The Illinois House's rejection of a gross
receipts tax allows the legislature's discussion on state
spending priorities to start anew. We hope that discussion
focuses on this state's most pressing need: a mix of new
education initiatives and aggressive reforms, not just to
spend more but to improve student performance.
We need
better educated students and a higher-skilled workforce. No,
we don't dedicate enough today to achieve that. So how do we
best spend existing and new money to significantly boost
student outcomes? How do we guarantee taxpayers their dollars
will be invested to produce results? What reforms to school
pension systems and other elements of the current system need
to occur in exchange for more money?
These are questions few lawmakers have had
much opportunity to discuss. Legislative priorities often get
decided in a Springfield back room by a handful of staffers
given 90 minutes to muscle out a bill -- only after a handful
of legislative leaders cut a deal on the price tag.
So
it was wonderfully refreshing when, earlier this month, nearly
50 legislators attended a forum in Springfield built around
the Tribune's "From Here to Excellence" editorial series on
how to reform Illinois public schools.
Not only did
nearly a third of the General Assembly attend -- Republican
and Democratic, Downstate, suburban and Chicago -- they stayed
late. Legislators lined up to ask thoughtful questions. One
typical comment came from Rep. Sara Feigenholtz (D-Chicago):
"People should understand that down here we often get bogged
down with myopic, one-dimensional, 8 x 10 fact sheets that
don't usually illustrate the whole picture. Unbiased opinions
that are clean from 'agendas' are truly what we hunger
for."
Feigenholtz and her colleagues can expect another
fresh perspective on Monday. That's when a bipartisan group of
business, education and political leaders plan to release "The
Burnham Plan" for better education in Illinois. The document
-- its name borrowed from architect Daniel Burnham's visionary
plan for Chicago of a century ago -- synthesizes best
practices from around the U.S. to improve student outcomes and
enhance school accountability.
There's much to like in
this comprehensive plan, which will be available at
aplusillinois.org. Think of it as the education component that
easily can be dropped into any school funding proposal. The
Burnham Plan defines smart ways to spend additional education
money, however legislators choose to provide it.
The
plan calls for a better data system to measure student gains
and determine teacher and principal effectiveness. It outlines
a streamlined process for dismissing inadequate teachers. It
proposes a statewide group to drive an Illinois education
agenda going forward. It establishes financial rewards for
excellent teachers and schools.
Also included:
intensive mentoring and induction programs for teachers and
principals; financial training for school board members;
easier routes to alternative teaching certification for
career-switchers; an expansion of the number of charter
schools permitted in Illinois; and better reimbursement to
districts for costly special education programs.
The
plan calls for a pool of money schools could tap if they spend
it on research-proven, high-impact strategies: reduced class
sizes; smaller schools; longer school days and school years;
and parent involvement programs.
Parts of the $3
billion Burnham Plan echo school improvement strategies
highlighted in "From Here to Excellence," which can be read at
chicagotribune.com/edfund.
The Burnham Plan results
from more than a year of occasional Saturday meetings by
participants who agreed to "leave our associations and
histories at the door," according to one leader of that group,
former Republican state Rep. William O'Connor. Other
contributors include Elgin Mayor Ed Schock, Illinois Education
Association Executive Director Jo Anderson, Cook County
Assessor James Houlihan, Center for Tax and Budget
Accountability Executive Director Ralph Martire, members of
the Civic Committee of the Commercial Club of Chicago, and
former state schools Supt. Glenn "Max" McGee.
This plan
is worth reading -- and enacting. It's thoughtful, bipartisan,
results-oriented and, most compelling, it's within reach.
