by Roy Taylor, Enterprise Correspondent

The Illinois State Board of Education is doing a better job of funding its schools, District 202 Director of Finance Steve Langert said this week in response to the new state budget.

Early in July, the Illinois General Assembly and Governor Jim Edgar voted to increase elementary and secondary education funding by $185 million in new state aid. The increase mandates improved funding in the areas of general state aid, special education, staff development, preschool programs, technological preparation, and accountability incentives.

"We sometimes believe the State could still be doing better than it is in funding its schools, but this increase is better than no increase,” Langert said. “All in all, this increase will allow us to operate a much better budget."

Langert described District 202’s financial growth as a "snowballing effect" resulting from two factors: the increased funding, coupled with the district’s estimated 15 percent enrollment increase this year.

The combined factors should net an additional $700,000 to $900,000 in state aid this year. A large part of that increase, however, is due to the increase in enrollment with its corresponding increase in expenses, Langert said.

After the General Assembly and Governor Edgar approved these funding increases, State Superintendent of Education Joseph A. Spagnolo said “It is apparent that that lawmakers in this state truly care about education. It is also apparent, however, that they are working with limited resources and must make some very tough decision about how to spend those scarce dollars.”

Spagnolo stressed that with the short-term funding question resolved, educators, lawmakers, parents and business leaders must focus on a long-range financing plan that links funding levels with the actual costs of education and other resources necessary for students to meet the state’s high academic expectations.

Langert said District 202 will learn the exact amount of its state aid funding sometime early this month.