Among the bills signed into law this month by Gov. Pat Quinn, is one that makes it easier for low-income public schools to receive state funding for gifted educational programs.
Among the bills signed into law this month by Gov. Pat Quinn, is one that makes it easier for low-income public schools to receive state funding for gifted educational programs. House Bill 5481 was signed into law Wednesday by Quinn, effective immediately. State Sen. Kimberly Lightford, D-4th Dist., was the chief sponsor for the bill that now gives all students access to gifted programs. “We need to challenge our best and brightest students to help keep them out of trouble and turn them into tomorrow’s leaders,” Lightford said in a statement. “Talented children at every Illinois school should have access to gifted education programs.” The bill amends the Gifted and Talented Children Article of the School Code. In short, the new bill changes provisions concerning approval of local programs for the education of gifted and talented children to provide that a local program may be approved for funding by the State Board of Education. Under the previous law, schools had to comply with a set of 17 criteria in order to be eligible for funding for gifted and talented programs. That meant school districts literally had to have full gifted programs already in place to be eligible to receive funding from the State Board of Education and Lightford said that’s not fair. “The old funding structure perpetuated a system of educational inequity,” she explained. “Only wealthy (school) districts that already had more were able to get additional state funding. (And while) low-income school districts will have to work to receive gifted education funding, (at least) now they have a fair chance.” Copyright 2010 Chicago Defender
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