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Gov. Bruce Rauner Declares War on Higher Education and the Poor in Illinois

Bruce_Rauner_August_2014

Respectfully submitted by Lawrence E. Rafferty (rafflaw) Weekend Contributor

I have to give Governor Bruce Rauner credit for not taking long to show his hand and publicly attack the Higher Education system in Illinois.  It has only been a few weeks since he was inaugurated and he recently unveiled his budget.  A budget plan that slashes over $200 million just from the University of Illinois alone.

At the very time Gov. Rauner announced he wants to slash the Higher Education budget for all universities in the State of Illinois by almost a third, he claimed that his budget makes education a priority! 

“Higher education is set to take a major hit in Illinois.

Following similar announcements by the Republican governors of Wisconsin and Louisiana, newly-sworn in Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner released what he called a “turnaround” budget, that would slash nearly $209 million from the University of Illinois.” Think Progress

“It’s time to make education our top priority again – and that’s what this budget does,” he told lawmakers Tuesday night, touting his plan to give about $25 million more to early childhood education. “With reform, we will be able to invest more in education and give our kids world class schools.” Think Progress

While the proposed budget increases some funding for K-12 education, the University of Illinois system will lose one-third of its state financing under this budget.   This very same proposed budget makes absolutely no mention of any increased revenue sources or plans.  What will happen to the University system if these cuts are retained in the final budget?

One can expect the cuts to cause increased fees being charged to students as well as the loss of many educational programs.  The result of these massive reductions in state financing will be to transfer the costs to students who are already paying high tuition and fee costs.  The loan balances of many students already into the 6 figures and Gov. Rauner’s actions will make sure that student debt will continue to climb in Illinois.

So often the claims that all areas of the State have to share in the burden of digging out of a financial hole ends up with some of the most vulnerable bearing the brunt of that burden. If the Governor is convinced that we all have to sacrifice in this job to balance the budget, why wouldn’t new tax sources be considered along with reasonable cuts?

Will these draconian cuts make it more difficult for students from poor and middle class families to obtain a college education? In this very same budget proposal, Gov. Rauner biggest cuts are aimed directly at those who are least able to afford them.

“Yet the state would spend $400 million less on higher education, $600 million less on local governments, and $1.5 billion less on Medicaid, which handles health care costs for poor residents. University leaders and mayors said they were worried, and advocates for the poor said they feared medical needs would go unmet under deep cuts to Medicaid.” New York Times

When the cities, counties and municipalities raise their taxes to pay for basic services for their residents, who has to pay for those increases?   “In many cases, Rauner’s state budget cuts could simply end up shifting costs: local governments could choose to raise property taxes, state universities could raise tuition and the CTA could increase fares.” Chicago Tribune

For a man who spent at least $37 million of his own money to get elected governor, he sure has no problem making the middle class and poor pay more for a college education and for health care and local taxes and transportation costs.

Rauner seems to be following the economic model that worked so “well” for Gov. Brownback in Kansas and Gov. Walker in Wisconsin.

Just how has that austerity approach worked out for Kansas and Wisconsin?

Additional Sources:  Examiner.com; Crains Chicago Business

 

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615 thoughts on “Gov. Bruce Rauner Declares War on Higher Education and the Poor in Illinois”

  2. Elaine:

    Again, you have failed to address when tenured teachers become low performers. Are the kids in the class just screwed?

    Again, do you know what her exit package was? Did she retire? Did she simply choose not to appeal her firing? How would you know if the school paid her, if she retired, or what?

    “BTW, why do you hate traditional public schools and the educators who teach in them so much?” Hahaha! Typical pro-union tactic. Let me refer you to my earlier statement, “I have no problem with Good Teachers. I have a problem with Bad Teachers. Teachers Union supporters use false arguments, such as if you object to Bad Teaches you object to good teachers. It’s utter nonsense, designed to stifle the choice of parents on where to send their kids.”

    As well as my earlier comment, “If a public school is a top performer, then, wonderful, they will attract many students. If they do poorly, the other school options will be more popular. Any anecdote about a wonderful public school is irrelevant to the school choice issue. Because the most casual observer is aware that not all public schools are excellent. And that’s the crux of the problem.”

    Again, you are failing to address my valid concerns, and merely repeating the line that not all charters are top notch, and a few public schools are, and I must hate teachers if I want school choice. It’s nonsense.

    If all you’re going to do is claim anyone against Teachers unions or for school choice hates teachers, then you clearly are not interested in learning about the issue.

    I have not disputed that there are some good teachers and public schools. In fact, I have specifically said that it’s unfair for good teachers to be treated the same as bad ones, and they would benefit from merit-based pay. I have also said that excellent pubic schools will attract students based on the merits of their rankings.

    You just keep making the typical union false arguments.

    We parents vigorously disagree with you, which is why Charters are so popular. Apparently public conventional schools can’t handle the competition and try to force parents to have no rights. That doesn’t sound like they’re very proud of their schools. If they try to remove all competition they clearly think they can’t compete.

  6. Karen,

    The probationary teachers in my school system who were not competent were let go after a year. That was my point.

    That high school teacher who left the school system where I taught left teaching. She left quietly. The principal handled the situation well.

    BTW, why do you hate traditional public schools and the educators who teach in them so much?

  7. Any anecdote about an excellent public school is irrelevant. The salient point is that there needs to be school choice so that for the many kids who do NOT live near an excellent public school, they don’t have their futures sacrificed to make the Teachers Union happy.

    I have no problem with Good Teachers. I have a problem with Bad Teachers. Teachers Union supporters use false arguments, such as if you object to Bad Teaches you object to good teachers. It’s utter nonsense, designed to stifle the choice of parents on where to send their kids.

    I have the right to choose which school to send my son to. No Teachers Union or politician or Union activist has the right to take that away, and doom my precious, beloved child to the drug and violence-riddled wreck of a public school nearby. Bullying is out of control at that school, too. Send my innocent child there? I’d rather homeschool, if excellent charter schools were ever outlawed. Of course, that would knock some people out of the middle class, if they had to quit their jobs to educate their own kids. But that’s the unintended result of many Liberal policies, isn’t it? Widening that gap between rich and poor.

    NO ONE has addressed the reality that there are Bad Teachers who are tenured, and the terrible effect that has on kids’ futures.

  8. Karen,

    Why is it that you assume that charter school teachers are all better than the educators who work in traditional public schools…and that all charter schools are better than traditional public schools? Are all charter school exemplary educational institutions? Do you think that teachers who word in charter schools should all be certified?

  9. Elaine – I based my one year comment based on your statement, “Teachers in my school system were let go after a year if they didn’t make the grade.” I understand you to mean that the time to earn tenure is 3 years.

    What if a teacher becomes a drunk sometime after that 3 years? What if they develop problems after tenure? Too bad for the kids? Their rights to an excellent education matter less than an employee getting to keep their job no matter how bad they are at it?

    You say that teacher was forced out. Great. Did she transfer to another district where she got to do further carnage? Take retirement? Do you even know what her exit was? Because it is extremely rare for a school district to actually fire a teacher for the reasons stated above. Even pedophile teachers are “forced out” in that they accept retirement. But that is NOT the same as firing.

    I read in the paper that the CA Cookie Teacher who fed kids cookies covered in his own semen was fired. It turns out the school district paid him $40,000 to drop his appeals. He would have lost in court, but he would have drained a ton of money from education. So we had to bribe a pedophile who fed his semen to at least 30 STUDENTS a bribe to get him to accept being fired. THAT is what you get with Teachers Unions. It was so egregious that to be safe, the district had to remove all teachers temporarily while they were each investigated. Apparently, some ignored red flags. Teachers were either returned to the classroom or retired. Another Miramonte teacher was charged with fondling a child.

    Tenure and the Teachers Union creates an environment similar to the Catholic Church scandal, in which Bad Teachers and those suspected of pedophilia are just shuffled along to save money from the court system. The Cookie Teacher had allegations made against him dating from the 1990s for God’s sake.

    http://www.nydailynews.com/news/crime/teacher-pleads-no-contest-charges-fed-students-semen-laced-cookies-article-1.1517836

  10. In my grandkids public school there are a multitude of involved parents who are quite happy with the school and the teaching. These are professionals, successful parents who expect their kids get an exemplary education.

  11. My children had plenty of good teachers, I really don’t understand the across the board bashing of public school teachers.

  12. Again Karen, stirring the pot? Wow, the apple hasn’t fallen far from the tree. You simply cannot just discuss charter schools without throwing another barb?

  13. Karen,

    In my state, a teacher has to prove himself/herself for THREE years before they receive tenure. I don’t know of any stayed where the probationary period for new teachers is just ONE year. Can you name the states where the probationary period is jone year?

    Teachers on tenure couldn’t act like hockey pucks in the area where I worked. Maybe the taxpayers in your state should start complaining if that is true.

    BTW, that horrendous high school teacher that I wrote about in an earlier comment was forced out. She left quietly–no court case, no thousands of dollars expended by the school system. Don’t believe everything you hear/read about public school teachers and tenure.

  14. Elaine, in your pro-Teachers Union, pro-tenure, anti-Charter school quest, you fail to address the situation where families who live near poor performing schools would not have a choice on where to send their kids. If they have a Bad Tenured Teacher, their kids have to sacrifice their future? One horrible teacher alone can wreck a child’s attitude towards school and learning. If a school has an entrenched Bad Teacher problem, that’s a massive blight on that child’s future prospects.

    If a public school is a top performer, then, wonderful, they will attract many students. If they do poorly, the other school options will be more popular. Any anecdote about a wonderful public school is irrelevant to the school choice issue. Because the most casual observer is aware that not all public schools are excellent. And that’s the crux of the problem.

    We already have Wrongful Termination laws. If teachers are so afraid of being held accountable for their actions, that makes me suspect they know they are not excellent teachers.

    Throughout my entire public school education, I had maybe a handful of excellent teachers. Why wasn’t that number higher?

  15. Wade – Charters are reviewed here in CA, too.

    I don’t know if some states have a more Wild West attitude, and if so, that can be addressed. Shining the light of public scrutiny has a disinfecting effect.

    What I like most about schools is that they post rankings. I can research the options in the area and choose the best one for my child.

    I do not want the government or the teachers unions forcing me to have zero say in the matter. Since we live in the district of Very Bad Schools, this could affect my child’s chance of success in life if I was forced to send him there. We can’t all move to more expensive neighborhoods.

    It was unforgivable for the teachers union in CA to try to close some charter schools mid-year. That puts the lie to “putting the kids first”, now, doesn’t it?

  16. OK, I’m laughing. I dropped back in because I hoped the insults had died down, and wanted to see if anything interesting was said about education. I find that Inga had blamed me, what, 4 times? for the insult slinging because I asked her and Mespo to cool it. Glad to see she took the advice to heart.

    Elaine – Yes, teachers have to prove themselves for one year before they get tenured. After they get tenure, they can act like inanimate hockey pucks and still get paid. Yes, you can fire a teacher, but it takes years in court and hundreds of thousands of dollars that are drained from education, so few take that option.

    In fact, here in CA, all of the pedophile teachers that I am aware of took early retirement rather than getting fired. They will have a nice, cushy retirement that they earned using our schools as hunting grounds to rape and assault children. That’s what the Teachers Union does to “put kids first.”

    You have also got to be aware of “warehousing teachers” in “rubber rooms” because they are deemed too dangerous to come into contact with students. Some are going through the criminal system. Others there is not enough evidence to charge with a crime, but they pose an immediate threat. They still get their pay to just sit in a room and read all day.

    Sorry, but as a Mom, if a teacher does not do well, and fails to improve, I want him or her replaced with a better one. Who has more rights – my child to an education or a bad teacher to a job? I believe the education system keeps proclaiming they put kids first. So they should put their money where their mouths are.

    I am not the only one to feel that way. As I’ve remarked earlier, we parents gave a standing ovation to the Charter for not having tenure, and using merit based pay.

    Why is it fair for a bad teacher to get paid more than a good one, just because he’s sat in the chair longer? Why shouldn’t we reward the excellent teachers, rather than treating them just the same as the hockey pucks? How, exactly, do tenured bad teachers give children a good education?

    The private workplace gets along fine without tenure. Let teachers be held accountable.

    I have a right to choose where to send my child to school. Teachers Unions oppose that right, and fight to keep bad teachers in schools. And so I oppose the Teachers Unions.

    If we parents vote with our feet, maybe finally the public school system will shape up.

  18. Paul,

    Someone brought up the subject of charter schools. I have done an extensive amount of research on the subject. I posted links to my columns about charter schools for those who might be interested in reading them. Some people ARE interested in learning more about charter schools. After all, tax dollars pay for them.

  19. And every one of those kids got into the land grant college, grades and class rank be damned!

  20. There wasn’t an email list back then

    How do you know? Maybe you weren’t one of teh cool kids and were excluded. Awwwww.

    😉

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