North Cook News

The St. Mary Catholic School in Elgin advocated for the Invest in Kids Act during a trip to Springfield and urged Illinois residents to contact their local legislators to vote in favor of the initiative.

While Gov. J.B. Pritzker has expressed his willingness to sign an extension if passed by legislators, proposed changes to the program have faced opposition from the Illinois Freedom Caucus raising concerns about the program’s ability to assist students in need.

“Our trip to Springfield to advocate for Invest in Kids Act was amazing!” St. Mary Catholic School, Elgin said on Facebook. “We got to see the senate chambers and spent a lot of time in the capitol. There were 7 other buses here of supporters from all parts of the state including other local schools- St. Edwards High School & St. Edwards Prep. Please contact your local IL legislators and tell them to vote YES! Visit Empower Illinois for more information and to learn how you can help.”

The initiative provides educational opportunities to 9,600 underprivileged students who would otherwise lack access to private schools. The Invest in Kids Tax Credit Scholarship Program primarily serves minority students from economically disadvantaged backgrounds, with 53% of beneficiaries being of Black or Hispanic descent, Illinois Policy reports. 

“I will support it if it comes to my desk to extend the program in whatever form,” Pritzker said. “I mean, I can’t imagine it would show up in some form that I would be unwilling to. But again, the reality is that the legislature needs to go through this process.” 

Illinois Policy has called upon lawmakers to act during the veto session and extend the program.

However, the Illinois Freedom Caucus balked at the initial proposal to defund the program. 

“Instead of helping kids, it appears the Legislature is dead set on making it harder for this program to help kids in need,” Illinois Freedom Caucus stated. 

With 26,000 applicants in need of scholarship support, the program is in high demand. The proposed changes would keep the program operational for an additional five years but would reduce the maximum tax credit dollar amount from $1 million to $500,000 and decrease the total overall scholarship opportunity amount from $75 million to $50 million.

The Chicago Tribune’s Editorial Board called on Springfield to extend and support the program, emphasizing its positive impact on disadvantaged neighborhoods and the importance of helping families access quality education.