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“Education
has been the top priority of this administration. In order to
provide an effective and efficient system of high-quality public
education, a comprehensive revision of the school code is necessary.
It requires a significant redesign of state policies, procedures and
programs,” Gov. Ryan said.
The
School Code of Illinois took
effect 40 years ago, on July 1, 1961. However, the code contains
outdated information, making it difficult for educators, parents and
the general public to understand. Several years ago, the
Illinois Bar Association (IBA)
began work on rewriting the code, and the governor’s commission will
continue the work started by the IBA.
Approximately
130,000 full- and part-time public school teachers educate over two
million students in 4,290 public schools in Illinois. The state’s
educational system has undergone a fundamental shift to
standards-led reform in recent years, focusing on student
achievement as the primary result of the educational system. The
school code needs to be updated to reflect this new approach.
 [to top of second column in this
article]
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The
Governor’s Commission on Revising the School Code was created in
Executive Order 7 and is
comprised of a variety of people from across the state. The purpose
of this commission is to conduct a comprehensive study of the
existing school code.
The
commission will have hearings from 5 to 9 p.m. at the following
community college sites:
Aug. 15 —
Lewis and Clark, Godfrey
Aug. 22 —
John A. Logan, Carterville
Aug. 29 —
Richland, Decatur
Sept. 5 —
Carl Sandburg, Galesburg
Sept. 12 —
Wilbur Wright, Chicago
Sept. 19 —
Elgin, Elgin
Participants
who require special accommodations should submit a written request
at least one week prior to the hearing to the
Illinois State Board of Education,
100 N. First, Springfield, IL 62777.
[Illinois
Government News Network
press release] |
