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These are Challenging Times for Illinois Public Schools

Illinois advanced landmark reforms in recent years to improve instruction for the 2 million students in public schools. Yet the drain of state resources threatens to derail progress, hamstring academic opportunities and unravel the basic education needed to prepare Illinois students for today’s world. Illinois confronts a financial crisis that threatens its very solvency.

How Illinoisans – whether policymakers or parents, teachers or taxpayers – respond will shape the next generation of students.

Learn more about the funding of education in Illinois and alternatives to proration in Funding Expectations.

Chico and Steans Discuss Illinois’ Educational Challenges

On October 29th Illinois State Board of Education Chairman Gerry Chico spoke on preparing students for the challenges of college and career, what the new Common Core State Standards and teacher evaluations mean for Illinois, and how students are impacted by the way Illinois funds its schools.

In a discussion between Chairman Chico and Advance Illinois Executive Director Robin Steans that followed, the two touched upon such topics as how best to prepare students with 21^st century skills; Illinois’ new, parent-friendly report card; and the state’s intervention in North Chicago.

The discussion was co-sponsored by Advance Illinois, Gorter Family Foundation, and North Chicago Community Partners, in collaboration with Rosalind Franklin University

Illinois Business Leaders Come Together to Discuss College and Career Readiness

In September 2013, Advance Illinois co-sponsored discussions in Normal and Chicago about the impact of the Common Core State Standards in K-12 education, the opportunities and challenges this initiative presents for students, communities and business, and what civic and business leaders can do to help.

In Bloomington-Normal, Ed Rust, CEO State Farm; Bob Corcoran, President GE Foundation; and Chris Koch, Illinois State Superintendent of Education shared comments and participated in a panel discussion moderated by Advance Illinois Executive Director Robin Steans. In Chicago, Bob Corcoran and Chris Koch were joined by CEO of Chicago Public Schools Barbara Byrd-Bennett.

Click here for video coverage of Bloomington-Normal and Chicago presentations.

Common Core Panel Discussion

News

Education Department Awards $13.3 Million in Grants to Support Principal Development

U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan announced today that more than $13 million in grants has been awarded to 20 projects under the School Leadership Program (SLP), which supports the development, enhancement, and expansion of innovative programs to recruit, train, and mentor principals and assistant principals for high-need schools and districts. Grantees include school districts, institutes of higher education and non-profit organizations.

For Low-Income Students Considering College, a Nudge to Aim High

The group that administers the SAT has begun a nationwide outreach program to try to persuade more low-income high school seniors who scored high on standardized tests to apply to select colleges. The group, the College Board, is sending a package of information on top colleges to every senior who has an SAT or Preliminary SAT score in the top 15 percent of test takers and whose family is in the bottom quarter of income distribution.

Opinion: Make Full-Day Kindergarten a Requirement

Illinois currently competes with all other states for federal funds, yet it is one of the 15 states that do not mandate kindergarten, according to the Education Commission of the States. In fact, children in Illinois are not required to attend school until age 7, which is far too late.

Kentucky a National Leader in Instituting Common Core Math and Reading Lessons in Classroom

Two years after becoming the first state in the nation to implement the more rigorous academic standards, education officials in Kentucky say teachers have embraced the changes and are encouraging their peers in other states who have been hesitant to implement Common Core.

PBS NEWSHOUR Interviews Wallace President Will Miller About Principal Training

Urban schools often face great challenges, low test scores and high dropout rates. Eddie Aruzza of WTTW in Chicago reports on programs that train principals to improve learning despite the odds. Ray Suarez continues the conversation on the importance of principals in troubled schools with Will Miller of the Wallace Foundation.