Education

The long-dreaded enrollment cliff for colleges and universities is here. “I think there's still a path to success for us, but we'll have to be nimble,” said ISU admissions chief Jeff Mavros.

Community and afterschool programs are requesting more money as they still trying to get federal funding cuts back, and Gov. JB Pritzker proposed a funding cut in next years budget.

Glen Nelson, vice president of finance and planning at Illinois State University, said the union and ISU continue to have three sticking points concerning back pay and future salary raises. ISU has said it has already offered the union its best and final deal.

Illinois State University officials on Friday acknowledged using external companies to perform custodial and grounds work on campus during the AFSCME strike, a claim that the union contends in a lawsuit is a violation of state law. ISU officials maintain they are in compliance with hiring and procurement laws.

McLean County prosecutors said Friday that a 43-year-old Unit 5 junior high school teacher made sexually suggestive remarks to a 13-year-old girl last year. He faces charges of grooming.

After more than two weeks on the picket line, tenured and tenure-track faculty at the University of Illinois Springfield have a deal to return to work. Faculty will be back in the classroom Monday.

A nonprofit group of educators is looking to address the statewide teacher shortage by recruiting more candidates from other career paths.

The Boys & Girls Club of Bloomington-Normal has purchased the old Trinity Lutheran Church and elementary school in the South Hill Neighborhood of Bloomington, and is scrapping plans for a new clubhouse near its current home in west Bloomington.

Some parents of Chiddix Junior High students want school administrators to share more information about two teachers who have been removed from the classroom.

ISU President Aondover Tarhule on Friday took a practical stance as litigation continues over a lot of federal mandates. "Our first and most important responsibility is to our students,” said Tarhule.