The Peoria Promise foundation is changing the way it pays for District 150 graduates to attend Illinois Central College.
Peoria Mayor Jim Ardis made the announcement during the annual State Of The City address. He says students will start paying for ICC classes upfront and get reimbursed later by Peoria Promise if they pass the course. Ardis says that’s a change from the current system where all the classes are paid for upfront by Peoria Promise:
“If they don’t apply themselves, and take the initiative to pass the class, we pay the dime.”
Ardis says the changes are coming this fall with a goal to make students more accountable to pass their classes. He also touted an eight-percent drop in violent crime in the city last year. Ardis also touched on challenges for the city, including a looming unfunded combined sewer overflow mandate from the EPA.