Money Missing From Education Reform Bill
The state budget Gov. Pat Quinn signed June 30 is missing a key component for education advocates: money.
Lawmakers stripped more than $500,000 from Quinn’s proposed budget that would have helped implement Senate Bill 7, a sweeping education reform bill lauded as a national model, partly because it eases the process of dumping poorly rated teachers. The money would have paid for a contract with a private firm to handle training to revamp teacher and principal evaluations.
Now the bill’s supporters, which include Mayor Rahm Emanuel, are turning to Race to the Top, a federal grant program that rewards states for innovative education policies. In June, federal officials announced an additional $700 million in Race to the Top money, with $500 million earmarked for early childhood education. The remaining $200 million is available to nine states, including Illinois, which did not receive anything in the previous two
