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Tuesday, September 13, 2016
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Smith: ‘Finally starting to hear us’ New ideas about funding school districts would help those who need it most By BCR
staff
news@bcrnews.com
PRINCETON — Gov. Bruce Rauner has commissioned an Educational Funding Advisory Board (EFAB) to help narrow the education funding gap between school districts in the state. Tim Smith, Princeton Elementary School superintendent, spoke about
the Vision 20/20 initiative created a few years back to give Illinois educators a voice. He said legislation was being passed down by the state with multiple educational mandates, yet no additional funding was being supplied to support these mandates. Thus, administrators felt they needed to address the issue. “With Vision 20/20, we
created a platform and a list of beliefs, and it was a grassroots effort where we went out into the community and shared the Vision 20/20 concepts, one of which was school funding,” Smith said, stating the school funding formula in Illinois is broken — ranking 50 out of 50 in the nation — so that is not only telling, but unacceptable. “We have a gov-
ernment that is calling for a world class educational system, but they don’t want to fund it; it doesn’t work that way.” Smith said in his opinion the recent budget stalemate brought to light the irresponsible budgets the state government was passing, as the stalemate caused discussion about proper funding techniques that otherwise would have continued to be ignored. “Gov. Rauner has put together a bipartisan commission on school fund-
ing — the EFAB — to discuss what adequate funding is for education, and their report is due Feb. 1, 2017,” Smith said, noting the District Adequacy Target (DAT) will be based on per student operational expenditures. The idea is to set a specific number through the DAT — for example, $10,000 spent on each student every year — and to create tiers to place districts in, depending on if they are below or above the DAT. Districts spend-
ing 60 percent or less per student compared to the DAT would be in Tier 1; districts spending 60 to 90 percent in Tier 2; districts spending 90 to 100 percent in Tier 3; and all districts above the DAT in Tier 4. Districts in Tier 1 will be the highest priority for future funding. Smith said there will not be a “Robin Hood” approach, where money is taken from those spending more per student to
Education Page 4
Anderson to leave United Way Annual campaign kick-off is Sept. 19 By Goldie Rapp grapp@bcrnews.com
PRINCETON — The Bureau County United Way (BCUW) Board is in search of a new executive director. Andrea Anderson, former executive director, officially resigned from the agency Sept. 1, but has volunteered her services during the BCUW’s transition. On Monday, Anderson said she is relocating to the Kansas City, Mo., area to be closer to family. “Princeton is my home, and it will be difficult to leave; it was a difficult decision to make, but personally it was something I felt I needed to do,” she said. Anderson said working with the BCUW was a rewarding career. She thanked the board for standing behind her 100 percent during a difficult time in her life. Anderson’s husband passed away earlier this year. Anderson said the BCUW Board allowed her to maintain her career while being a caretaker at home. “For that I will be forever grateful,” she said. “I’m leaving certainly on a high note with the board. It’s a sad one, but it’s time to move forward in this stage of my life.” BCUW President Sue Spratt said the interview committee is in the middle of conducting interviews with potential candidates for the
United Way Page 4
BCR photo/Mike Vaughn
Homestead Festival officials estimate more than 25,000 people were in town on Saturday to watch the annual Main Street parade. With near-perfect weather throughout the weekend, most events were well-attended. See more Homestead information/photos on Pages 3, 19 and 20.
Another Homestead ... another success
Near-perfect weather helped attract 1,000s to the annual event By Goldie Rapp grapp@bcrnews.com
PRINCETON — Thousands of visitors returned home to Princeton this weekend to enjoy the festivities of the 45th Bureau County Homestead Festival. From Friday’s opening ceremony at Soldiers and Sailors Park to the Beta Sigma Phi Arts and Crafts Show, the Princeton Jaycees Beer Garden, the parade and the 36th annual car show — each event was very well attended, offered enjoyment to hundreds of participants and took advantage of the perfect weather conditions that held
throughout the entire weekend. This year’s Homestead Steering Committee included Jeff and Joni Hunt; Bob and Marcia Hartwig and Bob and Kristi Warren. Every year the committee is tasked with coming up with a theme for the annual celebration. The committee voted this year to incorporate Glory Days as the theme for the weekend celebration. On Sunday evening, Joni Hunt said she felt people really ran with the idea of “Glory Days.” “I think it really resonated with people and meant something to everyone. It brought that feeling of coming home, community, growing
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up and coming of age. It was also the anniversary of 9-11, and I think people really felt motivated to celebrate Glory Days,” she said. This year’s Homestead 50/50 ticket sales reached $17,350. Hunt said the committee fell short of their $20,000 goal but were still satisfied with ticket sales. This years winner was Michelle Stein of Princeton, who took home $8,675. Hunt said the committee has decided to start sales for next year’s drawing this October. People can go to the Homestead website to purchase tickets online.
Homestead Page 4
Economical lab services and diagnostic testing, including digital x-rays, are also offered on-site. These services are available to anyone, regardless of your doctor’s practice or hospital affiliation.
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