93RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2003 and 2004
SB2171

 

Introduced 1/14/2004, by Carol Ronen

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
20 ILCS 1305/10-22

    Amends the Department of Human Services Act. Deletes a provision that includes beginning and ending dates for the operation of a Great START(Strategy to Attract and Retain Teachers) program. Deletes provisions (i) requiring a working committee of the Child and Development Advisory Council of the Department of Human Services to make certain recommendations concerning the Great START program by October 1, 2000 and (ii) requiring the Department to evaluate the Great START program, gather data on the program, and submit a report to the General Assembly by December 31, 2002. Effective immediately.


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FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

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1     AN ACT concerning professional development.
 
2     Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3 represented in the General Assembly:
 
4     Section 5. The Department of Human Services Act is amended
5 by changing Section 10-22 as follows:
 
6     (20 ILCS 1305/10-22)
7     Sec. 10-22. Great START program.
8     (a) Beginning October 1, 2000 and until July 1, 2004, The
9 Department of Human Services shall, subject to a specific
10 appropriation for this purpose, operate a Great START (Strategy
11 To Attract and Retain Teachers) program. The goal of the
12 program is to improve children's developmental and educational
13 outcomes in child care by encouraging increased professional
14 preparation by staff and staff retention. The Great START
15 program shall coordinate with the TEACH professional
16 development program.
17     The program shall provide wage supplements and may include
18 other incentives to licensed child care center personnel,
19 including early childhood teachers, school-age workers, early
20 childhood assistants, school-age assistants, and directors, as
21 such positions are defined by administrative rule of the
22 Department of Children and Family Services. The program shall
23 provide wage supplements and may include other incentives to
24 licensed family day care home personnel and licensed group day
25 care home personnel, including caregivers and assistants as
26 such positions are defined by administrative rule of the
27 Department of Children and Family Services. Individuals will
28 receive supplements commensurate with their qualifications.
29     (b) (Blank). The Department shall convene a working
30 committee of its standing Child and Development Advisory
31 Council to make recommendations by October 1, 2000 on the
32 components of the Great START program. The working committee

 

 

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1 shall consist of experts from the child care and early
2 childhood education field. In addition, the working committee
3 shall include, when necessary, the Secretary of Human Services,
4 the Director of Children and Family Services, the Director of
5 Commerce and Community Affairs, the Director of Employment
6 Security, the Superintendent of the State Board of Education,
7 the Chair of the Community College Board, and the Chair of the
8 Executive Committee of the Board of Higher Education, or their
9 designees.
10     (c) The Department shall, by rule, define the scope and
11 operation of the program, including a wage supplement scale.
12 The scale shall pay increasing amounts for higher levels of
13 educational attainment beyond minimum qualifications and shall
14 recognize longevity of employment. Subject to the availability
15 of sufficient appropriation, the wage supplements shall be paid
16 to child care personnel in the form of bonuses at 6 month
17 intervals. Six months of continuous service with a single
18 employer is required to be eligible to receive a wage
19 supplement bonus. Wage supplements shall be paid directly to
20 individual day care personnel, not to their employers. Eligible
21 individuals must provide to the Department or its agent all
22 information and documentation, including but not limited to
23 college transcripts, to demonstrate their qualifications for a
24 particular wage supplement level.
25     If appropriations permit, the Department may include
26 one-time signing bonuses or other incentives to help providers
27 attract staff, provided that the signing bonuses are less than
28 the supplement staff would have received if they had remained
29 employed with another day care center or family day care home.
30     If appropriations permit, the Department may include
31 one-time longevity bonuses or other incentives to recognize
32 staff who have remained with a single employer.
33     (d) (Blank). The Department shall evaluate the Great START
34 program, gather data on turnover rates, educational
35 attainment, and other relevant issues, and submit a report to
36 the General Assembly on the Great START program by December 31,

 

 

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1 2002.
2 (Source: P.A. 91-831, eff. 6-15-00; revised 12-6-03.)
 
3     Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
4 becoming law.