"Get Springfield out of the classroom, and let teachers teach."
That's what Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner told students Tuesday at Glenview Middle School in East Moline. He's trying to drum up support for spending more on education.
The Glenview Middle School Mariachi Band, dressed in bright blue outfits, playing guitars, trumpets, and violins, played a couple of songs for Gov. Rauner after he spoke to a crowd of students at an assembly. Several students asked excellent questions, such as, "What do you think of school funding?" Rauner was happy to respond, saying the funding formula is "broken," and relies too much on property taxes. "We're at the bottom of state support for education, and that's wrong. One of the things I'm fighting to do is increase state support for education very significantly every year going forward so your teachers get properly supported."
The governor also wants to get rid of many regulations, unfunded mandates and excess testing. "Schools around Illinois are not allowed to outside contract services on a flexible basis.Janitorial services, maintenance services, transportation services — the city of Chicago has been allowed flexible contracting for outside services, the schools in East Moline and Rock Island are not. I want to change that."
Raunersays decisions about outside contracts should be made by local school districts. East Moline middle school students also asked the governor what he thinks of unions.Raunertold them they've done good things such as making workplaces safe, and working for fair pay. But he also told the kids state government should balance union benefits with helping companies, especially small businesses.
And here's Michelle O'Neill's mini-feature.Radio story featuring the school's Mariachi Band
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