A new public school funding bill recently passed by the Illinois Legislature and signed by Gov. Bruce Rauner, SB1947, includes a scholarship program that awards donated funds to students in lower-income families – up to 300 percent of the federal poverty level – to provide them the opportunity to attend private schools.
A provision within the bill allows for scholarship eligibility to students in select “focus districts” in the state, including several in southeast Illinois.
In southeast Illinois, students who meet income criteria in the following school districts are eligible for the scholarships:
• Carrier Mills-Stonefort Community Unit School District 2
• Eldorado Community Unit School District 4
• Gallatin Community Unit School District 7
• Hardin County Community Unit School District 1
• Pope County Community Unit School District 1
A breakdown from the Illinois Policy Institute reveals the criteria for eligibility: A district must include at least one school ranking in the bottom 10 percent in terms of student performance or a school with a graduation rate of less than 60 percent.
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