North Cook News

Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker is rolling out an education investment plan that would inject an additional $70 million a year into his Teacher Pipeline Grant Program to address teacher shortages in the state.

The state currently has more than 5,300 unfilled vacancies, but about half of those jobs are for paraprofessionals, not teachers; a recent Illinois Policy report said. While the issue may actually be more about the location and type of teacher needed, Pritzker noted that the problem is not unique to Illinois.

“All across the nation, school districts are fighting the impact of teacher shortages — as education professionals struggle to weigh their passion for their classrooms with their own mental, financial and personal wellbeing,” the governor said in the report. “So as part of my education investment plan, I’m proposing an additional $70 million annually specifically targeted at addressing teacher shortages.”

Amid a statewide decline in public school enrollment of approximately 180,000 students since 2011, Pritzker unveiled the additional $70 million boost for the Teacher Pipeline Grant Program during a visit to Streamwood High School in Elgin, the report said.

Another issue of note is the state’s property tax burden—the second highest level in the country, with schools getting 61.5% of those funds.

The state’s pension burden is creating a problem when it comes to education funding, the report said. Until Illinois lawmakers change the state’s constitution, taxpayers will continue to be saddled with pension debt that pushes property taxes higher while leaving less for spending on the schools.

It is also important for state leaders to reform pensions by amending the state’s constitution in order to make sure that young teachers can be guaranteed of a retirement at the end of their careers, the report said. That, too, would direct more money into the classrooms instead of funding pension plans.