The black-and-gold bumblebee is the newest state symbol of Illinois, thanks to eighth-graders from Lincoln Junior High School.
On Thursday, students and their families, along with Illinois State Rep. Janet Yang Rohr and State Sen. Laura Ellman, gathered at the school to watch as Gov. JB Pritzker signed House Bill 4438, designating the insect as the official state bee.
The designation follows months of work and advocacy by Lincoln Junior High eighth-graders and their science teacher, Barb Bell, who partnered with Yang Rohr last fall to help establish a state bee.
Students research bees, conduct survey
Students researched Illinois’ native bees and, out of more than 400 species, selected their top three: the American bumblebee, the bicolored striped sweat bee and the black-and-gold bumblebee…