Money that could help address the teacher shortage is often the first to get cut in pursuit of keeping up with government pension debt. Supporting Illinois teachers will require constitutional pension reform and protecting Tier 2 cost savings.
Teachers unions claim Illinois needs to improve teacher pensions to attract more educators, but new survey data shows the opposite is true.
National research from EdWeek and the Equable Institute showed 1-in-3 board members and administrators surveyed said increased expenses as a result of pension debt have led their district to reduce non-retirement related expenses. Funds that could go toward teacher recruitment, support and compensation were the most likely to be…