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Regional superintendents: We want our funding source back

Reporter - Robert Bradfield
Photojournalist - Ryan Brooker

Story Created: Aug 22, 2011 at 5:16 PM CDT
(Story Updated: Aug 22, 2011 at 6:30 PM CDT )

ULLIN, Ill. — Illinois schools are back in session, despite an $11 million financial disagreement and the state's unpaid 44 regional superintendents remain on the job.

"We have to be in place or the schools would have a hard time opening," said Regional Superintendent Janet Ulrich.

Ulrich is beginning her eighth week without getting paid. She believes she has to work to keep her 11,000 students in the classroom.

"We are not going to shut down or harm our schools or districts because there are decisions being made at the Springfield level that are not best for children," she said.

In July, Governor Pat Quinn eliminated the state funding for Ulrich's position.

"The governor feels strongly that any dollars we have, we should be spending more in the classroom, not on high administrative salaries," said budget spokesperson Kelly Kraft.

But Ulrich argued her job duties, which include teacher and bus driver certification, GED testing and school compliance visits, can't be done at the district level because district superintendents aren't qualified.

"So when you're not having teachers that are qualified or certified to teach and you don't have bus drivers qualified to be driving buses, you can't drive the students in and you can't teach the children," Ulrich said.

Kraft said Quinn isn't against the positions but thinks funding for them should come from local governments, primarily through property taxes, because superintendents are elected at the local level.

"Right now, they are paid through the general revenue fund. We have draft legislation to shift that obligation to the personal property revenue fund."

Ulrich disagrees.

"To say a district needs to pay more for certain things like regional offices staying open is ridiculous because they don't have the funds to do that. Some of our districts are going to the bank to make payroll at times," Ulrich said.