Crowd rallies for people with disabilities

Moving people with disabilities out of institutions and into their own homes is one of the goals of a statewide effort headed toward Springfield.

A crowd of people with disabilities and their supporters rallied outside of the Eagle’s Lodge in Peru Tuesday afternoon.

It’s part of Freedom Quest, a push to let people with disabilities have more freedom and support from the state. The group included people who are traveling from the Quad Cities to the state capital.

Education Reform Discussed In Mendota

“We’re failing too many kids”.  That was the message from former U.S. Commerce Secretary William Daley yesterday in Mendota. 

Daley was one of the featured speakers at an “Education Town Hall Meeting”.  He’s the co-chair of Advance Illinois, a bi-partisan advocacy group looking for education reform in Illinois.  Former Governor Jim Edgar and House Speaker Dennis Hastert are also on the committee.

Daley says no particular group is to blame for low test results and low education funding but it doesn’t do any good to pass along the blame.  He says some solutions are to fund education more, raise student standards and government providing more political support.  Daley and the rest of his group are doing a tour around the state to take in suggestions for education reform.  They plan to give the recommendations to Governor Pat Quinn next month.

Job Opening Popular In Oglesby

Mayor Tony Torres says they’ve received eight resumes to fill the economic development-tourism coordinator position.  They’re accepting applications until June 1^st. 

Torres says the person will be expected to write grants and help Oglesby draw more interest from business and industry.  He expects the job to be about 20 hours a week and the pay will be 20 to 25 dollars an hour based on the hire’s experience.  The job will be limited to a thousand hours a year because anything over that would earn the person benefits.