Impact on Central Illinois schools following Gov. Pritzker's State of the State address
PEORIA, Ill. (WMBD) — Education was a main talking point in Gov. JB Pritzker's State of the State address Wednesday.
While the speech covered many aspects of the governor's wish list for the coming year, it also discussed educational proposals that could affect schools here in Central Illinois
Illinois' budget must reflect reality, Pritzker says in his State of the State address
One item Pritzker mentioned was Evidence Based Funding (EBF) for public schools, which gives money to schools that are under-resourced. He also proposed allowing community colleges in Illinois, traditionally a two-year program, to offer four-year bachelor's degrees.
Keith Cornille, the president of Heartland Community College, explained how this would help colleges like Heartland create more opportunities for their students and for employers looking to find qualified candidates.
'We will continue to be a part of growing the workforce and meeting those workforce needs,' he said. 'When we talk about manufacturing and health care and other industries, there is a deficit or a gap, often times, when trying to find those qualified employees, many of them require a bachelor's degree.'
Another major talking point was Pritzker's proposal to ban phones in classrooms statewide.
Schools in the state have already implemented this before. One of those is Peoria Public Schools, which has required middle and high school students to put their phones in a secure pouch during the school day.
PPS Superintendent Sharon Desmoulin-Kherat shared the ban's impact on her district.
'I've gotten several emails,' she said. 'It's changed the teaching landscape, and you're able to look kids in their eyes, and they're more attentive. Those are some of the things that we've shared. It's definitely, I would say, very, very positive.'
The district is currently experiencing a spike in kids not following the phone ban, but Desmoulin-Kherat says they are encouraging teachers to keep enforcing the phone ban in classrooms.
Also proposed was the Public University Direct Admission Act, which would allow students to see if they qualify for an in-state university before they pay to apply.
Desmoulin-Kherat said this would benefit students, as she was once a graduating senior looking at colleges.
'It's a benefit for the children, especially children like me, who came from low income families with not a lot of discretionary funds after all the bills were paid,' she said.
Cornille said it's a good idea for students at Heartland, as many use the two-year school to get basic requirements out of the way before they apply to a four-year institution.
'A large number of those individuals that are right here in our local communities, in our community colleges, are in favor of this,' he said. 'About 70% of those individuals, they actually live and they work, and making the challenge of relocating to a university for some would be difficult.'
Dan Montgomery, president of the Illinois Federation of Teachers, said in a news release of his disappointment with what was presented at the address and says 'we must do more.'
'Even a lower-than-expected deficit doesn't mask the harsh reality: Our schools are starved for funds,' he wrote. 'We appreciate that the Governor is meeting the required $350 million increase for Pre K–12 during challenging times, but it's not enough.'
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
Pritzker to defend Illinois' sanctuary policies before congressional committee Thursday
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Chicago Tribune
10 hours ago
- Chicago Tribune
Gov. JB Pritzker set to testify before congressional committee about sanctuary states amid immigration turmoil
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'There may be members on that committee who are simply there for a dog-and-pony show, who simply want to grandstand in front of the cameras. I hope not. That's inappropriate,' he said. 'I'm going there on a serious matter to give them my views about how we're managing through a problem that's been created for the states by the federal government.' Pritzker's comments came before Trump ordered National Guard troops and Marines to Southern California in recent days — over the objection of Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom of California, which has sued the Trump administration over the moves. The military forces are tasked with supporting federal agents in immigration enforcement. Closer to home for Pritzker, immigrants and advocates have rallied against the Chicago Police Department, denouncing officers' alleged cooperation with federal agents who detained at least 20 immigrants last week on the Near South Side. The governor said he thinks Chicago police 'followed the law.' But several Latino members of the Chicago City Council have called for an investigation. Sanctuary policies allow police to cooperate in criminal investigations of immigrants but not in immigration enforcement actions, which are civil violations. 'Thursday's hearing is a high-stakes moment to defend our values and push back on the Trump administration's war on immigrants,' U.S. Rep. Jesús 'Chuy' Garcia, a Chicago Democrat, said in an emailed statement. 'I trust Governor Pritzker will stand firm, asserting that sanctuary policies keep families safe, build trust, and reflect who we are.' 'With L.A. still reeling from military-style raids and subsequent military deployments, this hearing is a chance to show the country that Illinois won't be bullied into abandoning its immigrant communities,' Garcia added. Anthony Michael Kreis, a law professor at Georgia State University who studies civil rights and constitutional law, said Trump's deployment of the National Guard in California and comments suggesting Newsom should be arrested likely means Pritzker and the other Democratic governors will face a far different dynamic on Capitol Hill than the big-city mayors did a few months ago. 'The sea change in the political dynamics over (the weekend) puts this on a very different footing,' he said. 'We're just in a wildly different place now, especially once the National Guard starts getting called and lawsuits begin, and arrests are made at a very wide scale.' 'The inclination to be more aggressive in that environment and to be a little more adamant in taking positions might be part of the political calculus for some of the governors in a way that it wasn't for the mayors,' Kreis added. All the governors slated to appear Thursday face political pressure to stake out bold positions, he noted, as Pritzker publicly toys with the idea of a 2028 presidential run and Walz already has a national profile because of his vice presidential candidacy. As Trump took control of National Guard troops against the wishes of Newsom, Pritzker and other Democratic governors blasted the move as an 'alarming abuse of power.' Trump's National Guard order isn't limited to California, although that's the only place where it's been used so far. Newsom has said the guard isn't needed. U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, Illinois' senior senator, added his voice Monday to the growing chorus of outraged Democrats. 'What is clear is that President Trump manipulated these protests as an excuse to politicize the military and divert resources from pressing national security and disaster relief responsibilities,' Durbin said. 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'As a liberal who is very much against a lot of what the Trump administration is doing with immigration policy, I can also see a very different scenario where the federal government was trying to enforce some civil rights policy that liberals would love,' he said. Garcia, the Chicago congressman, said Thursday's hearing comes as a response to difficulties Trump has faced in pushing key parts of his agenda through Congress and the jolts he has caused in the economy through tariffs and trade policy. 'Trump desperately needs to distract us from his failures,' Garcia said in his statement. 'The economy is on the brink of a recession because the world is calling his bluff. We must stand strong against this cruel, authoritarian war that seeks to scapegoat immigrants to cover up the incompetence and corruption of the President and his administration.' .
Chicago Tribune
21 hours ago
- Chicago Tribune
Sen. Jason Plummer: Gov. JB Pritzker has taken Illinois sanctuary city policies to the extreme
As pressure mounts over his sanctuary state policies, Gov. JB Pritzker is headed to Washington this week to testify in front of the U.S. House oversight committee. While you can expect him to point fingers and dodge accountability, the facts are clear: Under his watch, Illinois has become a national outlier, defying federal law, tying the hands of law enforcement and pouring taxpayer money into programs for those people living in the country illegally. Before the cameras start rolling, here's what you need to know, the facts without the political spin. Since taking office, Pritzker hasn't just supported sanctuary policies; he has gone to extremes. He's fond of pointing to the TRUST Act, but it's important to understand that the sweeping sanctuary state agenda on the books today looks nothing like what was passed in 2017. To be clear, this isn't a defense of the original TRUST Act, which marked the beginning of Illinois stepping back from cooperation with federal immigration enforcement. I was not in the Senate at the time. If I had been, I'd have voted against it. But since Pritzker likes to point out that it was signed by a Republican, as if that justifies everything he's done since, it's worth setting the record straight. The 2017 law set basic limits on how local law enforcement could respond to immigration detainers, requiring a judicial warrant to hold someone in custody. It still specifically allowed police to coordinate with Immigration and Customs Enforcement to deport dangerous criminals and was narrowly focused on specific procedures. What Pritzker has done since bears little resemblance to the original law, and using it as cover for his broader immigration policies is disingenuous at best. Under Pritzker, that limited framework has been expanded. What was a targeted policy has been transformed into a sweeping sanctuary state agenda. He has pushed laws that ban local jails from working with ICE, prevent law enforcement from sharing information with federal agents and give state officials new powers to go after departments that try to cooperate with federal authorities. In 2021, Pritzker signed the Illinois Way Forward Act. It bans state and local governments from working with ICE to detain people who are living in the country illegally. Sheriffs and jailers are now prohibited from notifying ICE when someone in custody is wanted for deportation. Even asking about someone's immigration status is restricted unless there's a federal criminal warrant in hand. Why? Who benefits from tying the hands of law enforcement and shielding criminals from deportation? It doesn't stop there. Pritzker gave the Illinois attorney general sweeping powers to investigate, sue law enforcement agencies and discipline officers who try to cooperate with federal immigration officials. He created an entire state bureaucracy, the 'Welcoming Illinois' office, dedicated to expanding benefits and protections for immigrants. Until recently, he pushed programs such as free taxpayer-funded health care and housing for people living in the country illegally, spending billions with little oversight, transparency or accountability. And he has raised taxes on Illinois families multiple times. Illinoisans deserve to know where their money is going and who it benefits. While Illinois families struggle with rising costs, high taxes, the highest unemployment rate in the Midwest and crime, their governor is pouring billions into sanctuary-style programs and signing laws that punish police departments that try to uphold federal law. This isn't just bad policy — it's also dangerous. As Pritzker prepares to testify, Illinoisans should pay close attention, because his talking points won't tell the whole story. For years, he's used the 2017 TRUST Act as political cover while quietly expanding it. He's used their tax dollars to incentivize noncitizens to come to Illinois while blocking cooperation with ICE and making it harder for law enforcement to do their jobs. Now, with Congress and the nation watching, he'll have to defend it all. Illinoisans don't need more spin; they need straight talk and a governor who finally puts the truth and their safety first.
