KANKAKEE— State Senator Patrick Joyce announced that four school districts across the Will County area will receive over $2.8 million in additional funding to help address the financial challenges of recent years.
“Our students are able to learn better and more efficiently when schools are provided with funding like this,” said Joyce (D-Essex). “Whether schools need new technologies, enhanced learning programs or infrastructure improvements, this funding will provide schools with financial relief to operate successfully and deliver the education our students deserve.”
The funding comes from the 2017 Illinois Senate Democrat-backed evidence-based funding formula — an overhaul of the way the state funds K-12 education. The law made school funding more equitable by calculating the needs of individual school districts and basing its state revenue on those needs. The formula takes into account a district’s total enrollment, poverty rate and number of special education or English language learners, among other factors.
Local schools set to receive funding through the formula:
- Crete-Monee School District 201-U: $1,527,202
- Manhattan School District 114: $1,169,138
- Wilmington School District 209: $155,830
- Reed Custer Community Unit School District 255: $1,232
The Fiscal Year 2024 budget invested $350 million in new funding into students’ success through the evidence-based funding model.
For more information on the FY 24 evidence-based funding distribution, visit the Illinois State Board of Education’s website.
