Full Text of SR0289 96th General Assembly
SR0289 96TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
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| SENATE RESOLUTION
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| WHEREAS, This State has a rich history of community and | 3 |
| junior colleges by being the first state in the nation, in | 4 |
| 1901, to house a public junior college, Joliet Junior College; | 5 |
| and
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| WHEREAS, Legislation was passed to hold referenda to set | 7 |
| separate tax rates for both education and building funds to | 8 |
| support junior college operations in 1943; and | 9 |
| WHEREAS, State funding for junior college operations was | 10 |
| first appropriated in 1955; and | 11 |
| WHEREAS, The Junior College Act became effective on July | 12 |
| 15, 1965, and in August of that same year, the first 9 members | 13 |
| of the first Illinois Junior College Board were appointed; and | 14 |
| WHEREAS, In 1973, the term "junior" was changed to | 15 |
| "community" in statute; and | 16 |
| WHEREAS, Since July 1990, the entire State has been | 17 |
| included within community college district boundaries; and | 18 |
| WHEREAS, The Illinois Community College System is the 3rd | 19 |
| largest community college system in the nation; and |
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| WHEREAS, The Illinois Constitution declares that it is an | 2 |
| educational imperative to provide "educational development of | 3 |
| all persons to the limits of their capacities"; and | 4 |
| WHEREAS, The community college system's strategic plan, | 5 |
| entitled "Promise for Illinois Revisited", affirms the | 6 |
| community colleges' pledges to address workforce development | 7 |
| needs with flexible, responsive, and progressive programs; | 8 |
| offer rigorous programs designed for college and university | 9 |
| transfer; expand adult education and literacy programs; and | 10 |
| escalate efforts to meet the growing demand for trained | 11 |
| workers; and
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| WHEREAS, Community colleges' paramount mission is to | 13 |
| prepare people for college, for transfer to other colleges or | 14 |
| universities, and for employment in strong wage jobs that | 15 |
| demand high skills, while also providing adult literacy | 16 |
| education that prepares people for the GED, employment, or | 17 |
| college; strengthening their local economies through business | 18 |
| assistance and training; and providing community educational | 19 |
| programs and services; and
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| WHEREAS, In order to realize these objectives, the General | 21 |
| Assembly authorized certain tools, such as property taxes and | 22 |
| general revenue funding, to be used by community colleges in |
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| order to fulfill their principal mission; and
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| WHEREAS, In recognition of an effort by some among the | 3 |
| community colleges to transform themselves and seriously alter | 4 |
| their mission, we, the members of the General Assembly, need to | 5 |
| reevaluate and reassess those fundamental beliefs and tools | 6 |
| that fulfill that original mission of community colleges; | 7 |
| therefore, be it
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| RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-SIXTH GENERAL | 9 |
| ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that the General Assembly | 10 |
| needs to begin the reassessment of the fundamental beliefs and | 11 |
| tools that help fulfill the original mission of public | 12 |
| community colleges in this State; and be it further
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| RESOLVED, That the Legislative Research Unit begin | 14 |
| reviewing the funding mechanisms of community colleges, | 15 |
| including the availability of property taxes, the General | 16 |
| Revenue Fund, and other revenue streams; and be it further
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| RESOLVED, That the Board of Higher Education begin a | 18 |
| dialogue with the Illinois Community College Board, community | 19 |
| colleges, and other educational stakeholders regarding the | 20 |
| potential for changes to the funding mechanisms and the degree | 21 |
| and program approval for community colleges; and be it further |
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| RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be | 2 |
| delivered to the Legislative Research Unit and the Board of | 3 |
| Higher Education.
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