Working for Illinois Caucus

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – Prioritizing the safety of children and young drivers, state Rep. Matt Hanson, D-Montgomery, introduced, championed, and passed a bill requiring school districts to include railroad safety messaging in their respective handbooks.

“Young children and new drivers especially may not be aware of the dangers around railroad equipment,” Hanson said. “Accidents can happen very quickly. Similar to crossing a street, young people in Illinois need to know to stop, look, and listen. Trains travel in either direction, at any time, and sometimes after one train passes, another one follows. Children need to have access to this information for their own safety.”

House Bill 3743 requires school districts across the state to provide rail safety language in the student handbook. This new language includes information about existing laws on rail safety, best practices when walking or driving nearby or over train tracks, and other general advice to help avoid a train-related accident. For school districts that are not located near train tracks or feel railroad safety is not necessary to include in their handbook, they have the ability to opt out of the requirement.

“I know from my own experience how important railroad safety is. It’s my hope that, with this new legislation, we will be able to better communicate with children about the need for safety precautions and the increased risk around trains,” said Hanson.

House Bill 3743 passed both chambers and is headed to the governor’s desk.

As some University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign alumni express concern that the equitable funding formula (HB 1581) disadvantages the state’s flagship, it is critical to meet any alarmist assessments with the facts.

On top of Illinois’ appropriations to our universities declining to nearly half of what they were a decade ago, the state’s current lack of a funding structure for higher education has forced a majority of these institutions, including within the U of I system, into a spiraling bind.

Low levels of state investment have driven schools to pass more costs onto students and families in the form of higher tuition, which in turn has disproportionately pushed out students from low-income households, rural students and students of color.

This disinvestment has also driven cuts to critical campus programs and services that have undermined student, faculty and ultimately, institutional success in all parts of our state.

These conditions did not appear out of nowhere but are the result of state-level neglect.

HB 1581 was designed specifically to address these imbalances by directing and allocating resources to each university based on need, not preference. Any assessment of this bill that does not consider its intent and mechanics is deeply shortsighted.

Grounded by more than three years of intensive research and analysis by a state commission, the formula offers the state a data-driven, research-based tool to stabilize and grow what it has allowed to falter.

The formula adds money to the system overall — every institution receives new funds on top of its existing appropriations, including UIUC. And because the formula’s north star is stability, it logically prioritizes the share of new funds to where stronger footing is most needed, prioritizing institutions farthest from adequacy.

Importantly, it does this without doing harm to any university. Put simply, it is a win-win.

For too long, too many of our institutions have been at the back of the line for what they need to serve our students and communities. This includes our regionals, as well as the University of Illinois Springfield and the University of Illinois Chicago. The funding formula I am proposing aims to right this inequity, and in doing so, generate something better, deeper and far-reaching — not for any single institution, but for all of them.

As lawmakers enter the final weeks of session, they will be considering what policies will benefit the most residents and strengthen our state as a whole. It is my hope they will recognize, as I do, that the status quo is no longer an option if we want to generate progress for all and secure a stronger future for Illinois.

State Rep. Carol Ammons, D-Urbana, is the House’s lead sponsor of the “Adequate and Equitable Public University Funding Act.”

Rep. Katie Stuart, center, receives a tour of the new Collinsville Area Vocational Center, which is due to be done in late summer. (Collinsville Schools photo)

By Tribune Staff • State Rep. Katie Stuart, D-Edwardsville, who serves as assistant majority leader and floor whip, toured the Collinsville Area Vocational Center expansion to see how construction is progressing.

Her last look at the facility was Jan. 8, 2026, when snow was on the ground and most of the building’s steel structure was in the welding phase. This week, she saw classrooms and workshops fully framed and undergoing electrical and HVAC installation.

CAVC Director Joe McGinnis and Collinsville School District Superintendent Dr. Mark B. Skertich, along with representatives of Holland Construction Services, guided Stuart through the facility. The CAVC expansion, which broke ground in March 2025, is expected to be operational for the 2026-27 school year.

Stuart was an early and strong advocate for this project which aligns with the State of Illinois’ focus on Career and Technical Education (CTE). She was instrumental in promoting the project in Springfield to procure funding.

“Our community will greatly benefit from this investment in CAVC, increasing class sizes from 500 to almost 1,000 students and expanding the scope of trades to study. The space is so impressive and I’m excited to see the space when it’s finished!” said Stuart.

In 2023, the State of Illinois appropriated $25 million (SB 250; page 1024) to Collinsville School District (the governing board of Collinsville Area Vocational Center) for the expansion and renovation of CAVC. Most of the funding is for the construction of the expansion but a portion is allocated to renovate the existing facility to help bring in new vocational programs.

Once completed, the new and improved CAVC will serve as an important source of trained workers for employers in the trades, service industry, education and healthcare. The result will be more opportunities for students and a skilled workforce for current and future businesses.

“Representative Stuart’s efforts to secure funding for the CAVC expansion and renovation are becoming a reality, with the facility scheduled to open in late August or early September,” said Superintendent Dr. Skertich.

“This project will provide students with valuable opportunities to pursue careers in the skilled trades, while also serving as a critical workforce pipeline for business and industry across the Metro East. We are excited about the immediate and long-term impact this investment will have on our students, our communities and the regional economy.”

CAVC Director Joe McGinnis added, “We are excited to see the continued progress of construction as this project brings new opportunities for our students, workforce and local economy closer to reality.”

The new CAVC was designed by FGM Architects. Holland Construction Services is the construction manager. The cost is projected to be $21,454,783 for the expansion and an additional $3,082,831 for existing facility renovations. Completion of the overall project will allow enrollment to nearly double to more than 900 students annually.

The CAVC expansion is located at the intersection of South Morrison and Caseyville Roads in Collinsville. The property is located across from the existing CAVC building and Collinsville High School campus.

About CAVC

The Collinsville Area Vocational Center was built in 1971 and is one of 27 Area Vocational Centers in Illinois. It currently serves students from 10 high schools in Madison and St. Clair counties, including: Civic Memorial High School, Collinsville High School, Dupo High School, East Alton-Wood River High School, Edwardsville High School, Highland High School, Lebanon High School, Mascoutah High School, Roxana High School and Triad High School. Madison High School and O’Fallon Township High School will begin sending students in the 2026-27 school year, bringing the total number of schools to 12.

Have you started planning some summer activities with the kids?

Democrat State Representative Amy “Murri” Briel of Ottawa says she can connect you with free admission to over 15 Chicagoland museums including the Shedd Aquarium, Adler Planetarium, and The Field Museum along with Brookfield and Lincoln Park Zoos.

If interested in getting a museum pass, stop by Briel’s Ottawa office or call/text 815-587-7912. Her office is at 628 Columbus Street.