Attorney General Kwame Raoul joined a coalition of eight attorneys general in opposition to the Trump administration’s termination of grant funding for K-12 teacher preparation programs. Beginning in mid-February, Illinois institutions received letters from the Department of Education purporting to terminate grants providing at least $13.4 million in critical funding to address the state’s ongoing teacher shortage through teacher preparation programs. Congress established and allocated funding pursuant to the Teacher Quality Partnership and Supporting Effective Educator Development grant programs to train teachers, create a new teacher pipeline and improve teacher quality. The U.S. Department of Education subsequently awarded and obligated funds to states’ public universities, school districts and associated nonprofits grants under these programs to do exactly what Congress mandated – create a pipeline for teachers serving rural and urban communities to teach harder-to-fill positions like math and science. The programs have been shown to increase teacher retention rates and ensure that educators remain in the profession beyond the crucial first five years. Impacted programs in Illinois include:

• Teacher Education Alliance Model (“TEAM”), a partnership between Cook County School District 104, Maywood–Melrose Park–Broadview School District 89 and Chicago State University that has a goal to prepare 300 apprentice teachers for employment in high-needs schools in communities like Bedford Park, Bridgeview, Broadview, Maywood, Melrose Park and Summit.

• Pre-Service Teaching Equity Project (“P-STEP”), a program created by the Chicago Public Schools (CPS) to better recruit, prepare, develop and retain a strong teacher workforce by supporting 300 student teachers every year, placing them at hard-to-staff CPS schools and improving their experience so they are more likely to accept full-time employment.