Private, charter schools at heart of gubernatorial candidate differences
Will Illinois’ real education governor please step forward?
Although the two major-party candidates in this year’s historically expensive campaign for governor have both pledged to be the “education governor,” Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner and Democratic challenger J.B. Pritzker are on opposite sides of key education issues, particularly those involving charter school expansion and private school funding.
For those looking beyond the state’s crippling financial issues for reasons to favor one candidate over the other, education provides some clear distinctions.
There’s the ultra-political. Should Chicago have an elected school board? Pritzker says yes. Rauner says no.
Then, there’s the highly controversial. Should a private school tax credit scholarship program that most public education supporters oppose be expanded? Rauner says yes. Pritzker says no.
The candidates veer back into the same lane when it comes to investing more in public education and addressing widespread funding inequities in school districts across the state. But even then, education leaders say, they speak different languages when it comes to how that will happen.
“This election is going to have a big impact on public education in Illinois,” said Brian Harris, president of the state’s Large Unit District Association. “Both Pritzker and Rauner — they both say they want to be the education governor, but they have a different perspective on it.”
Most education leaders shied away from endorsing. Their organizations — save the Illinois Education Association — will not make official declarations or contributions in the race despite their agreement that much is a stake.
“Our position on both candidates is that we would hope that they would provide low-income kids with the same Continue reading; Private, charter schools at heart of gubernatorial candidate differences
