On Nov. 4, Republican Bruce Rauner assumed the position of governor-elect, beating out incumbent Pat Quinn for the position, receiving 50 percent of the popular vote over Quinn’s 46. For many LT students, Rauner represents the first Republican governor to hold office during their elementary and high school education. Education in Illinois was a hot topic in the gubernatorial race, and the governor elect, staying true to his “Shake up Springfield” slogan, opposed the changes that his predecessors have made in recent years.

While the state’s budget for education has decreased since Quinn took office, Rauner outlined in his “Bring Back Blueprint for Education Reform” that he plans to restore the budget to its previous state and considers education a top priority in his budgeting. Rauner also plans on instituting a merit based system of pay in education, rewarding teachers who produce favorable results in the classroom, as opposed to rewarding those who have been there the longest.

“It’s tough to know exactly what Mr. Rauner has planned for education in Illinois,” AP Government teacher David Kruiswyk said. “He was extremely reluctant to share specifics of his agenda during the campaign. He will certainly move to change the teacher pension system. Other than that, he’s an unknown quantity.”

Rauner made many promises during his gubernatorial race in regards to education, but Illinois citizens and students will have to wait until Jan. 12 to see if and how he fulfills any of his promises.

Until then, incumbent Pat Quinn holds office and students could soon see a bill, SB16, that could lead local schools to have a $20 million cut to education, and 75 percent reduction or loss of $2,005,498 in state funding, to LTHS. The money cut from suburban public schools would be funneled into other parts of Illinois and the Chicago Public School system in hopes of revamping education throughout the state.

“This egregious effort to change the way state education dollars are distributed to school district around the state is being floated as ‘reform’,” State Senator for Elmhurst Chris Nybo said . “But it is nothing more than a transparent attempt to take money away from suburban schools.”

Neither Rauner nor Quinn has expressed any advocacy for the bill, which is currently stalled in Illinois house; however, depending on when and if the bill is passed, either man could use his power of veto.

“I’m really conflicted on SB16. On the one hand, I agree that there are serious inequities in the way public education is funded in Illinois,” Kruiswyk said “I have some friends who teach in southern Illinois and their schools are extremely strapped for cash. One teacher friend is still teaching out of a government text that is 15 years old and he works full-time as a landscaper in the summer to make ends meet. On the other hand, schools in our area stand to lose funding as a result of the bill.”