Illinois’ comeback story starts here.

Charter schools offer path to academic success for families in poverty

Charter schools offer path to academic success for families in poverty

A study found charter students in poverty had stronger growth in reading and math compared to their peers in traditional public schools, especially minority students in poverty. But the Chicago Teachers Union wants to limit families’ options to enroll their students in charter schools.

By Hannah Schmid

The Policy Shop: The (bleak) future of voter choice in Illinois

The Policy Shop: The (bleak) future of voter choice in Illinois

This edition of The Policy Shop is by writer Patrick Andriesen  The Illinois Supreme Court is being asked to quickly decide whether to allow a mid-election attempt by state leaders to prevent challengers from getting on the Nov. 5 ballot. The issue will decide whether state lawmakers and Gov. J.B. Pritzker can win by changing...

The Policy Shop: Illinois’ 3rd graders are struggling

The Policy Shop: Illinois’ 3rd graders are struggling

This episode of The Policy Shop is by policy analyst Hannah Schmid.  If you are spending part of your day reading this, it’s more than a little likely you had solid teachers in first through third grades. They taught you to read, which was essential to learning all that was to come during the rest...