U-46 to host discussion on education funding Thursday

Elgin Area School District U-46 officials and education experts will talk about equitable state education funding and efforts to develop a fair system Thursday.

U-46's Citizen Advisory Council will host the discussion at 7 p.m. in Room B100 at South Elgin High School, 760 E. Main St.

Guest speakers Benjamin Boer and Teresa Ramos from Advance Illinois will discuss the political landscape and legislative options available for more equitable funding. Advance Illinois is a Chicago-based statewide organization advocating for strong public education and funding for Illinois schools.

Boer, deputy director at Advance Illinois, serves in a leadership role in policy development and creating partnerships with participating organizations. Ramos, director of community engagement, gets community members involved in policy and advocacy to strengthen public schools.

They will talk about why Illinois ranks among the lowest in the nation for funding equity and how it affects the more than 40,000 students in the state's second-largest school district.

Advance Illinois has established a statewide coalition dubbed Funding Illinois' Future that is leading more than 230 organizations in the effort to gain more equitable state funding. U-46 has been a member of Funding Illinois' Future since 2014.