Senate Majority Leader Lightford had an amazing kick off to the State Of Education Town Hall Informational in the 4th Senate District, which was well attended last night with over 80 people. The expert panelist made participants aware of the current issues and concerns children in the CPS school system are faced with daily. The issues and concerns we learned about are inequity, reasonable classroom sizes, resources in black and brown schools and geographic areas. We learned that literacy levels are some of the lowest in the country and that truancy is one of the biggest issues schools are facing. Teacher shortage is an ongoing issue for CPS as well as across the nation. In Illinois, the need for diversity and inclusion in CPS Administrators and teachers is at an all time high. The question was posed: how beneficial is standardizing testing for students' academic progress? Or, should CPS focus this time on classroom learning. The need for students to learn current history and past history of interest, should be driven by Cultural Learning Curriculum. Lastly, The Parent University is a growing support system, however the need for more parents involvement is critical to the development of the whole child.

Hosted at Michele Clark Academic Prep Magnet High School. The panelist consisted of the following: Felica Sanders Chief School Officer for Chicago Public Schools; Tara Stamps Administrative Director of New Teacher Development, Chicago Teachers Union; Dr. Monique Redeau President of the Illinois Federation of Teachers; Jessica Handy Executive Director for Stand; Ralph Martire Executive Director for Center for Tax and Budget Accountability; Claiborne Wade a Parent Advocate of Family Focus; and Valerie Leonard Co-Founder of Illinois African Americans for Equitable Redistricting. 

CHICAGO – A longtime advocate of enhancing early childhood support in Illinois, Senate Majority Leader Kimberly A. Lightford stood in support of a proposed new state agency to administer early childhood education programs.

“The foundation of a child’s success and well-being is built starting the moment they are born,” said Lightford (D-Maywood). “As a state, it is our duty to provide the necessary support and resources to build such stability. The creation of this unique agency will break ground on our transition to a whole, trauma-informed approach to meeting children’s diverse needs.”

The new agency – which would be created legislatively – would focus on administering early childhood education programs. It would be dedicated to making access to such state programs easier for parents and providers to navigate.

The Austin Community suffered from home and property damages during the July storms earlier this year. Below are resources for those who experienced flooding due to the storms. Please review and reach out to my office should you need further assistance at (708) 632-4500.

SPRINGFIELD – Recognizing staff shortages in the EMS workforce, Senate Majority Leader Kimberly A. Lightford led a new law to attract and retain EMS workers.

“The pandemic further exacerbated how vital the EMS professionals are,” said Lightford (D-Maywood). “We need to expand the workforce by prioritizing recruitment and retention of highly-skilled workers.”

Senate Bill 761 works to tackle the emergency medical field workforce shortage head on by allowing more flexibility for EMS directors to use alternative staffing models and creating a task force to bring greater training, recruitment and retention to the field.

Currently, there is a shortage of EMS instructors in particular. Lightford’s law will allow people interested in becoming an instructor to bypass taking an IDPH-approved course if they have sufficient experience to become a director. This will help recruit individuals from other states by eliminating unnecessary hoops when moving to Illinois.

“There are plenty of well-trained people who are ready and willing to step up to lead,” said Lightford. “Let’s put that opportunity in reach. Helping EMS workers helps our community.”

Senate Bill 761 was signed into law Friday.