Education and Family

The Unit Five School District has been getting a lot of feedback on a survey of transportation options. Unit Five is trying to cut a million dollars from its transportation budget.

Even as the percentage of poorer students went up at Parkside Elementary School, test scores rose too. The school, and one in Chicago, are being honored for that accomplishment. Shelly Erickson was principal at the school during the years targeted by the board, she says teachers at Parkside used a new approach to reading.

Illinois State University President Larry Dietz says there will be no layoffs or furloughs on campus at least through the end of the school year.

Heartland Head Start says even though it is largely federally funded, the uncertain state financial situation has eroded its budget too.

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor will appear at a public event next month at the University of Illinois in Champaign. The university's College of Law says she will conduct a wide-ranging hour-long discussion with Professor Robin B. Kar. The March 7 event is free, but tickets are required. Sotomayor joined the Supreme Court in 2009. She is the country's first Hispanic justice.

Some Illinois students are being left out of certain state exams under a new practice that gives school administrators flexibility to filter testing rosters. Federal law requires students be tested annually in reading, and at least once in math during high school.

A Chicago Tribune analysis shows that Illinois school officials are allowed to determine students' eligibility for the state's Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers exams based on particular course participation, and not grade level.

A life long Bloomington Normal area farmer has left Heartland Community College $1.5 million in his will. The largest ever donation to the community college in Normal comes from the estate of Raymond and Beulah Thompson. Second Cousin Brenda Thompson says they were a simple, unassuming couple who you'd never think of as wealthy.

Illinois State University says hover boards are too much of a fire risk. Eric Jome is the Director of ISU Media Relations. Hover boards are battery-operated, self-balancing scooters. Interim Vice President of Student Affairs Brent Paterson says that there have been a numerous cases of hover boards overheating and catching fire while charging.

The University of Illinois has now used 671 million dollars from its reserves to make up for a lack of state funding, due to the budget impasse in Springfield. That the word from U of I Chief Financial Officer Walter Knorr. He told U of I Trustees at their meeting in Chicago Thursday that the reserve funds spend include about 60-million dollars for the Monetary Awards Program, or MAP grants. For now, the university has taken care those grants for low-income students, but they could be asked to pay them back later. Knorr’s comments came on the same day Trustees voted to freeze tuition rates at current levels for the 2016-17 academic year. He says if there’s no state budget by May… the U of I needs to decides the future of those grants for the next fiscal year.

University of Illinois President Timothy Killeen says he agrees with some of the concerns about excessive spending at public universities raised by an aide to Governor Bruce Rauner. He was among those to respond last week to the memo from Deputy Chief of Staff Richard Goldberg. Killeen says the university has taken steps to enhance the experience for the student… including an administrative hiring freeze on the administration, and other measure to make sure the U of I is ‘fiscally prudent.’

The Disctrict 87 School Board is looking for two new school board members. John Dirks resigned last month. Judith Webster announced her resignation Wednesday. Speaking of Webster, School Board President Jennifer Sedbrook said she has a passion for the arts. "Getting students involved in art and dance and drama and band, she was very committed to that. And that was a voice that was very helpful to have on the board."