis. [NPR]

NATO today estimated that 7,000 to 15,000 Russian soldiers have been killed in the war since it began four weeks ago. [AP]

In an interview last night on CNN, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s chief spokesman refused to rule out the use of nuclear weapons, highlighting just how much the war could escalate. [CNN]

3. Is the U.S. heading toward a recession?

Billionaire investor Carl Icahn made headlines this week, saying in an interview with CNBC that “there very well could be a recession or even worse.”

His comments come as the Federal Reserve is walking a very fine tightrope. To combat a 40-year high surge in inflation, the Fed raised interest rates for the first time in three years and penciled in more hikes for later.

Interest rates affect things like car loans, credit cards and mortgages. And bumping them up has often led to a recession. The Fed, aware of the delicate situation it’s in, says it’s pursuing a “soft landing” strategy that gets inflation under control without causing economic havoc. [CNBC]

Meanwhile, a reliable indicator of an approaching recession is flashing warning signs. [Axios]

4. Racist emails overshadow the Ricketts family’s bid for the Chelsea soccer club

A backlash in England is putting the Ricketts family back on the apology tour for racist emails sent three years ago by family patriarch Joe Ricketts.

Those emails, published by online news outlet Splinter News, included Islamophobic comments like, “Islam is a cult and not a religion.”

The racist comments have gained renewed attention as the Ricketts seek to buy the storied Chelsea soccer club after Russian owner Roman Abramovich was sanctioned by the British government over his ties to President Vladimir Putin.

Paul Canoville, Chelsea’s first Black player, this week tweeted he’s “seen and heard enough. I’m backing @ChelseaSTrust and saying a big fat anti racism NO to the Ricketts bid!! Please can you stop even mentioning it.”

A communications firm handling the bid says Joe Ricketts is not involved in the effort to buy Chelsea. [AP]

5. A Chicago-based company is set to become a dominant player in the legal marijuana industry

A $2 billion deal is expected to make Chicago-based Cresco Labs the nation’s largest legal marijuana company and, as a result, will further put the city at the center of this emerging industry.

Cresco wants to buy New York-based Columbia Care and the deal is set to be finalized in December, reports the Chicago Sun-Times. Chicago is already home to two other large marijuana companies — Green Thumb Industries and Verano Holdings. [Sun-Times]

News of the deal comes as the local industry faces mounting challenges. The state’s 110 licensed pot shops made just under $114 million last month, down from December’s $137 million.

Industry experts say the decrease is a sign that prices are too high and can’t compete with the black market. They say state regulations are hampering the industry’s ability to be competitive.

Among them is a convoluted application process that has hurt the state’s efforts to boost minority representation in the business, experts say. In response, the state this month unveiled a new, streamlined process. [Sun-Times]

Here’s what else is happening

• Vaccine maker Moderna is seeking federal authorization of a low-dose COVID-19 vaccine for children 6 months to 5 years old. [NPR]
• Supreme Court nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson faced many of the same questions during Day 3 of her Senate confirmation hearings. [NPR]
• A Jan. 6 suspect who is wanted by the FBI was granted refugee status in Belarus, a Russian ally. [NPR]
• A new health care program for undocumented seniors in Illinois is leaving some of the most vulnerable behind. [Injustice Watch]

Oh, and one more thing …

Celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay is apparently not very good at saving troubled restaurants.

His track record comes under more scrutiny this week after he said in a radio interview that while the pandemic had a “devastating” impact on restaurants, at least the “crap’s gone” and “now we’ve wiped the slate clean, which is good,” reports online news outlet The Takeout.

Among the 77 restaurants featured on Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares, only 17 are still open, according to Reality TV Updates, which keeps a running tab.

That’s just “a 22% success rate, or as my high school math teacher would say, a failing grade,” The Takeout reports. [Takeout]

Tell me something good …

The Oscars are on Sunday, and I’d like to know what movie or actor you loved but ended up getting snubbed.

Eileen K. writes:

“I was disappointed Renate Reinsve’s performance in The Worst Person in the World wasn’t recognized with a best actress nomination for this year’s Oscars. Her portrayal of a woman exploring and questioning cultural expectations placed on her when she begins to move out of her carefree twenties into middle adulthood was a perfect balance of humor, poignancy and heartbreak.

Also — how in the world did Citizen Kane (aka the best movie ever made) NOT win best picture in 1941?!”

And Jon Sloven writes:

“Omg, Hunter, I couldn’t beLIEVE that Passing wasn’t nominated for something. Did you see it?! I mean, it was incredible! If not the acting then the screenplay, best picture, cinematography, SOMEthing.

“It had me on edge the entire time and I couldn’t stop thinking about it for days. Very powerful and really well done.”

Feel free to email or tweet me, and your response might be shared in the newsletter this week.