Community colleges are enjoying a rare moment in the limelight right now. But part of what is being revealed by that light is just how much scrambling two-year institutions must do to keep up with increasing demands and decreasing budgets. With the recession sending many laid-off workers back to school for job retraining, and with President Barack…

In 1983, Channahon School District 17 in Illinois was $1.3 million in debt. Real estate taxes constituted the school district's chief source of revenue, but because the state's oil industry kept its assessed valuations below the actual value of its property through the use of experts and lawyers, the school district was denied much of its income.…

A study was conducted to establish a baseline profile of business and education linkage activities in Lake County, Illinois. Data were collected through a survey questionnaire sent to 242 public and private K-12 schools in Lake County. Two rounds of mailings resulted in the return of 109 usable forms, or 45 percent of the population. Telephone…

This document consists of the three issues of the "Voices for Illinois Children" newsletter published during 1998. Voices for Illinois Children is a child advocacy group that works to make kids "count" in Illinois and to ensure that the basic needs of all children, families, and communities are met. These three newsletter…

The Illinois Council on Vocational Education polled members of local school boards and administrators on their perceptions of vocational-technical education and business community participation in school programs and planning. The poll included surveys, discussions, and interviews. Two hundred eighty-three questionnaires were completed. At least…

A study of business and labor was conducted to define the performance skills expected of those entering the workplace in the 1990s and beyond. Survey respondents were 1,120 business people and 26 labor representatives in Illinois of whom 90 participated in follow-up roundtable discussions. Respondents identified and rank ordered nine basic skills:…

Illinois is considering various approaches to school/business partnerships that will alleviate some of the problems facing America today, especially the need for an educated, trainable, and flexible workforce able to satisfy the demands of a radically altered economic environment. Widespread functional illiteracy, retraining needs, and…

This document consists of five 3-year follow-up reports to a series of technical reports that presented 44 recommendations and 210 suggested activities for improving vocational education and job training in Illinois. Each report has three sections. The executive summary provides background and describes actions taken during 1989, 1990, and 1991 to…