Illinois higher education holds a responsibility to support and improve Illinois' entire educational system from preschool through college. In collaboration with ISBE, ICCB and the business community, the staff works to address the transition of high school graduates into college and their success and persistence in college, teacher shortage areas, quality of teacher and school leader preparation and professional development programs, the development of degree programs, and procurement of federal resources to advance educational reform across the state.

• Update on P-16 Partnership (10/2000)
  This item provides a status report on various initiatives undertaken as part of Illinois’ P-16 Partnership. Formalized by the State Board of Education, the Illinois Community College Board, and the Board of Higher Education in March of 1999, this partnership focuses the efforts of the three education boards on smoothing the transition from high school to college (College-Ready Kids), improving the recruitment, preparation and development of classroom teachers (Classroom-Ready Teachers), and increasing learning opportunities through technology (Log-On Learning).

• The Prairie State Examination: An Endorsement and Recommendation (6/2000)
  This item recommends Board of Higher Education endorsement of the State Board of Education’s proposals with respect to the Prairie State Examination. An oral report will be given on the Joint Education Committee’s work on the P-16 initiative.
  
  
• Report on the Joint Education Committee P-16 Partnership (4/2000)
  This item presents information regarding the State Board of Education's plans to redesign the Prairie State Achievement Examination, and other work of the P-16 Partnership

• Improving College Readiness in Illinois: A Philosophy and Agenda for Student Success (10/2001)
  This item summarizes several recent activities and reports pertaining to college readiness and remediation, including the Illinois Community College Board's Report on Remedial Education: Collaborating to Strengthen Student Preparation, and the following reports prepared for the Board of Higher Education: Gateway to Success: Rethinking Access and Diversity for a New Century and Investing in the Future: College Readiness in Illinois. The item also presents a summary of recommendations drawn from previous reports regarding improving college readiness, including support for increasing the percentage of high school graduates who have the knowledge and skills for success in postsecondary education and the workplace; early identification and provision of remediation services; aligning high school graduation requirements with college admission standards; developing statewide consensus on what constitutes minimum college level work; and the collaborative development of a student record system.
  
  
• Implementation of the Report on Access and Diversity: Development of Annual Report on Readiness for College and Work (10/2001)
  In August 2001 the Board of Higher Education approved the recommendation of the Committee on Access and Diversity to develop an annual report on readiness for college and work. The report will serve as an accountability document providing an annual snapshot of the state of preparation and achievement of high school students at the final point in their elementary/secondary school careers. It also will review how well these students do in their first year of college.
  This Board item is put forward to aid the development of an annual readiness report that will be published at a future date. In the meantime, Board of Higher Education members and staff will engage the higher education community and other interested persons in a discussion about the selection of information for inclusion in the report and about how such a report is best organized and presented.
  
  
• Implementation of the Report on Access and Diversity: A College Prep Curriculum for All High School Students (10/2001)
  Gateway to Success: Rethinking Access and Diversity for a New Century, the report of the Committee on Access and Diversity, recommended that all high school students take a college prep curriculum. This item provides information and rationale about this recommendation, supplementing material in the Committee's report and offering answers to commonly asked questions.
  
  
• Investing in the Future: College Readiness in Illinois (10/2000)
  This report presents information on activities concerning college readiness and remediation. It explores the nature of the problem in Illinois and the nation, reviews recent research and activities undertaken by other states, and presents five recommendations concerning what Illinois needs to do to improve student persistence and educational attainment and workplace success. The recommendations address preparation for college level work, curriculum rigor, the provision of remediation programs to postsecondary students, establishing statewide standards in remediation assessment and placement, and the collection of data to guide policy making and develop incentives for increasing college readiness.

• Teacher Preparation and Competency (2/2002)
  This item reviews the issues and data surrounding recent news articles that examined the record of teachers taking two pre-certification tests - the Illinois Test of Basic Skills and one of the subject-matter exams given prospective teachers in the fields in which they plan to teach. The item finds there are gaps in laws governing the current teacher preparation/certification system that permit poorly qualified teachers into K-12 classrooms; some graduates of colleges and universities cannot pass a test of basic skills at the 9th grade level of difficulty; and schools with high rates of poverty and minority enrollment are twice as likely to have poorly prepared teachers than schools with low levels of poverty and minority student enrollment.
  
  
• Improving Illinois' Educator Workforce: A Report to the Illinois General Assembly Prepared by the Joint Education Committee in Response to House Resolution 250 (12/2001)
  Improving Illinois' Educator Workforce was prepared by the Joint Education Committee for submission to the General Assembly to fulfill the requirements of House Resolution 250. The report provides strategies for addressing the problems Illinois faces regarding the supply and quality of educators in the state's schools. The report includes consensus recommendations of the P-16 partners concerning educator recruitment, preparation, retention, and continuing professional development. This item recommends a number of emendations regarding specific recommendations in the report.
Improving Illinois' Educator Workforce Report (12/2001)


• Teacher Quality Enhancement State Grant Award