Mission & History
Mission
Advance Illinois believes all students deserve equitable access to a high-quality education. We are an independent policy and advocacy organization working towards a healthy public education system that prepares students to achieve success in college, career, and civic life. We are committed to building an education system that strives for equity, stresses college and career readiness and completion, and supports the whole child from the earliest years through adulthood.
History
Motivated by the urgency that Illinois was not preparing its students to compete in a global marketplace, and with support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, The Joyce Foundation, and the Boston Consulting Group, leaders from more than a dozen civic, philanthropic, business, and education organizations from across the state came together and founded Advance Illinois in 2008. The nonpartisan, non-profit policy and advocacy organization was modeled on successful efforts elsewhere and founded on the shared belief that equitable, high-quality education is a shared value that unites all Illinoisans.