CHICAGO - Dec. 12, 2013. Nearly 65 percent of participating school district superintendents believe state funding for education is poor or in need of improvement, according to an online survey that will be released Thursday by Lt. Governor Sheila Simon's office and Illinois State University.

The survey, required by statute, asked district superintendents to evaluate the services of the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) and Regional Offices of Education (ROEs) and posed several policy questions developed by ISU researchers. The survey will be released at the P-20 Council's Joint Education Leadership Committee meeting in Chicago on Thursday afternoon.

"This survey collects helpful insights on what is important to local school districts and administrators," said Simon, who serves as the state's point person on education reform. "This information shows that people on the front line of education are concerned about school funding. This is an issue that is not going away and deserves our attention."

The Office of the Lieutenant Governor is required by state law to annually conduct a Service Evaluation Survey that allows school districts to provide anonymous feedback on the quality and importance of services provided by ISBE and ROEs. Distributed with the help of the Illinois Association of School Boards, the 2013 survey was conducted in partnership with Illinois State University's Center for the Study of Education Policy and their annual Superintendent Survey. This year, a total of 355 districts participated, with 277 completing the Service Evaluation portions and 100 completing the ISU portion of the voluntary survey.

Among the numerous findings of the survey were that 65 percent of respondents would support an increase in the income tax with or without a corresponding decrease in property tax, 75 percent of participants would support a local sales tax for the Education Fund voted upon by a district referendum and over 90 percent of contributors supporting a two year state budget cycle to improve fiscal planning. Respondents rated most services as being important to critically important, and gave ISBE and ROEs high marks in several areas, including leadership, communication, and responsiveness to requests for assistance. Participants indicated that they will need more support in the future for Common Core implementation, professional development, testing technology, and educator evaluations.

Simon serves as the chair of the Joint Education Leadership Committee for the P-20 Council, the state's top educational advisory body.  Unlike other states, Illinois does not have a single official or cabinet position that oversees preschool through higher education efforts. The Joint Education Leadership Committee, whose membership includes top education and workforce agency officials, encourages cross-agency collaboration and cooperation.

A copy of the report and its findings can be found here.

RANTOUL, IL (12/11/2013)(readMedia)-- Yvette Ramirez was sliding fast.

Her grades were dropping, her focus was lost, and worse; she was finding trouble both in school and on the streets of Chicago's Southside. Despite obvious intelligence, Ramirez was in danger of becoming another statistic - just another embittered teen dropout, lost potential among America's promise of opportunity.

Then she decided to accept a challenge.

Ramirez, 16, learned from a friend about Lincoln's Challenge Academy (LCA). This Saturday she will graduate from the 16-week residential phase of the program with her GED and a scholarship worth $20,000 over four years. For the next year, she'll be paired with a mentor to help her stay on track to a university education.

While attending LCA, Ramirez was awarded the National Guard Youth Program Scholarship. This is the first time an LCA cadet has received the scholarship since LCA's establishment 20 years ago. She will receive $5,000 a year for four years to use at any Illinois state-funded college or university.

"I plan on becoming an anesthesiologist, which requires a lot of education and schooling," said Ramirez. "I will use it as an advantage to become someone better in life."

Before LCA, Ramirez said she thought about college, but would probably have gone to a community college. However, now with the help of the scholarship, she is looking at a few different Illinois universities.

"Being at home I would have still been at-risk to fall into negative temptations," she said. "But, LCA has taught me a lot about the basics of being an adult and staying focused."

Ramirez received her General Education Diploma with a score of 3,300 out of 4,000.

"She was one you didn't have to remind to do anything, studied hard and helped out anyone else who had a problem," said Lt. Sarida Schoonover of Thomasboro, Ill., Ramirez's assistant team leader. "She knew why she was here and never gave up."

To apply for the scholarship, Ramirez wrote an essay describing her future and how furthering her education would help her be successful. She said she spent days working on the essay. It paid off.

After LCA, Ramirez plans to join the Illinois Air National Guard in the medical field when she turns 17 in March. In addition to the scholarship, she will be eligible for military tuition assistance and the Illinois National Guard Grant.

"She is going to get that degree and not let anything else stop her," said Schoonover.

Ramirez will join approximately 300 fellow cadets for graduation at the Prairie Capital Convention Center in Springfield, Ill., Dec. 15.

DENVER - Dec. 10, 2013. In an effort to improve college and career readiness in Illinois, Lt. Governor Sheila Simon on Tuesday participated in an Education Commission of the States (ECS) national steering committee meeting in Denver, Colorado, that reviewed state-level remedial education reporting standards and discussed the creation of national remediation standards.

The steering committee is charged with reviewing the results of a nationwide analysis of remedial education reporting policies, providing feedback on the data and recommending a uniform way to calculate remedial enrollment and completion. Currently, reporting metrics vary widely between states and even schools within states.

"Too many students in Illinois spend too much time and money on remedial courses in higher education," Simon said. "But to fully understand and address those needs, we need to move toward consistent standards on participation and success. I am excited to engage leaders from across the country on how to effectively reform remediation education and achieve the Illinois college completion goal."

Almost 60 percent of students entering the nation's community colleges require some form of remediation in math, reading or English, according to an ECS report. Only about 15 percent of these students continue on to college-level work in one year, potentially leaving millions of adults without the means of attaining a livable wage. The study recommended better use of data and increased accountability to better serve students in need of remedial education.

In Illinois, 21 percent of students enrolled in community colleges took at least one remedial course in fiscal year 2012, and some campuses report up to 90 percent of students enroll in at least one remedial course. Recognizing that remedial math skills are the biggest academic barrier to college completion, Simon led efforts to launch the state's first middle school and high school math curriculum this year.

The ECS remedial education steering committee is comprised of approximately 25 participants that will include education committee chairs, state higher education executive officers, chief state school officers, and national policy experts. Funded by Lumina Foundation, the meeting is being co-chaired by Colorado Lt. Governor Joe Garcia, Massachusetts Commissioner of Education Mitchell Chester, and Idaho Senate Education Committee Chair John Goedde.

Simon serves as the state's point person on education reform. In this capacity, Simon is working to increase the proportion of working-age adults with college degrees or certificates to 60 percent by 2025.

(Moline, IL 12/10/13) Known worldwide as the "Ambassadors of Goodwill"™, the iconic Harlem Globetrotters are debuting a new community outreach program, "The ABCs of Bullying Prevention," in an effort to impact schools and communities around the world, at Edward White Elementary school in Eldridge this Wednesday, December 11 @ 2:20 pm.

The Globetrotters designed the program in coordination with the National Campaign to Stop Violence (NCSV). The program focuses on Action, Bravery, and Compassion, comprising the ABCs.

The program targets 6-14 year-old students and involves Globetrotter players discussing the three key words in the ABCs and tools that kids can use on a daily basis to reduce bullying.  The Globetrotters equate what it means to be part of a team to how kids can offer support to one another to help stop bullying.

The important message of bullying and violence prevention is conveyed with student participation - and the team's signature ball handling skills and humor - for a well-balanced program that informs and entertains.