Peoria Standard

Jehan Gordon-Booth introduced HB2470 in the Illinois House on Feb. 3, 2025, during the general assembly session 104, according to the Illinois General Assembly.

According to the Illinois General Assembly site, the legislature summarized the bill's official text as follows: "Amends the Grow Your Own Teacher Education Act. In a provision regarding the selection of grantees, provides that: State appropriations shall be allocated with the intention of providing direct candidate support through consortia; and Grown Your Own Illinois may use no more than 5% of State appropriations for operational expenditures, but may supplement its operational expenditures with private funds. In a provision regarding expenditures under the Grow Your Own Teacher Education Initiative: requires grants to be distributed to consortia from Grow Your Own Illinois in an equitable manner based on candidate needs and in such a way as to provide the required support for a cohort of candidates; and provides that site-based cohort coordinators shall indicate to Grow Your Own Illinois the needs of candidates and shall have the authority to inform the development and operations of the cohort pertaining to certain topics. Allows the Board of Higher Education to create a process to allow cohorts to communicate operational or funding challenges pertaining to the implementation of the Grow Your Own Illinois program. Allows the Board to adopt rules to establish a complaint process. Makes other changes."

The following is our breakdown, based on the actual bill text, and may include interpretation to clarify its provisions.

In essence, this bill amends the Grow Your Own Teacher Education Act to refine the selection of grantees and manage expenditures under the initiative. It mandates that state appropriations prioritize direct candidate support via consortia, with Grow Your Own Illinois limited to using no more than 5% of these funds for operational costs, which can be supplemented by private sources. Grants will be distributed equitably based on candidate needs, with site-based cohort coordinators indicating such needs and having authority over related operations. The bill outlines the requirements for consortia, including the composition of members, focus on specific hard-to-staff schools, and criteria for candidate selection. It also establishes a forgivable loan program for candidates, with full forgiveness contingent on five years of service in hard-to-staff roles. Additionally, the Board of Higher Education may create a complaint process to address challenges in the program's implementation.

Gordon-Booth graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign with a BA.

Jehan Gordon-Booth is currently serving in the Illinois State House, representing the state's 92nd House District. She replaced previous state representative Joan Krupa in 2009.

Bills in Illinois follow a multi-step legislative process, beginning with introduction in either the House or Senate, followed by committee review, floor debates, and votes in both chambers before reaching the governor for approval or veto. The General Assembly operates on a biennial schedule, and while typically thousands of bills are introduced each session, only a fraction successfully pass through the process to become law.

You can read more about bills and other measures here.

Bill Number	Date Introduced	Short Description
HB2470	02/03/2025	Amends the Grow Your Own Teacher Education Act. In a provision regarding the selection of grantees, provides that: State appropriations shall be allocated with the intention of providing direct candidate support through consortia; and Grown Your Own Illinois may use no more than 5% of State appropriations for operational expenditures, but may supplement its operational expenditures with private funds. In a provision regarding expenditures under the Grow Your Own Teacher Education Initiative: requires grants to be distributed to consortia from Grow Your Own Illinois in an equitable manner based on candidate needs and in such a way as to provide the required support for a cohort of candidates; and provides that site-based cohort coordinators shall indicate to Grow Your Own Illinois the needs of candidates and shall have the authority to inform the development and operations of the cohort pertaining to certain topics. Allows the Board of Higher Education to create a process to allow cohorts to communicate operational or funding challenges pertaining to the implementation of the Grow Your Own Illinois program. Allows the Board to adopt rules to establish a complaint process. Makes other changes.