University of Illinois Springfield political scientist Chris Mooney will take over next month as the head of U of I's Institute of Government and Public Affairs. Public radio listeners know Mooney as frequent panelist on the "State Week in Review" program.
Mooney says the Institute's researchers and professors can bring together the university's resources to help lawmakers deal with the state's problems.
"That provides a longer view, a broader view, sort of a different take than they're going to get from their staff, from lobbyists and so forth. So it's a unique contribution."
The IGPA's workers for example helped to draft a proposal that legislators are currently considering as they look to reduce the state's pension costs.
Mooney is a nationally recognized expert in state politics. He helped found the academic journal "State Politics and Policy Quarterly." He's also the author of a commonly used undergraduate textbook "State and Local Politics: Institutions and Reform." Mooney is the past director of the Institute for Legislative Studies at UIS, where he's been on the faculty since 1999. He's been part of the IGPA faculty since 2004.
The Institute's previous director, Robert Rich, retired last summer citing personal reasons. Professor Fred Giertz has been in charge in the interim.
Mooney, who will make 201 thousand dollars in his new capacity, takes over August 16th, though his appointment is subject to the Board of Trustee's approval at its September meeting.