West Central Reporter

State Sen. Jil Tracy (R-Quincy) recently joined colleagues Sen. Terri Bryant (R-Murphysboro) and Sen. Neil Anderson (R-Andalusia) in speaking out at a press conference where the goal was to give parents more of a voice about the state’s education system.  

“The more we hear from parents about the fact that they feel like they aren’t represented well, the more we have to try and react to that,” Bryant said at the Feb. 24 event. “All of our bills basically are to give parents a better voice.”

At the Illinois Capitol, the trio unveiled four bills they say will translate into more transparency about the system and greater accountability for all students.

Senate Bill 4180 seeks to give parents more power by adding five new posts to the Illinois State Board of Education. Currently, all members of the state board are appointed by the governor, prompting critics to argue the individual members making decisions on such pressing matters as school curriculums and how mandates affect classrooms aren’t held directly accountable to voters.  

As a solution, SB 4180 seeks to create one board member per judicial district to be elected by voters, making new members more accountable to families in local districts.

With Senate Bill 4181, Tracy is also pushing for the extension of the Illinois Invest in Kids program. Through scholarship opportunities funded by private donations that are incentivized by tax credits, tuition assistance toward a private education is provided to low-income students in struggling schools, with the goal being to give them a chance at a better educational outcome.

“Invest in Kids has already been the source of many success stories, but the program is set to expire,” Tracy said. “Extending the program will provide a real choice to families. We are also looking to offer some stability for students, by creating a funding preference for those currently participating in the program, thus providing educational stability for them and their families.”

SB 4181 is also seeking to change a feature of the program that forces students already in the program to have to vie for assistance from year to year, tweaking guidelines to create a preference for existing students when determining award recipients.

Senate Bill 4179 would require school districts to publicly post on the district’s website at least twice a year all the learning materials and activities used for student instruction, as well as the policies and procedures for review and approval of the materials and activities.

“As parents, we ought to have the ability to see exactly what is being taught in the classroom, which can not only impact the educational success of students, but the people that they become,” said Anderson. “This legislation would bring much-needed transparency without forcing parents to jump through hoops to find out what their child is learning. By viewing the curriculum, parents will have the opportunity to better decide if it suits their child’s academic needs.”

Finally, SB 4182 seeks to update the Invest in Kids Program’s tax credit language with the goal being to better align it with existing federal tax credits that would make it easier for donors to maximize existing federal tax benefits as more while private donations are being turned into scholarship resources.

Launched in 2017, the Invest In Kids Scholarship Tax Credit Program now offers a 75% income tax credit to individuals and businesses that contribute to qualified Scholarship Granting Organizations (SGOs).