Governor Pritzker has voiced his interest in gradually dismantling and then wholly eliminating Illinois’ Tax Credit Scholarship program, more commonly known as the Invest in Kids program.

In fact, currently the Invest in Kids Act is the ONLY cut in the entire state budget.

This is especially concerning because in it’s first year alone more than 7,000 Illinois students received tuition support from the program, making it possible for them to attend private schools — including Joliet Catholic Academy. Important to note is that  this financial assistance helps us to keep down tuition costs for all students, so we do not want to see the program dissolved. Currently, 142 JCA students are eligible and on a waitlist to receive scholarships to help offset the cost of private school education through the Invest in Kids Act.

We must let our elected officials know that the Tax Credit Scholarship program matters.

To address this issue, a bipartisan group of state legislators have proposed House Resolution 289 which would require Gov. Pritzker to keep the Tuition Tax Credit Scholarship program to the completion of its 5-year pilot program term.

We are asking you to join us in reaching out to State Representatives and ask for their support of HR0289.  The following  steps will walk you through the process to do so:

• To find your elected officials contact information click here.

  • Enter your Zip Code

  • Enter your street address

  • A list of your various government representatives will appear, at the very bottom is your State Representative, click that person’s box

  • Then click the green COMPOSE MESSAGE button

  • In the subject line enter Support HR0289

  • In the message body you may enter what you would like or cut/paste this message:

“Please support HR0289. Strong families and strong educational achievements are essential elements for Illinois and its people. The Invest in Kids program affords private citizens the opportunity to financially contribute to supporting families in need of scholarship funding. This is an excellent program and gives opportunities to hundreds of students who might otherwise not receive the chance to explore their full potential.”

The fight does not end there. Through the #SaveMyScholarship campaign, Empower Illinois, parents, grandparents, foster parents, teachers, and school leaders from across the state are traveling to Springfield every day until the end of May. Joliet Catholic Academy is also sending a contingency on Thursday, May 16.

It is crucial that we meet with legislators and fight to protect the Tax Credit Scholarship program from Governor Pritzker’s proposed cuts.

We are making every effort to help save this program, thank you for joining us in this effort.