With the new state budget scheduled to be worked out by the end of this month, GOP 51st District State Senator Chapin Rose told Central Illinois Media Group Tuesday (May 7th) morning that two major education issues are heavy on his mind.
The first involved Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson’s planned visit to Springfield for both Tuesday and Wednesday of this week. And while at the time we spoke to him Rose was not sure if Mayor Johnson would be addressing the entire General Assembly like last year, Rose says it’s common knowledge what Johnson wants, about $1 billion for Chicago Public Schools. Senator Rose doesn’t see him getting it, but he does see a request like this dragging budget negotiations into overtime.
AUDIO: The problem with progressive liberalism is, everybody else should pay for it. Even as democratic as this state is, I don’t think the legislature is really going to let him get a billion dollar bill out for Chicago Public Schools, and pass over all these other school kids
Rose says Johnson could be talking as well about more funding for immigrants in Chicago, and even possibly the Bears’ latest stadium proposal.
Meanwhile, back on the education front, Senator Rose says he’s working hard to make sure downstate colleges, including Danville Area Community College, receive their fair share of state funding. And Rose says some legislators last week came across an interesting comparison between the U of I campus at Urbana-Champaign, and the U of I campus in Chicago.
AUDIO: The Board of Trustees is actually sending more money per student to the Chicago campus that they are the Urbana campus. So, for a parent who’s child is going to Urbana; that just costs them about four to five thousand dollars in additional tuition, over the course of four to five years.
Rose says the Urbana-Champaign administration admitted to the inequity this week. He says finding things like this are “a function of the minority party.” Senator Rose also says that at one time, when Chicago mayors came to Springfield, they received high regard and respect. But he has not seen that with the last two mayors, Brandon Johnson and Lori Lightfoot. Instead, Rose says, much more of the state Democratic power lies in the suburbs.
