Good afternoon! It’s Monday, and I didn’t get much sleep last night after getting that tornado warning, and my dog, Princess Leia, literally slept on my pillow just inches away from my face. Here’s what you need to know today.

(By the way, if you’d like this emailed to your inbox, you can sign up here.)

1. The pandemic’s devastating impact on Chicago high schools

Student performance took a hit during the pandemic, but the situation was particularly bad at high schools serving mostly low-income students, where failing grades spiked and attendance plummeted, according to an analysis from WBEZ’s Sarah Karp.

“The numbers are hard to look at,” said a public high school teacher.

One in every five grades handed out during the third quarter was an F at the 40 Chicago public high schools that serve mostly low-income students.

The high school with the highest failure rate was Hirsch High School in the Greater Grand Crossing area, where 39% of students received an F. [WBEZ]

2. Chicago-area suburbs assess the damage of last night’s tornado

At least five people were injured and more than 100 homes damaged from a tornado that hit parts of Naperville, Downers Grove, Darien and Burr Ridge last night, unleashing wind speeds of more than 100 mph.

In Naperville, 16 homes were considered uninhabitable and at least 10 people have been displaced.

Nate Casey, a high school student at Downers Grove South, lives on one of the blocks believed to be hit hardest by the tornado. He told the Chicago Sun-Times that he helped his mother get his three younger siblings to the basement before the tornado ripped apart the second floor of their home.

“Something that I was happy to see, that was not broken, was my dad’s ashes, but there’s really nothing else,” he said. [Sun-Times]

3. More than 50 people were shot in Chicago over the weekend

Five people were fatally shot and 47 others were wounded over the weekend, reports the Chicago Sun-Times. The shootings come as Mayor Lori Lightfoot is under pressure to reduce a surge of violence that coincides with local businesses and institutions fully reopening after more than a year.

Last weekend, three people were killed and 43 others were wounded. [Chicago Sun-Times]

In case you missed it, WBEZ’s Odette Yousef recently reported that Chicago leads the nation in mass shootings, with 124 reported since 2019. [WBEZ]

Meanwhile, police are searching for a suspect in the fatal stabbing of a Maryland graduate student. Anat Kimchi, who was seeking a doctoral degree in criminology and criminal justice, was stabbed to death Saturday afternoon in the Loop. [Chicago Sun-Times]

4. College athletes score a win in the Supreme Court

The U.S. Supreme Court today issued a “narrow but potentially transformative ruling” in a case between the NCAA and college athletes over payments and benefits.

The nation’s high court unanimously ruled that the NCAA can’t limit education-based perks that universities and colleges give to athletes, like providing computers and scholarships for graduate degrees. The NCAA argued the limits were needed to preserve amateurism in college sports.

But the Supreme Court said the organization’s rules are essentially arbitrary in trying to draw a line between college and professional sports. The court’s logic suggests the justices may be open to a broader challenge to the NCAA’s ban on paying college athletes for playing in sports. [NPR]

5. The Tokyo Olympics plans to allow up to 10,000 fans in the stands

Organizers for the Tokyo Olympics today announced they will sharply limit attendance to next month’s games. Up to 10,000 domestic fans will be allowed at the events, or 50% of the venue’s capacity, whichever is less. And that is only if a state of emergency is not in effect.

The fate of the Tokyo Olympics was on rocky ground as Japan reported a rising number of coronavirus infections. But the situation is seeing some improvement as more people become vaccinated, reports NPR. Last week, a third state of emergency was lifted in Tokyo. [NPR]

Meanwhile, a weightlifter from New Zealand will be the first openly transgender athlete to compete at the Olympics. [NPR]

Here’s what else is happening

• The University of Illinois will require all students attending in-person classes to be vaccinated against COVID-19. [Chicago Tribune]
• Britney Spears will appear in a Los Angeles courtroom on Wednesday about her controversial conservatorship. Here’s a recap of the 13-year saga and why it’s getting more attention now. [AP]
• More than 33,000 people want to exile Jeff Bezos to space. [NPR]
• Here’s a look at 10 types of plants that appear to flourish in peculiar spots in Chicago. [WBEZ]

Oh, and one more thing …

If you’re looking for something to read, WBEZ’s Cianna Greaves recently looked at two graphic novels that “are pushing the boundaries of storytelling around the complexity of race in America, reflecting on how racism informs our past and future.”

Save It For Later: Promises, Parenthood, and the Urgency of Protest is the latest piece by National Book Award winner Nate Powell, who received critical acclaim for his work on the late Congressman John Lewis’ MARCH trilogy. Save It For Later looks at the divisive and racially charged climate of former President Donald Trump’s administration.

The other graphic novel is Across the Tracks: Remembering Greenwood, Black Wall Street, and the Tulsa Race Massacre, which takes a glimpse at life in the Greenwood neighborhood before a white mob destroyed it and killed hundreds of residents. [WBEZ]

Tell me something good …

It’s officially summer now, and I’d like to know: What are your summer plans?

Me? It feels like my calendar filled up as soon as Chicago lifted its pandemic restrictions.

But among the things I’m looking forward to doing is seeing my nephews as much as possible and going to see a movie at the New 400, a neighborhood theater in Rogers Park that is a hidden gem because the audience is half the entertainment.

Feel free to email me at therundown@wbez.org or tweet me at @whuntah.

Have a nice night! If you like what you just read, you can subscribe to the newsletter here and have it delivered to your inbox.

Correction: A previous version of this newsletter incorrectly stated how many Chicago high schools students received falling grades. This story has been updated.