Natural gas price increase will sting central Illinois pocketbooks

by Mark Richardson
Illinois News Connection

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CHICAGO -- Forecasters are predicting another season of cold, wet weather for Illinois and the upper Midwest this winter, which could bring some high energy bills.

The National Weather Service, the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration, and the Old Farmer's Almanac are all calling for a snowier-than-usual season, with major storms possible in January and February.

Illinoisans are being advised to take steps now to make their homes and businesses more energy-efficient.

Whitney Hayes, research analyst for the nonprofit advocacy group Elevate, said folks who heat with gas should prepare to dig deep into their wallets.

"There's a couple of things going on with gas prices, one of which is the cost of gas itself," Hayes pointed out. "And so, that does fluctuate depending on the market and depending on what's going on in the world. I mean, gas prices globally are up, it's not just the U.S."

The nonprofit Citizens Utility Board said natural gas prices have doubled or tripled in the past two years, and gas futures just hit a 14-year high. Analysts estimate for November through March, natural gas customers can expect to pay between $1,200 and $1,400 to heat their homes.

Hayes pointed out homeowners could save a significant amount on their energy bills and cut greenhouse gas emissions by switching to electric appliances. While it is not something everyone can afford, she stressed making even minor changes can cut costs.

"Even small things like making sure that there's air sealing around windows and doors, electrical sockets," Hayes outlined. "Even those things can add up when you kind of seal it in -- almost 10% of energy savings -- by doing those small little things."

Hayes added higher gas bills are often a result of regulators allowing utilities to pass along cost increases they incur in what they pay for gas, and the cost of maintaining and expanding the equipment they use to deliver it. She explained both can increase a ratepayer's bottom line.

"In the U.S., and especially in the Illinois-Chicago area, there's a lot of infrastructure costs that people are paying for," Hayes noted. "Gas companies have made all these plans to improve the infrastructure, so that gets funneled down into people's bills."

Illinois teachers are focusing on post-pandemic learning strategies

byMark Richardson
Illinois News Connection

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CHICAGO -- Illinois educators are investing millions of dollars to accelerate the learning recovery process for students who fell behind their grade level during the pandemic.

The State Board of Education is implementing the Illinois Tutoring Initiative, a high-impact instruction program targeting the state's highest-need school districts.

Post-pandemic test data show only 30% of Illinois students read at grade level, and 75% are not proficient in math.

Jennifer Kirmes, executive director for teaching and learning at the Illinois State Board of Education, said the goal is to bring students up to speed as quickly as possible.

"The bottom line is so that students who weren't able to progress at what would have been the expected pace, as a result of the disruptions from the pandemic, are able to grow faster now as a result of this program," Kirmes explained.

So far, they have trained almost 500 so-called "high-impact" tutors to provide learning recovery instruction in 45 school districts statewide, and the department has distributed grant funds to an additional 27 districts to design and implement their own programs.

The initiative is funded by a $25 million grant from federal pandemic relief funds. Kirmes pointed out districts are chosen based on funding levels, their number of low-income students, and the impact of COVID-19 on lost, in-person instructional time.

"High-impact tutoring really works intentionally on the skills and competencies that students need to succeed," Kirmes noted. "Certainly with their homework, but also in classroom assignments and on assessments, with additional content."

She added as many as 45 additional districts will launch high-impact tutoring in early 2023 as the state expands the initiative.