CHICAGO - June 25, 2012. Governor Pat Quinn today signed four new laws to strengthen education in Illinois. SB 3244 will help students in Illinois excel in the classroom by implementing a stronger mathematics curriculum. The Governor also signed laws that adjust the timelines for alternative teaching certification and general administrative endorsements, as well as increase the efficiency of regional education offices across the state. Today's ceremony took place at National Louis University.

"As a former community college teacher, I know the importance of making sure students are prepared for college-level math," Governor Quinn said. "These laws will help Illinois students thrive in the classroom and prepare them for a competitive workforce, while also supporting our educators who are working hard to help children succeed."

Senate Bill 3244, sponsored by Sen. Michael Frerichs (D-Champaign) and Rep. Linda Chapa LaVia (D-Aurora), was an initiative of Lieutenant Governor Sheila Simon. While visiting community colleges last fall, Simon learned that only 40 percent of Illinois high school students test ready for college-level math.

"I would like to thank Governor Quinn for signing this into law so quickly," said Lt. Governor Sheila Simon. "Illinois students must have both strong reading and math scores in order to compete with their classmates at the university level."

The law requires the Illinois State Board of Education to work with stakeholders and educational organizations to create and coordinate the development of mathematics curriculum models. These models will be implemented in middle and high schools statewide to help school districts and teachers ensure that students graduate prepared to succeed in college classrooms, as well as in today's competitive job market. The law takes effect January 1.

"I would like to thank Governor Quinn for his commitment to our students, and Lt. Governor Simon on her hard work to pass this bill," said Sen. Frerichs. "In order to fully address students' needs, we must work together to improve math education requirements and better prepare students for the future."

"I would like to commend Governor Quinn and Lt. Governor Simon for their work to make sure Illinois students succeed in and out of the classroom," said Rep. Chapa LaVia. "We must make sure our students receive high quality educations, and this law will help Illinois students reach their full potential."

"As a 'teacher of teachers,' for more than 125 years National Louis has been at the forefront of exploring new teacher preparation models and looking for ways to advance the education system" said Nivine Megahed, National Louis University president. "The signing of these bills today is a very important step to help students excel and to make alternative teaching certification requirements attainable and effective for future teachers. I applaud Gov. Quinn for putting education first in Illinois."

Governor Quinn also signed Senate Bill 2706, sponsored by Sen. William Haine (D-Alton) and Rep. Frank Mautino (D-Spring Valley), to reduce the number of regional offices of education in Illinois from 45 to 35. This number will be reduced through the consolidation of certain offices, which will be completed by July 1, 2015. As part of the Governor's commitment to make sure that funding for education is invested in the classroom instead of bureaucracy, the new law gives offices the option to voluntarily consolidate or be directed to consolidate by the State Board of Education. This law is effective immediately.

Governor Quinn also signed Senate Bill 638, sponsored by Sen. Heather Steans (D-Chicago) and Rep. Daniel Biss (D-Skokie), which changes the deadlines for current alternative teaching certification programs. Educators will now have until Sept. 1, 2013 to enroll in the program and until Jan. 1, 2015 to complete it. The law also allows an individual with an alternative educator endorsement to teach at a public charter school. This law is effective immediately.

Finally, the Governor signed House Bill 4993, sponsored by House Minority Leader Tom Cross (D-Plainfield) and Sen. Linda Holmes (R-Plainfield). The law allows educators to receive general administrative endorsements without the newly-implemented two-year teaching requirement as long as they have been enrolled in an approved program before Aug. 1, 2011, and will finish the program before Jan. 1, 2013. This law is effective immediately.

About National Louis University

Founded in 1886, National Louis is a nonprofit, non-denominational University comprised of three colleges:  National College of Education; College of Arts & Sciences; and College of Management and Business. From its inception, National Louis has provided educational access to adult, immigrant and minority populations - a mission it sustains today. The University offers bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees in fields of education, management, human services, counseling, public policy, and others concerned with human and community development. The University ranks first in the state of Illinois for the number of graduate degrees in education conferred. National Louis is well-known for an exceptional history in teacher preparation, and continues to be a leader in educating future teachers and community leaders to succeed in urban environments. For more information, visit www.nl.edu.

Monday, June 25, 2012

Grassley, Thune Continue to Seek Answers on Federal Loan to Luxury Car Maker

WASHINGTON - Sen. Chuck Grassley and Sen. John Thune today sent a follow-up letter to the Department of Energy again requesting that the Obama Administration explain its selection of a luxury automaker - now described as "troubled" -- for a $529 million federal loan for advanced technology vehicles manufacturing.  The federal government made part of the loan to the Fisker Automotive Corporation, then froze the remaining portion, raising questions about whether the company was vetted properly in the first place.  Grassley and Thune originally sent a letter on April 20 to the Energy Department asking for information regarding the troubled loan.  The department's response on May 18 lacked much of the requested information.

"The response doesn't address the questions we asked regarding the accuracy of the department's statistics.  That's cause for concern," Grassley said.  "There's also a lot of discussion of the due diligence that went into making the loan but no evidence to show what that due diligence actually was.  The riskiness of loans to companies that may or may not be able to pay them back deserves scrutiny.  The taxpayers can't and shouldn't have to subsidize these decisions."

"After promising to be the most open and transparent administration in history, it's unfortunate that with millions of taxpayer dollars at stake the Obama administration will not answer our specific questions about the troubled Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing program, said Thune. "The Department of Energy's response is evasive at best and fails to address the questionable details surrounding the taxpayer-backed loan granted to Fisker to make a luxury car. I will continue to work with Senator Grassley to get the answers that taxpayers expect and deserve."

The senators' latest letter is available here.  The Energy Department's response is available here.  The senators' initial letter is available here.

The Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 required the creation of a direct loan program from the federal government to car companies through the Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing incentive program.   Fisker's two planned vehicles would sell for more than $100,000 and about $50,000.  The high retail prices seem to indicate the vehicles would be out of reach for most Americans, thereby seeming like a questionable choice of investment for a federal program.  Also, the senators questioned whether the company's vehicle production in Finland diminishes the goal of developing advanced vehicle technology to create jobs in the United States.

Adaptive housing grant program makes it easier for disabled vets to live in their homes

Washington, D.C. - Rep. Bruce Braley (IA-01) today announced the introduction of legislation he's authored to help more blinded veterans qualify for a Veterans Administration grant program designed to help injured and disabled veterans live in their homes.  VA adaptive housing grants provide one-time funding for permanently disabled veterans to remodel their homes and make them more disability-accessible.

Currently, to qualify for VA adaptive housing grants, a blinded veteran must have visual acuity of 5/200 or worse (meaning that individual must be five feet away from an object to see it with the same acuity that an individual with normal vision can see at 200 feet).  Someone with 5/200 vision generally has an inability to distinguish whether they're in a lit environment or an unlit environment.

Many veterans who have suffered the effects of impaired vision as a result of military service do not meet this very high standard, but still face a significant disability that affects their quality of life.

Furthermore, at 20/200, federal law has a less restrictive standard for blindness than the Veterans Administration.  In fact, the American Medical Association first adopted this standard for blindness in 1934, and the Social Security Administration adopted it in 1968.  And other programs in the Veterans Administration use the 20/200 standard already.

HR 5999, the Housing for Blinded Veterans Act, that Braley introduced will apply the American Medical Association and federal government's 20/200 standard for blindness to the VA's adaptive housing program.  This will expand eligibility for the program to more blind veterans and create a more uniform standard for blindness across federal agencies.

"This is the definition of a common sense change," Braley said.  "It's silly for the federal government to use one standard for blindness and the Veterans Administration to use another, tougher standard... and just for one program, too.  Applying the commonly recognized standard for blindness to the VA adaptive housing grant program  means more disabled veterans will qualify for help.  Plus, it just makes sense."

Braley has been a staunch advocate for expanding veterans' eligibility for and improving the VA's adaptive housing grant program, which provides grants to permanently disabled veterans to make their homes more disability accessible.  Last year, Braley introduced the Andrew Connolly Veterans Housing Act, a bill that renews the adaptive housing grant program.  The bill was passed by the US House last spring and is still being considered by the Senate.

Full bill text of the Housing for Blinded Veterans Act can be downloaded at the following link: http://go.usa.gov/vGw