Statewide effort planned to boost student math scores
By PE t ER H a NCOC k Capitol News illinois
Illinois education officials plan to launch a statewide initiative over the next several months aimed at boosting student performance in math.
State Superintendent of Education Tony Sanders made that announcement during a recent media briefing to unveil the most recent school report card. That annual report shows how individual schools, districts, and the state as a whole are performing across a wide range of educational measures, including academic performance in English language arts, and math.
“This will be the first-of-its-kind effort here in the state of Illinois,” he said. “As a state, we adopted new learning standards for math in 2010, but there’s never been a concerted statewide effort to provide support to educators in understanding and implementing these shifts in instruction.”
The new report, which is based on standardized tests students took in the spring of 2024, shows student scores in English language arts have fully recovered statewide from the hit they took during the pandemic.
More than 39% of all students scored at or above the state standards for proficiency in English language arts, including a record-high 41% for students in grades 3-8.
But in math, where proficiency rates have always been lower, overall scores remained troublingly low. Only about 28% of all students, and 28.3% of students in grades 3-8, met or exceeded state standards for profi-
ciency.
Math scores also continued to show disturbing gaps across racial and ethnic lines. Across all grade levels, 38% of white students met the state’s proficiency standard, compared to just 15.3% of Hispanic students and 8.9% of Black students.
Sanders cautioned against drawing overly broad conclusions from those numbers, noting that Illinois sets a relatively high bar for what qualifies as “proficient.”
The report card divides test scores into five broad categories, based on the state’s definition of “proficient.”
The two highest categories are “met” and “exceeded” the standard. Below those are “approached,” “partially met,” and “did not meet” the standard.
But the dividing line that marks the “proficiency standard” in Illinois – what testing officials refer to as the “cut score” – is higher than it is in most other states, Sanders said.
“We frequently mislabel students who are actually college and career ready as not being proficient,” he said. “We have already begun the work to realign our proficiency benchmarks, to give us more accurate data, to better support our outcomes. You’ll see that effort unfolding over this coming school year.”
Sanders pointed to other elements of the report card showing improvement in the rate at which schools are preparing students for college or a career after graduation.
For example, the four-year graduation rate rose to 87.7% for the class of 2024, an increase of 1.5 percentage points from the pre-pandemic class of 2019.
The 2024 report card also showed fewer students being required to take remedial math or English courses in community college after graduating from public schools in Illinois. That figure is 27.7% for the graduating class of 2022, down from 39.1% for the class of 2019.
“We have succeeded in reducing the number of students who have to take remedial coursework by implementing transitional math and English courses in high school statewide,” Sanders said. “Passing a transitional math or English course guarantees a
student direct placement into creditbearing courses at all community colleges and accepting Illinois universities without a placement test.”
Sanders offered few details about what would be included in the upcoming math and numeracy plan, except to say it would largely mirror the statewide literacy plan that the State Board of Education launched in February, a program he said was at least partially responsible for the increase in English language arts proficiency rates.
“The comprehensive literacy plan that we developed has been noted nationwide as being probably a model for how to approach literacy instruction,” Sanders said.
State budget predicted at $3.2B deficit in early look
By JERR y NOW i C ki Capitol News illinois
The first extensive public look at next year’s state finances contains a warning to lawmakers from the governor’s office: “The ability to fund new programs will be severely limited” next fiscal year.
That comes from the Governor’s Office of Management and Budget, which projected a potential budget shortfall of $3.2 billion for fiscal year 2026, which doesn’t begin until July 1.
The Illinois Economic and Fiscal Policy Report published each November is often seen as a table-setter for the budgeting negotiations that will ramp up in earnest when lawmakers return to the Capitol for the legislative year that begins each January.
GOMB projects that revenues will remain flat at roughly $53.4 billion for the upcoming year, while spending will grow by $3.2 billion.
While the overall numbers can change quickly in the eight months between now and the start of fiscal year 2026, the report could forebode an even more challenging budget process than the one that wrapped up in May. Lawmakers entered last year’s session staring down a roughly $891 million deficit, according to last year’s GOMB report.
After lengthy and sometimes fraught deliberations, Democrats in power narrowly approved a budget that filled the gap by extending a cap on corporate
net operating losses ($526 million), capping a tax discount claimed by retailers ($101 million), increasing the state’s tax on sports betting ($200 million) and other smaller accounting measures or tax changes.
As for the impending $3.2 billion deficit, the report noted only it “will be addressed in the Governor’s Fiscal Year 2026 Introduced Budget.”
But, the report noted, spending reductions “cannot be implemented broadly across-the-board,” especially for the 40% of spending that is mandated either by court order, law or other obligations, such as debt service, pension payments and Medicaid. Another 24% of state spending goes to areas such as education and higher education.
‘True-up’ drives revenue stagnation
The expected deficit is attributable in part to both rising expenditures and revenue stagnation as some one-time sources disappear.
The projected spending for FY 26 includes an additional $350 million to K-12 education, while pension costs are expected to increase by $440 million among other “moderate growth” in state spending across the board.
Health care costs are expected to grow by $1.1 billion, due in part to “the impact of medical inflation and drop off of onetime FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) reimbursement revenues” for Medicaid and state health care plans. FEMA had still been reimbursing
some pandemic-era costs borne by state government, according to the governor’s office, but that’s expected to drop off in the upcoming fiscal year.
Revenues are expected to stagnate in part because of a “true-up” process at the Illinois Department of Revenue that has temporarily inflated state coffers over the past two years, stemming from a complicated miscalculation by the department.
In short, IDOR overdistributed the amount of money collected in Corporate Property Replacement Taxes –which primarily go to local governments – in tax year 2021 by about $800 million. Corporate income taxes were overestimated by $200 million, while individual income taxes from pass-through entities were underestimated by $1.1 billion. The miscalculation, according to IDOR, “was caused by tax policy changes,” at the federal and state level affecting businesses.
The department began a “true-up” process in fiscal years 2024 and 2025 that is aimed at fixing the “overpayments” to local governments while boosting state general revenues in the process.
It’s had the effect of driving general revenues up by about $1 billion in each of fiscal years 2024 and 2025.
But the same won’t happen in FY26, the legislature’s Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability noted in its September report, because IDOR adjusted its disbursement percentages in 2023.
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As a result, COGFA noted, general fund receipts could be “notably weaker” in the upcoming fiscal year – and GOMB’s report indicates the same.
Revenues are also expected to slow as the Federal Reserve decreases interest rates, lowering the state’s investment income.
The state is also entering the final step of a five-year process of shifting the sales tax collected on motor fuel from the General Revenue Fund to the Road Fund. That shift was included in Pritzker’s first budget in 2019 as part of the Rebuild Illinois infrastructure plan.
Still, the report projects about $1 billion combined growth in corporate and personal income tax, while sales taxes are projected to fall by $330 million, marking a mixed bag for the state’s “big three” revenue sources.
A history of surpluses
What comes of the projected deficit and how it is defrayed will be up to the governor and the new General Assembly that is seated in January.
Thus far in his tenure, Pritzker’s administration has shown that it can work with lawmakers to balance the books.
Every year since the COVID-19 pandemic upended state finances in 2020, the state has seen significant surpluses. Those occurred for several reasons, including better-than-expected revenues as consumers spent more on goods, and government stimulus checks that boosted the economy.
Some years have been buoyed by one-time factors, such as the “true-up” process of the past two years and the state’s retroactive collection of Medicaid dollars in fiscal year 2024.
But the surpluses are also partially attributable to the Pritzker administration’s conservative estimates early in the budgeting process. In past years, that allowed lawmakers to kick extra revenues to the state’s “rainy day” fund that now has a record balance of $2.2 billion while paying down about $11 billion worth of outstanding debts.
Late payment interest expenditures have dropped from about $980 million at the height of the state’s two-year budget impasse between Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner and Democrats in the General Assembly in fiscal year 2018, to $137 million in Pritzker’s first year in office and $13 million last fiscal year. The forecast from GOMB anticipates a surplus for the current year as well, prior to next year’s deficit. Personal income tax and interest income have been higher than expected, while corporate income taxes are coming in lower than originally projected, mirroring national trends.
All told, the state is now looking at a $262 million current-year surplus, according to the report, but $246 million of that would be reserved in the Budget Stabilization, or “rainy day” fund.
Will County pursuing expanded space for veteran services
Will County leaders and the Will County Veterans Assistance Commission (VAC) have announced a collaboration to create a unified Veteran Assistance and Support Center in Joliet. The center will occupy an existing county building at 1300 Copperfield Avenue and would be at the heart of a centralized campus for Will County veterans.
“Ensuring that veterans and their families have immediate access to services and resources is a top priority of county government,” said Will County Executive Jennifer BertinoTarrant. “This move will be transformational for the VAC and other organizations, creating a single location at the heart of the county for the local veteran community to access their services. I look forward to working with the VAC staff to make this a reality.”
The goal of the project is to house the VAC and other veteran organizations at the county-owned office building, creating a unified “onestop shop” for veteran services. The VAC would use the expanded footprint to expand existing services, including case management, mental
health services, and their physical health program.
“Will County has the third largest veteran population in Illinois, and we are proud to serve them and their families,” said VAC Superintendent Jennifer Solum. “Expanding our footprint will increase the range of services and programs we can provide as the demand for assistance has steadily risen over the years. Our existing space is limited, which has limited our ability to meet this demand. This new facility will allow veterans to interact with local, state, and federal services and resources in a single visit. We look forward to this move, which will empower our team to continue delivering exceptional service to our local veteran community.”
The VAC will occupy at least the first two floors of the four-story office building, with the other space reserved for veteran-focused outside agencies. The expanded space would allow the VAC to hire more veteran service officers, reduce appointment wait times, and expand programmatic offerings.
“Since acquiring this building,
county leaders have been discussing how it could support local veterans and their families,” said Will County Capital Improvements Committee Chair Meta Mueller. “I’m proud to see this partnership come to fruition, which I’m confident will set the standard in the state and country for veteran services.”
VAC services include financial assistance, employment assistance, combat veteran counseling, and a homeless veteran prevention program. VAC also coordinates with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs on case management and is the only commission of its kind in the state to include in-house staff from the Illinois Department of Veterans Affairs.
“The Will County Veterans Assistance Commission Members, and Staff, are very pleased there is serious movement with the Copperfield Building,” said VAC President Larry Shaver. “We literally are out of space at our Glenwood location, have converted what little storage space we had into offices, and are facing an increase in veterans seeking our services. A big thank you to Superintendent Solum for her efforts to
keep the VAC’s need for expansion in the forefront of County Government. Also, many thanks to County Executive Jennifer Bertino-Tarrant for her persistence pulling this together. The Copperfield Building Project is pushing forward thanks, in part to the excellent project team working on this.”
The new center would join both the Hines VA’s Joliet Community Based Outpatient Clinic and the Volunteers of America Illinois’ Hope Manor Housing at a new unified Veteran Support Campus on the east side of Joliet. This unified campus will make it easier for veterans and their families to access wrap-around services.
“We are grateful to the VAC for expanding their footprint on the previous Silver Cross Campus as they continue to better serve our veteran population in the region,” said Joliet Mayor Terry D’Arcy.
Will County acquired the medical office building at 1300 Copperfield Avenue in 2021. It was constructed in 2003 and was previously connected to the former Silver Cross Hospital. The county has budgeted funds to retrofit the building’s 72,000 square feet to meet the needs of the VAC and other veteran organizations. Construction is estimated to be completed in early 2026.
Romeoville HS Junior ROtC receives 2 national awards
Romeoville High School’s United States Marine Corps Junior Reserve Officer’s Training Corps officially added two more honors to their already impressive list of accomplishments. In a ceremony held in the JROTC Classroom on Tue. Oct. 22, RHS welcomed USMC Training and Education Regional Director Maj. Luke Wright as he officially presented awards for Distinguished Naval Honor School to the RHS JROTC Unit, and the Legion of Valor to RHS 12th grade student Cadet Capt. Raed Slim.
Cadet Capt. Slim is one of only four students to receive this award among 25,000 cadets nationwide for activities during school year 2023. “I want to thank the members of my unit both past and
present for pushing me to always be better,” Cadet Capt. Slim said. “More importantly, I thank my parents for their support.”
This is the fourth year in a row the RHS USMCJROTC has earned designation as a Distinguished Naval Honor School, an honor that goes to the top 20% of the programs in the country.
“This certainly exemplifies our program’s high caliber and commitment to success,” said RHS Senior Marine Instructor MGySgt Jonathan Couturier. “Our program instills in our youth, the importance of setting goals, working hard to achieve those goals, and facilitates a great sense of accomplishment.”
The objectives of the RHS USMCJROTC program are to de -
velop leaders, build character, and create informed, patriotic, and responsible citizens, while also developing young adults who are physically, mentally, and morally fit, preparing them for higher education, life careers and public service.
“It is outstanding one of our programs is receiving recognition on a national level,” said VVSD Board of Education President Steve Quigley. “Congratulations to Cadet Captain Slim and to the Romeoville HS JROTC program. We are proud of all the JROTC students in the United States Marine Corps JROTC at RHS, and the United States Air Force JROTC at Bolingbrook High School.
submitted photo
Romeoville HS Marine Corps JROTC Cadet Captain Raed Slim receives the Legion of Honor from USMC Region 6 Director Maj. Luke Wright.
submitted photo
Romeoville HS Marine Corps JROTC Cadet Captain Eric Beechler attaches the Distinguished Naval Honor School banner.
OBituaRy
CRONiN
Kevin Cronin, Age 70, passed away suddenly on October 24, 2024 in Dallas, TX. Beloved Husband of Phuong; Loving Father of Kyle, Erin, Meghan, Emily & Chloe, Step-father of Jeffrey, Kaitlyn, & Kelly; Proud Grandfather of Devon, Kylie, Paxton, Emmitt, Weston, Zora, Gia & Aiden; Dear Brother of Terry, Carol, Tim, Pat, Marian, Jack & Peggy; Uncle of many nieces and nephews. A compassion-
ate friend, healer and founder of ARC Physical Therapy, Kevin touched countless lives through his dedication to helping others. Visitation Sunday, November 10, 2024, from 1:00 PM to 6:00 PM at the Gibbons Funeral Home, 134 S York Road, (½ mile North of Saint Charles Road), Elmhurst. For information please call 630-832-0018 or www.gibbonsfuneralhome.com
LEGAL NOTICE
NOTICE OF PROPOSED PROPERTY TAX INCREASE FOR SHOREWOOD – TROY PUBLIC LIBRARY DISTRICT
1. A public hearing to approve a proposed property tax levy for the Shorewood-Troy Public Library District for 2024 (2024/25 fiscal year) will be held on November 14th at 6:30 p.m., at the Shorewood-Troy Public Library, 650 Deerwood Dr., Shorewood, Illinois 60404 in Meeting Room A.
2. Any person desiring to appear at the public hearing and present evidence to the taxing district may appear at the public hearing. Public comment is held to three minutes per member of the public.
3. The corporate and special purpose property taxes extended or abated for 2023 were $1,394,787.
The proposed corporate and special purpose property taxes for 2024 are $1,532,870, a 9.9% increase over the previous year.
4. The property taxes extended for debt service and public building commission leases for 2023 were $0.00.
The estimated property tax to be levied for debt service and public building commission leases for 2024 is $0.00. This represents no change over the previous year.
5. The total property taxes extended or abated for 2023 were $1,394,787. The estimated total property taxes to be levied for 2024 are $1,532,870. This represents a 9.9% increase over the previous year.
Dated: November 6th, 2024.
Published November 6, 2024
