Good afternoon! Either my dog Sassy is shedding an amazing amount of hair or I’m becoming more of a clean freak, because I’ve vacuumed my apartment twice already. Here’s what you need to know today.

1. A resolution calling for a cease-fire in Gaza will be considered tomorrow by the City Council

Students at several Chicago public schools walked out of classes today and gathered at City Hall to voice support for the resolution, my colleagues report. [Chicago Sun-Times]

The walkouts come after Mayor Brandon Johnson’s union allies rallied over the weekend for a cease-fire in Gaza, a move partly aimed at creating a sense of momentum for the contentious resolution. [ABC7 Chicago]

The final wording of the resolution has not been made public. (A previous version that passed out of a committee includes an outdated number of Palestinian casualties.)

But the “demand for an ‘immediate’ cease-fire does not recognize the reality that no one — not even President Joe Biden — can call for a cease-fire and make it happen right away,” Chicago Sun-Times columnist Lynn Sweet writes.

“Ending the violence in Gaza needs the agreement of two parties — Hamas and the government of Israel, led by Netanyahu.” [Chicago Sun-Times]

The Chicago Sun-Times editorial board, which has previously advocated for a cease-fire, writes the City Council resolution isn’t perfect.

But “it rightly recognizes the 1,200 Israeli and foreign nationals killed by Hamas last fall, as well as the innocent Palestinians killed in Israel’s retaliatory siege since then.” [Chicago Sun-Times]

2. Trump will appear on ballots in Illinois’ March 19 primary election

The Illinois State Board of Elections unanimously voted today to reject a bid to block former President Donald Trump from the state’s primary ballot, setting into motion a likely battle in state court over his eligibility, my colleague Dave McKinney reports.

Five Illinois voters and a national voting-rights group asked the state election board to block Trump’s candidacy, arguing he is constitutionally barred from running because he instigated the Jan. 6 insurrection.

But the bipartisan board rejected that argument, saying it lacked the authority to determine whether Trump, in fact, violated the U.S. Constitution.

“There’s no doubt in my mind he manipulated, instigated, aided and abetted an insurrection on January 6th,” said board member Catherine S. McCrory, an appointee of Gov. JB Pritzker. “However, having said that, it’s not my place to rule on that today.” [WBEZ]

3. Chicago’s top cop will end a strategy of using ‘scarecrow’ police cars aimed at deterring downtown crime

Police Superintendent Larry Snelling plans to suspend an initiative where cops working overtime are assigned to act as a crime deterrent simply by sitting in their cars, my colleague Tom Schuba reports.

The strategy was launched by Snelling’s predecessor, David Brown, who wanted to “curb public violence incidents throughout the city” by reacting to crime trends and placing cops on “high-visibility patrols.”

But in an interview, Snelling raised alarms about the overtime spending and the strategy of placing cops at fixed posts.

“When we’re putting overtime out there and there’s an overtime initiative, we want to make sure that we’re getting the most effective work from our officers with these overtime initiatives,” he said. “I don’t believe in the scarecrow policing, where it’s just serving as a deterrent.” [Chicago Sun-Times]

4. Police are investigating an attack on a Muslim student at a Glendale Heights middle school

Police in suburban Glendale Heights are investigating an incident in which a Muslim student wearing a hijab was attacked by another student at Glenside Middle School, my colleague Cindy Hernandez reports.

The attack took place Thursday and was recorded by a witness. A video of the alleged attack was then posted on social media and showed a girl being put into a headlock by a boy before being shoved to the ground.

The girl is from Saudi Arabia and has only been in the U.S. for two months, according to CAIR-Chicago, a Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization.

“We are taking steps to ensure that the students responsible for this incident are held fully accountable to the limit of all relevant laws,” Queen Bee School District 16 Superintendent Joseph Williams said in a statement. [Chicago Sun-Times]

5. A new way to play pickleball during Chicago’s notorious winter

A new indoor pickleball complex is now open in the Lincoln Park neighborhood — and the facility blends the sport with beach resort vibes, my colleague Mitch Dudek reports.

It’s called SPF (short for Social, Pickleball and Fun — but also sunscreen) and includes pingpong tables, shuffleboard, Pop-a-Shot, air hockey, cornhole and “glow in the dark” pickleball under a black light.

“We wanted to create an experience that went beyond just pickleball and gave people that getaway vibe,” co-owner Rich Green said.

But perhaps the most appealing aspect for picklers: They won’t have to compete for court time with tennis players — a common source of friction that’s plagued the pickleball community in Chicago as players seek out public spaces (mostly tennis courts) that double as pickleball courts. [Chicago Sun-Times]

Here’s what else is happening

• Israeli forces raided a West Bank hospital, killing three Palestinians. [NPR]

• House Republicans prepare to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas over his handling of an influx of migrants. [NPR]

• Amelia Earhart’s long-lost plane may have been spotted in the Pacific by an exploration team. [NPR]

• Chita Rivera, a revered Tony-winning dancer and singer, died at 91. [AP]

Oh, and one more thing …

Remember when indie music sensation Sufjan Stevens announced his ambitious plan to create an album for each state in the U.S.? And luckily Illinois got one before the whole project sorta ghosted on fans?

Well, the 2005 Illinois album is hitting the stage as a dance-forward musical called Illinoise, which runs through Feb. 18 at the Chicago Shakespeare Theater, my colleague Courtney Kueppers writes.

The show, which opens Saturday, comes from Tony Award-winning choreographer Justin Peck, who says it took him about five years to convince Stevens to greenlight the project.

Illinoise follows Henry, played by Ricky Ubeda, who goes on a journey into the woods, where he discovers a cast of characters who relate to his struggles.

“The universal themes of love found and lost, overcoming trauma and finding one’s way are portrayed by an allstar cast of dancers,” Kueppers writes. [WBEZ]

Tell me something good …

The nephews were over this weekend and we gave them a bunch of books. What were some of your favorite books as a kid?

Matthew Whyte writes:

“I’m old but the book series that got me as a kid was The Great Brain by JD Fitzgerald. Each book was like a little movie in my mind and I devoured them. Also, Danny, Champion Of The World by Roald Dahl. I’m ashamed to say this but I stole it from my elementary library back in the early ’80s and still have it to this day.”

And Linda Padgurskis writes:

“I loved the book From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler so much as a kid that I read it to my kids and grandkids. It is about a girl who runs away from home and takes her little brother with her. They stay at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. It was written in the 1960s but the story is timeless!”

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