Martha Reynoso
Martha Reynoso
“I’ve made it a priority that my children could access good educational options, so they wouldn’t turn to the streets."
Maria Rodriguez
Maria Rodriguez
“It has been a great blessing for us because we are a low-income family, and we needed the help from the scholarships.”
Bullied students find better education thanks to Illinois’ school choice program
Bullied students find better education thanks to Illinois’ school choice program
Jerry Valdivia’s children were scarred in a fire that killed their mom. They avoided bullying and found a nurturing private school thanks to Illinois’ school choice scholarship program.
Illinois COVID-19 school closures hurt math, reading scores
Illinois COVID-19 school closures hurt math, reading scores
SAT math scores dropped nearly 15%, and reading scores dropped 9% from 2019 to 2021 among Illinois high school juniors. Low-income and minority students saw bigger losses.
How school choice helped a Joliet student escape public school bullying
How school choice helped a Joliet student escape public school bullying
When her son’s public school couldn’t stop the bullying, this Joliet mom took an administrator’s taunt about switching schools to heart. Illinois’ Invest in Kids tax credit scholarships have let them choose a private school despite COVID-19 hurting family finances.
Chicago Public Schools tells parents mask-optional coming soon
Chicago Public Schools tells parents mask-optional coming soon
Chicago Public Schools’ top administrator told parents a mask-optional model for students and staff is coming soon. A Chicago Teachers Union dictate has kept students in masks despite the statewide mandate being lifted.
After losing scholarship, Chicago family sold car to keep kids in private school
After losing scholarship, Chicago family sold car to keep kids in private school
Invest in Kids tax credit scholarships give opportunities to minority families and stability to students when hard times hit. Tough choices await when the scholarships dry up.
Manuel Rodriguez
Manuel Rodriguez
“The scholarships help us a lot because I am self-employed, and I don’t always have a fixed income. On my own, it would be very difficult to afford the tuition and fees at our local private school. The scholarship has helped me to keep my kids in a good school.”
Sandra Granados
Sandra Granados
“Because of the Invest in Kids scholarships, my boys are thriving in schools they love in a community that has really supported us."
Invest in Kids scholarships help single moms get kids through tough times
Invest in Kids scholarships help single moms get kids through tough times
Illinois’ tax credit scholarship program for low-income families helped these three single moms and their children. Education during COVID-19 is failing low-income students, but the program can help if state lawmakers back bills to save and expand it.
Pritzker keeps mask mandates for schools indefinitely
Pritzker keeps mask mandates for schools indefinitely
The governor’s maintenance of statewide school mask mandates without benchmarks for their removal makes Illinois an outlier.
Less Illinois school bureaucracy would help students achieve
Less Illinois school bureaucracy would help students achieve
Half of Illinois’ school districts serve one to two schools. Consolidating school districts, but leaving schools alone, would decrease administrative costs and yield more money for classrooms to boost student achievement.
How Illinois schools are using $7.9B in COVID-19 aid
How Illinois schools are using $7.9B in COVID-19 aid
Illinois has already distributed billions in federal COVID-19 relief funds for education to school districts. The pandemic windfall should be used to help lagging students, not create programs requiring new taxes.
Jennifer Rodriguez
Jennifer Rodriguez
"I think that would be a great feature if they’re able to expand the current Invest in Kids scholarships to cover pre-kindergarten. A lot of the Catholic schools or private schools start at pre-K. So giving them the opportunity to start at pre-K versus [kindergarten] allows kids to build those relationships and get used to everything sooner."