Empowering Futures: NACEP’s Annual Conference Unites Over 1,100 Concurrent Enrollment Professionals

This year, over 1,100 concurrent enrollment practitioners, researchers, and educators gathered in Orlando, Florida, for the annual NACEP (National Alliance of Concurrent Enrollment Partnerships) National Conference – a vibrant forum where leaders in dual credit, dual enrollment, and early college credit shared insights on advancing the field. As the sole accrediting body for concurrent enrollment partnerships, NACEP has long been committed to ensuring high standards of rigor and quality across programs, enabling high school students nationwide to embark on their college journeys while still in high school.

A focus on student experience and equity

The 2024 conference placed students’ experiences at the heart of its mission. Through discussions led by researchers and seasoned practitioners, attendees explored pressing topics like policy development, advising-counseling models, college-career pathways, and workforce engagement. With an unwavering commitment to improving concurrent enrollment programs, the conference offered numerous opportunities for participants to learn from some of the nation’s foremost experts and innovators in the field.

Representatives from Illinois made a noteworthy impact, with 71 dual credit practitioners—the second-highest group in attendance—showcasing work that has demonstrated tangible benefits for students transitioning to postsecondary education. These professionals highlighted effective strategies for equipping students with critical skills to navigate the complexities of higher education and workforce pathways. The high representation from Illinois underscored the state’s dedication to concurrent enrollment and the collective momentum toward building equitable access across regions.

Bridging research and practice for program excellence

NACEP’s conference reinforced the powerful connection between research and practice. Each session highlighted how cutting-edge research is central to advancing concurrent enrollment and improving programs nationwide. From discussions led by NACEP research commissioners to presentations by doctoral candidates and practitioners, a common thread emerged: rigorous research informs better programs and policies. This commitment ensures that programs not only meet accreditation standards but also respond to the evolving needs of students and educators alike.

Looking ahead: NACEP’s vision for nationwide collaboration

As the only national organization dedicated to concurrent enrollment professionals in all 50 states, NACEP continues to be an invaluable resource. Its leadership and expertise guide states in shaping robust concurrent enrollment systems where high schools and colleges work in partnership to support every student. This year’s conference reaffirmed NACEP’s commitment to expanding equitable access to college coursework, helping students build the skills they need to thrive in education and beyond.

NACEP’s annual conference remains a testament to the shared ambition of its members—an inspiring gathering of practitioners dedicated to empowering students’ futures through access to quality, college-level learning experiences.

The Road to Retention KEEP Illinois Report Released

This week, KEEP Illinois met to review the now released report, The Road to Retention: Understanding the educator shortage and ways to engage and keep educators. This report reviews the existing literature on educator retention and engagement as well as state and national data. The report also makes recommendations regarding both policies and practices that can enhance educator engagement (and, ultimately, retention). 

During the KEEP Illinois meetings, participants discussed which recommendations should be priorities as well as which are most realistic. Following those discussions, KEEP Illinois participants will receive a short follow-up survey. Based on those survey results and the discussions, a KEEP Illinois action plan will be put into place and future efforts will focus on implementing policies and practices across Illinois that are likely to increase engagement for all educators so they can continue to thrive throughout their careers. The video included below provides a brief overview of the full report.

To stay up-to-date on what is taking place with KEEP Illinois, please visit the Illinois P-20 Network’s KEEP Illinois website and watch for upcoming Illinois P-20 Network Newsletters.   

Dual Credit Think Tank – Legislative Priorities Survey Update

This week, the Dual Credit Think Tank met and reviewed the data that resulted from the Legislative Priorities Survey that was launched following the August 1 Legislative Update Webinar. The survey sought to identify which topics related to HB5020 were most important to the field. Once those topics were identified, the goal would be to relaunch dialogue on these topics among interested and diverse groups of practitioners from school districts and postsecondary institutions to try to arrive at compromise and consensus. 

During this week’s Dual Credit Think Tank meetings, participants collaborative analyzed the data. They sought to identify what patterns emerged in the data and which topics respondents felt were most important for further discussion (including identification of the evidence that supported these topics). 

As this Newsletter goes out, the Illinois P-20 Network team is reviewing the responses from Dual Credit Think Tank participants and identifying action steps, which will be communicated to Think Tank participants in the coming weeks. To stay up-to-date on what is taking place with the Dual Credit Think Tank, please visit the Illinois P-20 Network’s Dual Credit Think Tank website and watch for upcoming Illinois P-20 Network Newsletters.  

Complete & share SkillsUSA Illinois Apprenticeship Study surveys

This fall, a research team from the Illinois P-20 Network and the Northern Illinois University Center for Governmental Studies Workforce Policy Lab will be working together with the support of SkillsUSA Illinois to conduct a comprehensive statewide landscape analysis of apprenticeships in Illinois.  

We have just released two surveys – one focused on educational organizations and one for business and community partners.  

Here’s what we’re asking for assistance with from our Illinois P-20 Network partners: 

• Please complete the educational organization survey. 

• Please share the business and community partners survey with any partners who engage in any type of work-based learning and ask them to complete this survey. (Link: https://niu.az1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_bdBpTXJT1gGlsGi) 

This study has strong potential to identify significant gaps in work-based learning opportunities that exist either across Career Pathways or geographically. The only way that this study can fulfill its potential is for organizations across Illinois, large and small, to complete it! Thank you for your help in completing it and sharing it with others! 

Important Dual Credit Think Tank Survey Seeking Responses

This summer, the Dual Credit Think Tank consistently engaged in work following the legislative session based on the goings-on with HB5020, including June and July meetings that identified topics and questions for legislators, and the Legislative Webinar on August 1. 

Now, a survey regarding dual credit has been developed based on not only the August 1 webinar but also the conversations that took place during the June and July Think Tank meetings. This survey has two key purposes: 

• The results of this survey will inform communications from the Dual Credit Think Tank to policymakers about what is important to the field, both school districts and postsecondary institutions, for continued efforts around HB5020 or around new legislative proposals. 

• The results of this survey will also inform the Illinois P-20 Network for developing time-sensitive and needed professional learning opportunities to support school districts, postsecondary institutions, and regions with their efforts to develop dual credit programming for students. 

While the survey is anonymous, we optionally request that participants complete the final section with your organization’s information. In that event, survey responses will still be kept confidential, but this additional data will allow us to engage in more detailed and complex analyses that include demographic and funding data from other sources. 

Please complete this survey by Friday, September 6, 2024, and please share the link to the survey widely with other school districts and postsecondary institutions. We hope to have responses from organizations in communities throughout the state. 

Launching Partner Plus – Join Us Today!

Since its inception ten years ago, participation in the Illinois P-20 Network has been free to participating organizations. Financial support for the Illinois P-20 Network has been provided by Northern Illinois University (NIU) and the NIU Division of Outreach, Engagement and Regional Development. For a period of time more than five years ago, there was additional funding from the Illinois Community College Board, and the Illinois P-20 Network has funded specific projects with contracts and grants from state agencies as well as by providing custom partner services on a fee-for-service basis to school districts and postsecondary institutions. 

Over the past five years, demand for the knowledge and expertise provided by the Illinois P-20 Network has grown significantly. As a result, the Illinois P-20 Network seeks to meet that increasing demand with increasing capacity while also maintaining expert levels of knowledge and high-quality service. From answering questions via email to setting up short Zoom meetings on topics ranging from career and college readiness to educator engagement to instructional coaching to instruction and assessment, we are excited to partner with organizations across Illinois. Having a consistent revenue stream to support this work is critical for the sustainability of the Illinois P-20 Network and will help us meet increasing demand in these and other areas of need. 

To continue (and expand) the current efforts of the Illinois P-20 Network, today we are launching Partner Plus. This is not only an opportunity to support the Illinois P-20 Network – but it also offers specific benefits for your organization. 

Checking in on HB5020 and Dual Credit Legislation

On August 1, 2024, the Illinois P-20 Network’s Dual Credit Think Tank held a meeting that featured a panel to discuss HB5020, the legislative process, and the current and future state of a possible amendment to the Dual Credit Quality Act. Panelists included Representative Diane Blair-Sherlock, the representative for Illinois’ 46th District in the House and the sponsor of HB5020; Aimee Galvin of Stand for Children Illinois, who led the original writing of HB5020 and who continued to engage in negotiations throughout the legislative session; and, Bobby Johnson, a staff member for the Senate Democrats and the staffer who is responsible for the Senate’s Higher Education Committee. Senator Cristina Castro, who sponsored HB5020 in the Senate, was invited to attend and had planned to attend until approximately one week before the meeting when she notified the Illinois P-20 Network of a conflict and was able to secure Mr. Johnson in her place.

The meeting focused on key questions that had been identified by Dual Credit Think Tank members at the June and July meetings. Topics covered included:

• An overview of key elements of HB5020 from the perspective of each of the panelists
• The current status of HB5020
• Likely next steps for HB5020 and/or other future legislation related to dual credit in Illinois
• Teacher credentialing for high school teachers teaching dual credit
• Ability of school districts to partner with postsecondary institutions other than their own community college
• Reference to school districts’ progress to offer College and Career Pathway Endorsements (i.e., requires six credit hours of early college credit) and the need for continued alterations to dual credit policy in Illinois
• Research into the long-term impact of dual credit within and across Illinois
• Potential funding to specifically support dual credit across Illinois, particularly given funding to support Advanced Placement

Representative Blair-Sherlock stressed that this bill went through multiple revisions in the House before ultimately being passed on to the Senate. She pointed out that through the negotiation process around these revisions, key stakeholders and interest groups expressed that, at the time of the floor vote by the full House, they were either in support of the bill or neutral on HB5020. She also expressed frustration that, though it moved into the Senate with overwhelming bipartisan support, at that point new issues appeared to pop up, and the bill became stuck in the Senate’s Rules Committee without even receiving a hearing.

Mr. Johnson identified three key disagreements that remained among interest groups as he understood it. The two smaller issues were conversations about who dictated class size limits (the school district or the postsecondary institution) and the right to refusal as it relates to partnering with only the school district’s local community college. The third, and more significant issue, that Mr. Johnson identified was the education and/or work requirements for a high school teacher to be credentialed as a dual credit teacher. On this point, both the panelists and participants stressed that many postsecondary faculty members feel that this teacher credentialing is the key to ensuring high-quality instructional experiences and to maintaining the same rigor that is in place in the postsecondary setting, which is key to meaningful dual credit offerings.

In addition to the panelists and over 70 attendees, representatives from both the Illinois Community College Board (ICCB) and Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) were in attendance. Among those statewide leaders was ICCB Executive Director Brian Durham, who spoke about ICCB’s ongoing involvement in continued conversations about HB5020 with community college presidents as well as through a recent meeting ICCB convened with a small group of school district superintendents and community college presidents on the topic. From ICCB’s perspective, there is an ongoing commitment to continuing to negotiate with key stakeholders and this commitment is shared with community college presidents from across Illinois.

While there is much work to continue being done, the meeting concluded with the following key points:

• There is a commitment to addressing teacher credentialing and the professional development plans further, particularly considering the Higher Learning Commission (HLC) policy change last November, whether through HB5020 as early as this fall’s Veto Session or through a new bill.
• There would likely be strong support in examining funding around dual credit, particularly given the support of Advanced Placement, though it was recommended that this would be most effectively approached through separate legislation after the passage of some form of the currently proposed legislation that addresses teacher credentialing.

Though it is not entirely clear how, when, or who will lead these next steps, the Dual Credit Think Tank will continue to fulfill its role in providing a forum for the practitioners doing the work to better understand policymaking processes and share their expert thoughts and experiences throughout the process.

If you are not currently a member of the Dual Credit Think Tank and you are interested in participating, please complete this short Dual Credit Think Tank New Member Form.

ECN adds free Coaching Conversations

This year, the Educational Coaching Network (ECN) is adding another feature (for free!) to this year’s Foundations of Instructional Coaching and Advanced Coaching Workshops — Coaching Conversations.

The purpose of the Coaching Conversations is to give participants the opportunity to discuss and process the content with ECN facilitators. ECN participants are invited to bring their thoughts, questions, and ideas to Zoom, along with your lunch, for engaging conversation. These sessions, from noon to 1 PM, are free and included for all ECN participants! There are specific Coaching Conversations scheduled for both the Foundations of Instructional Coaching Institute and for the Advanced Coaching and Leadership Workshops. This is a new, additional value-add for participants and school districts as part of the Educational Coaching Network.

Supporting Educator Engagement with Coaching

One of the Illinois P-20 Network’s four Areas of Focus is Educator Engagement. As will be evident with the forthcoming publication of the KEEP Illinois research review regarding educator retention and career-long engagement, there are many key elements to retaining educators throughout their careers in ways that can continue to grow and thrive. While climate and culture, salary, collaboration, professional autonomy, and relationships with peers and supervisors are all critical, one strategy that can consistently improve all of these other elements (with the exception of salary) is coaching.

The Educational Coaching Network (ECN) is designed to serve as a partner to organizations on their journeys with developing, implementing, and maintaining coaching as well as a partner to individual coaches – from new coaches with the annual Foundations of Coaching series as well as to experienced coaches with the Advanced Coaching workshops that provide different learning opportunities each year based on the needs that have been identified by coaches across Illinois. Additionally, coaches and school and district leaders are invited to celebrate coaching and to dive deeper into its direct impact on students at this year’s ECN Conference on April 24, 2025, with Diane Sweeney.

KEEP Illinois is dedicated to helping educators locally and policymakers state-wide develop and implement practices and policies that will promote long-term engagement and growth (and retention) for educators throughout our careers. ECN provides important supports for these efforts.

To learn more about the Educational Coaching Network and/or for information about customized assistance with launching, evaluating, and/or improving coaching in your organization, please contact Tim Dohrer.

The Schools We Need Now Book Launch Webinars

Health and wellness, both mental and physical, are the focus of The Schools We Need Now, a new book by Tim Dohrer and Tom Golebiewski. This new book directly addresses our Area of Focus of Equity and Opportunity and indirectly addresses our Areas of Focus of Career and College and Readiness and Educator Engagement. To help launch it, the Illinois P-20 Network will host two webinars with Tim and Tom on June 25 and August 28.

The book lays out a “Mental Health Action Plan” that can guide educators to re-envision schools through the lens of health and wellness. It also provides school-based examples of prevention, intervention, and postvention steps for creating a healthy school culture.

Tim and Tom will be in conversation with Jason Klein and will take questions from the audience during the live webinars. Register below for either of the book launch webinars:

• June 25 – 1 PM
• August 28 – 3:30 PM

Kaneland School District 302 Awarded 2024 Coaching Champions

Launched at the 2023 ECN Conference and awarded to Glenbrook Township High School District 225 at that time, the Educational Coaching Network awarded its second annual ECN Coaching Champions award at this year’s ECN Conference on May 9, 2024, to Kaneland School District 302.

Over the past decade, Kaneland School District 302 has shown a broad and consistent commitment to instructional coaching. This commitment has been demonstrated through Kaneland’s staffing of instructional coaches to the priority and value it places on instructional coaching with teachers to the ongoing professional development that is provided to the district’s instructional coaches.

The Illinois P-20 Network Educational Coaching Network continues to see the extraordinary work being done across Illinois by teachers with students and by the coaches and school and district leaders who support those teachers. We are pleased to honor Kaneland School District 302 for their long-term success with instructional coaching and their desire to support teacher engagement and student achievement.

HB5020 Update – Next Steps in the Senate

At the time of this posting, HB5020 has made no movement through the Illinois Senate’s Assignments Committee or towards a floor vote in the Senate. Questions have appeared to emerge about whether this bill will move forward through the legislative process, and Illinois P-20 Network partners are asking questions about how they can impact the legislation.

As we have previously written on this topic, the Illinois P-20 Network takes no position on HB5020 itself. We do believe that well-designed dual credit coursework is one component of a high-quality and equitable approach to career and college readiness. Additionally, the Illinois P-20 Network continues to commit to:

1. Share updates to the Dual Credit Think Tank, specifically, and to the field broadly.
2. Provide opportunities for practitioners from both postsecondary institutions and school districts to share their feedback on key elements of discussion that are still being considered with the next amendment to HB5020.

In a previous post, the Illinois P-20 Network has explained how to file a witness slip for a committee. In addition to that, on this or any other bill (or any topic more broadly), educators can and should contact their elected officials in the General Assembly that represent the district(s) in which their organization resides as well as the elected officials that represent their personal residence.

• Illinois Senate Members
• Illinois House of Representatives Members

Phone calls and emails that detail your experience and explain the impact of potential legislation are most helpful. Included concrete and verifiable data not only provides greater veracity to your arguments, but better substantiates your expertise in the field and should improve the overall quality of the legislative debate.

Continue to check on the Illinois P-20 Network News feed for updates on HB5020.

Lots of Free CTE Learning Opportunities for Educators

In February, the Summer 2024 ISBE CTE Professional Learning Calendar was released. The Summer 2024 Calendar includes 24 workshops, including in-person workshops across Illinois. 

Today, the 2024-2025 ISBE CTE Professional Learning Calendar is released. In addition to the three online asynchronous professional learning courses that are running multiple times each year, this 2024-2025 Calendar features 65 workshops, including workshops focused on equity and closing opportunity and achievement gaps, workshops focused on new teachers, workshops focused on the integration of literacy and math instruction, workshops focused on CTE coursework in specific Career Pathways, and workshops to support administrators and counselors. 

Please share with educators in your school districts and regions and register today!

HB5020 Update – To the Senate

As we continue to work to provide accurate and detailed updates to the field regarding HB5020 (previous updates here and here and here and here), we wanted to share that yesterday evening, Thursday, April 18, 2024, the Illinois House of Representatives overwhelmingly (and possibly unanimously) passed HB5020. It will now move to the Senate for consideration.

Announcing the Educational Coaching Network 2024-2025 Calendar

Update – May 9, 2025 – The Educational Coaching Network website has been updated for 2024-2025, and registration links are now live!

The Educational Coaching Network (ECN) is excited to announce its 2024-2025 professional learning calendar. All of these events will be held at the NIU Naperville Conference and Event Center, and workshops will be held on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, or Thursdays to help minimize the impact most schools and school districts are facing with the limited availability of substitute teachers.

Foundations of Instructional Coaching Institute

Jim Knight and the Instructional Coaching Group team return for the “Foundations of Instructional Coaching Institute” with five days of engagement for prospective or new instructional coaches as well as for instructional coaches who may not have previously engaged in an in-depth professional development experience around coaching. Jim Knight will be back to kick-off the Institute on November 13. The remaining sessions will be led by his colleague, Michelle Harris, an experienced teacher, instructional coach, administrator, and, today, a veteran presenter and the Director of Consulting for the Instructional Coaching Group.

• November 13 – Better Conversations
• February 4 – Impact Cycle Day 1
• February 5 – Impact Cycle Day 2
• March 11 – Data Matters
• March 12 – Teaching Practices

Advanced Coaching and Leadership Workshops

Each of these workshops, which can be attended as individual workshops or by registering for the entire series, takes a deep dive into specific aspects of coaching and leadership. These workshops will improve and refine the skills of coaches and educational leaders.

• February 24 – Advanced Coaching Skills – Jim Knight
• February 25 – System Design – Jim Knight
• March 18 – Coaching for Leaders Day 1 – Mary Webb
• March 19 – Coaching for Leaders Day 2 – Mary Webb

ECN Conference – April 24, 2025

Diane Sweeney will return to the Educational Coaching Network for the 2025 ECN Conference at NIU Naperville. Diane will be supporting district leaders, school leaders, and coaches with the implementation of Student-Centered Coaching, and this is a great opportunity for district and/or school teams to prepare for new or improved implementations for the 2025-2026 school year.

Registration for all of these events will open in May 2024 and be available on the Illinois P-20 Network’s Educational Coaching Network website.

HB5020 Update – Amendment 002

Update 3 – 12 PM – 17 April 2024 – This morning, the Higher Education Committee met and heard Amendment 002. HB5020 passed unanimously from the Committee, and the bill will now head to the House floor in its current form.

Update 2 – 3.45 PM – 16 April 2024 – The update below proved to be incorrect. The amendment was not able to be fully filed through General Assembly processes in time for today’s Higher Education Committee hearing. The full text of Amendment 002 is now posted on the General Assembly website. The Amendment will now be heard at a 10.30 AM Higher Education Committee hearing tomorrow, Wednesday, April 17, 2024. Witness Slips specifically for Amendment 002 can be filed at this Amendment 002 Witness Slip link. For directions on how (and why) to file a Witness Slip, check out this previous HB5020 News post on the Illinois P-20 Network website.

Update – 3 PM – 15 April 2024 – As we understand it, and while it has not yet been confirmed with posting on the General Assembly’s website, the Higher Education Committee will hear Amendment 002 to HB5020 at 11 AM on Tuesday, April 16, 2024.

HB5020 is an amendment to the Illinois Dual Credit Quality Act, and throughout this legislative process, the Illinois P-20 Network remains committed to:

1. Share updates to the Dual Credit Think Tank, specifically, and to the field broadly.
2. Provide opportunities for practitioners from both postsecondary institutions and school districts to share their feedback on key elements of discussion that are still being considered with the next amendment to HB5020.

As stated in last week’s update following the April 3, 2024, hearing of the Higher Education Committee, work continued with key stakeholders on an additional amendment. A range of parties have agreed to updated components of the legislation (outlined below) that will be included in Amendment 002, which is currently being officially drafted by the General Assembly’s Legislative Reference Bureau (LRB). Once posted by the LRB, the bill will return to the Higher Education Committee for another hearing, which is expected to be early next week. If approved by the Committee, the bill will then be up for a floor debate in the Illinois General Assembly House of Representatives. This floor debate must also take place next week, and as a result, it is expected that the HB5020 with Amendment 002 will, once again, be called before the Higher Education Committee early next week.

As the process evolves, anyone can view updates to the status of HB5020 on the Illinois General Assembly’s website. Additionally, the Illinois P-20 Network will continue to provide updates as quickly as possible to members of the Dual Credit Think Tank as well as posting News updates on our website and communicating via the every-other-week Illinois P-20 Network Newsletter.

Amendment 002 completely replaces Amendment 001, and this is referred to as a gut and replace. As of this posting, key components of the legislation include: (Please note that items below that new or updated elements from Amendment 002 have been noted in-text.)

Amendment 002 defines fully-qualified instructors as instructors who either a) meet the academic credentials which are defined as a master’s degree within the discipline to be taught or any master’s degree and not more than 18 graduate hours in the discipline to be taught; or b) is a career and technical education (CTE) instructor who meets the equivalent experience that is commensurate with achievement of academic credentials, as defined by the Dual Credit Instructor Qualification Framework. This is a new addition to the legislation in Amendment 002.

Amendment 002 defines minimally qualified instructors as instructors who are enrolled in a Professional Development Plan and either (a) have a master’s degree in any discipline and have completed a minimum of 9 hours of the graduate coursework requirements of the Dual Credit Instructor Qualification Framework for the course; or, (b) are a fully licensed CTE instructor who is halfway toward meeting the required equivalent experience criteria defined by the Dual Credit Instructor Qualification Framework. This is a new addition to the legislation in Amendment 002.

Amendment 002 expands the purpose of the Dual Credit Quality Act (DCQA) to emphasize the importance of collaborative local partnerships to provide meaningful dual credit opportunities to students and close opportunity gaps.

Amendment 002 requires school districts and community colleges to each designate a liaison and begin partnership negotiations within 60 calendar days of the school district’s initial request.

Amendment 002 offers parity in Priority Career Pathway courses with Illinois Articulation Initiative course offerings to expand opportunities for students for Priority Career Pathways that already exist at the community college.

Amendment 002 uses the standards established by the Developmental Education Reform Act (DERA) for student eligibility measures that recognize a broader range of student achievement, and ICCB will begin collecting data on what multiple measures are being used.

Amendment 002 requires clear communication plans and advanced notice for students and families, so they understand opportunities for early college credit and the necessary prerequisites.

Amendment 002 stipulates that course evaluations should occur within the same school year the course is taught to maintain rigorous standards.

Amendment 002 requires community college districts to reinvest revenues received from school districts for dual credit programming back into dual credit programming.

Amendment 002 allows high schools to use their district policies to determine class size, student technology access, and student accommodations if the course is taught by high school instructors at the high school and only if these policies do not interfere with rigorous student learning outcomes. Amendment 002 does stipulate that these district policies may not interfere with rigorous student learning outcomes. The language around this provision has been updated in Amendment 002.

Amendment 002 allows high schools to coordinate with their higher learning partner to determine course length and number of sections an individual instructor may teach for courses taught by high school instructors at the high school to ensure maximum student access while maintaining rigorous student learning outcomes.

Amendment 002 empowers school districts to offer dual credit courses equal weight with Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate courses. This is updated language in Amendment 002, in which “districts shall equally weight” from the original HB5020 text was changed to “districts may equally weight.”

Amendment 002 provides that if a community college disapproves of a course request…

• Creates a mechanism within ICCB to review instructor credential denials, which provides another avenue to resolve disputes between a high school and community college and keep more courses available through local partnerships rather than alternative providers.
• Allows high schools to engage an alternative provider for a particular course if their partnering community college disapproves of that course request.
• Permits a community college to reevaluate the course request annually to approve the course and offer the course as originally proposed.

Amendment 002 prohibits dual credit partnerships with for-profit postsecondary institutions.

Amendment 002 codifies the right of community colleges to have first refusal with local partnerships.

Amendment 002 requires all institutions (4-year, 2-year, public, private, in-state, out-of-state) offering dual credit to follow the elements of a dual credit partnership agreement established in section 16 of the Dual Credit Quality Act.

Amendment 002 further limits the use of out-of-state providers by requiring high schools to demonstrate to the IBHE that it has taken appropriate steps to use in-state institutions and must provide rationale if using an out-of-state institution.

Amendment 002 requires IBHE to publish a list of partnership agreements with both out-of-state and private institutions. The update in Amendment 002 adds private institution to this language.

Amendment 002 reconvenes the Model Partnership Agreement Committee biennially.

Amendment 002 defines “academic credentials” as master’s degree within the discipline to be taught or any master’s degree and not more than 18 graduate hours in the discipline to be taught.

Amendment 002 extends professional development plans in perpetuity to address the ongoing teacher shortage and growing student demand for dual credit coursework.

Amendment 002 strikes language allowing instructors with only a bachelor’s degree to enter a Professional Development Plan. This is a change in Amendment 002 from the previous versions of HB5020.

Amendment 002 entrusts the annual course review to the higher learning partner’s faculty department chair and the chief academic officer (or their designees).

Amendment 002 charges ICCB to conduct a study to examine the long-term and short-term outcomes for differing dual credit hour attainment. This is a new addition to HB5020 in Amendment 002.

Amendment 002 creates the Dual Credit Committee, a 29-member committee of secondary and postsecondary representatives to define two specific components: (1) the appropriate graduate coursework within disciplines covered by the Illinois Articulation Initiative (IAI) for academically qualified and interim qualified instructors; and, (2) the equivalent experience required to be a fully qualified CTE instructor.

Career Pathways Virtual Trailheads – Schan Willis – Radon Mitigation Technician and Business Owner

Originally launched during the COVID-19 Pandemic when students could not engage in face-to-face or on-site work-based learning experiences, the Career Pathways Virtual Trailheads video series brings people from a wide range of occupations to students remotely to learn about their careers and the competencies necessary for success.

In this Career Pathways Virtual Trailheads episode, we interview we interview Schan Willis, Radon Mitigation Technician and the owner of  Clean Air Radon Systems in Naperville. Schan is a graduate of (the formerly named) Wheaton Central High School, Wheaton, Illinois. In 2000, Schan graduated from Columbia College Chicago, earning a B.A. in Communications, Marketing, and Advertising. 

After graduating from Columbia College, Schan worked in various fields, but in 2012, he became interested in radon mitigation.  He interned with a local radon mitigation business he had previously worked for in 1994. In 2014, Schan earned his radon mitigation license, and in 2017, he launched his company, Clean Air Radon Systems.  He was able to use his degree in Communications, Marketing, and Advertising to promote his business. Schan’s focus is ensuring that homeowners have a safe home free from radon while installing systems that do not take away the beauty of their homes.

In this video, Schan shares his unconventional path to becoming a Radon Mitigation Technician and owning his own business. Schan talks about the importance of effective communication, advertising, creating a referral base, and networking.  He also emphasizes the importance of planning and organizing, accountability and responsibility, problem-solving, self-motivation, and adaptability.  He notes that becoming a radon mitigation technician does not require a college degree but that his degree has been very valuable in running his business. 

Schan’s work as a business owner is part of the Finance and Business Services Career Pathway.

To keep up-to-date as new Career Pathways Virtual Trailheads videos are released, subscribe to the P-20 Network YouTube Channel.

HB5020 Update

An update on developments with HB 5020 in Springfield today

On April 3, 2024, the Higher Education Committee held a hearing and among the bills heard was HB5020, an amendment to the Dual Credit Quality Act. Multiple people representing interest groups testified and shared their positions, and ultimately, there was a commitment to continue negotiations on an additional amendment to the legislation that is currently being drafted with additional stakeholder feedback. The Illinois P-20 Network will continue to do two things as this process moves forward:

1. Share updates to the Dual Credit Think Tank, specifically, and to the field broadly.
2. Provide opportunities for practitioners from both postsecondary institutions and school districts to share their feedback on key elements of discussion that are still being considered with the next amendment to HB5020.

Once the amendment in development is complete, HB5020 will come back to the Higher Education Committee for review.

As a reminder, through the legislative process, there may be changes to items listed below. This list simply captures key elements of HB5020 that have been agreed upon at this time. HB5020…

• Expands the purpose of the Dual Credit Quality Act (DCQA) to emphasize the importance of collaborative local partnerships to provide meaningful dual credit opportunities to students and close opportunity gaps.
• Requires school districts and community colleges to each designate a liaison and begin partnership negotiations within 60 calendar days of the high school’s initial request.
• Offers parity in Priority Career Pathway courses with Illinois Articulation Initiative course offerings to expand opportunities for students for Priority Career Pathways that already exist at the community college.
• Uses the standards established by the Developmental Education Reform Act (DERA) for student eligibility measures that recognize a broader range of student achievement, and ICCB will begin collecting data on what multiple measures are being used.
• Requires clear communication plans and advanced notice for students and families so they understand opportunities for early college credit and the necessary prerequisites.
• Stipulates that course evaluations should occur within the same school year the course is taught to maintain rigorous standards.
• Requires community college districts to reinvest revenues received from school districts for dual credit programming back into dual credit programming.
• Offers dual credit courses equal weight with Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate courses.
• Prohibits dual credit partnerships with for-profit institutions.
• Codifies the community college’s right of first refusal.
• Requires all institutions (4-year, 2-year, public, private, in-state, out-of-state) offering dual credit to follow the elements of a dual credit partnership agreement established in section 16 of the DCQA.
• Further limits the use of out-of-state providers by requiring high schools to demonstrate to the IBHE that it has taken appropriate steps to use in-state institutions and must provide rationale if using an out-of-state institution.
• Reconvenes the Model Partnership Agreement Committee biennially.
• Defines academic credentials as master’s degree within the discipline to be taught or any master’s degree and not more than 18 graduate hours in the discipline to be taught.
• Extends professional development plans in perpetuity to address the ongoing teacher shortage and growing student demand for dual credit coursework.
• Entrusts the annual course review to the higher learning partner’s faculty department chair and the chief academic officer (or their designees).
• Creates the Dual Credit Committee, a 29-member committee of secondary and postsecondary representatives to define two specific components: (1) the appropriate graduate coursework within disciplines covered by the Illinois Articulation Initiative (IAI) for academically qualified and interim qualified instructors; and, (2) the equivalent experience required to be a fully qualified Career and Technical Education instructor.
• If a community college disapproves of a course request…
  • Creates a mechanism within ICCB to review instructor credential denials, which provides another avenue to resolve disputes between a high school and community college and keep more courses available through local partnerships rather than alternative providers.
  • Allows high schools to engage an alternative provider for a particular course if their partnering community college disapproves of that course request.
  • Permits a community college to reevaluate the course request annually to approve the course and offer the course as originally proposed.

In addition to the updates that are being provided by the Illinois P-20 Network, anyone can view the current text of HB5020 as well as its current status on the Illinois General Assembly website.

HB5020 – Share your expertise | Impact the process

UPDATE – 21-March-2024 – 11.05 AM – The Illinois P-20 Network understands that HB5020 will no longer be called before the Higher Education Committee later today. Rather, additional work is likely to take place with various stakeholders as a next step. As the Illinois P-20 Network receives additional updates, those will be communicated to the Dual Credit Think Tank and to the field. Additionally, throughout this process, the Illinois P-20 Network will continue to engage and encourage the involvement of educators from both school districts and postsecondary institutions to put into place the best possible solutions for our collective students.

Tomorrow, Thursday, March 21, 2024, at 4 PM, HB5020 (See this previous HB5020 post for more information) is scheduled for a hearing with the Higher Education Committee. In advance of this, educators and other members of the public can file witness slips to share their expertise and to impact the legislative process. Witness slips allow members of the public to file in support of a bill, in opposition of a bill, or one can even file a neutral witness slip.

The purpose of sharing this is two-fold. First, dual credit is one critical element of our focus on Career and College Readiness, and the Dual Credit Think Tank has been actively working in this area for over four years alongside ILACEP and other key stakeholders who seek to improve dual enrollment and early college opportunities for students. The Illinois P-20 Network takes no position in favor of or in opposition to HB5020. Rather, our primary objective in sharing this is to ensure that practitioners impact policy outcomes.

One critical function of the Illinois P-20 Network is to ensure that the voices of practicing educators are able to be part of legislative and policymaking processes in order to support our goal of implementing engaging and effective assessment and instructional strategies for all learners.

To complete a witness slip, visit the Illinois General Assembly’s HB5020 web page, and follow the steps listed below. Again, a witness slip can and should be completed any time up to when the hearing ends, and it is a critical way for the expert voices of educators to influence the policymaking process.

When you first are on the General Assembly’s web page for a specific piece of legislation, you will notice that you have access near the top of the page to the full text of the legislation. Additionally, any sponsors of the legislation are listed, and just below that, highlighted in the image below, any upcoming hearings for this piece of legislation are also listed.

There are a series of steps that a user needs to click through in order to actually create a witness slip. These apply not only to HB5020 but to all bills introduced in the Illinois General Assembly. The first step is to click the “Witness Slips” link near the top of the page.

On the next page that loads, you can see who has issued witness slips in support of the bill, in opposition to the bill, and with no position. Near the top of this page, there is a link that you should click on to continue to move through the process to create your own witness slip.

On the next page, click the “Create Witness Slips” button on the right side of the web page as pictured below.

Now, a completely new website will load in your browser with an entirely different appearance. On this page, you need to find the bill on which you want to leave a witness slip. Once you have identified that bill’s row, you will click the icon on the far right of the row to create your own witness slip. (That button is circled in the image below.)

The Witness Slip form will now open. Complete this entire form. Be sure to provide your context and expertise. If you have data, include that data (while, obviously, protecting the privacy of personally identifiable information). Before you can submit, you do need to check the checkbox in the lower left corner in order to agree to the terms of the site before you can submit.

KEEP Illinois Update: Deepening Our Understanding of the Teaching Profession and Educator Engagement

Work continues in earnest on a review of research about educator retention and engagement. This is part of a larger project to understand the field and provide districts and policymakers with guidance on how to help teachers and administrators thrive. At the March Forum, a group of educators from across the state came together to discuss a 2022 study from Matthew Kraft and Melissa Lyon entitled, “The Rise and Fall of the Teaching Profession: Prestige, Interest, Preparation, and Satisfaction over the Last Half Century.” Participants noted that the teaching profession has had cycles of high or low interest depending on a variety of forces, with today’s levels being at historic lows. Those forces create a complex problem that can’t be solved easily, but the group has started to identify some local and broader changes that could result in greater job satisfaction and elevate the profession.

Studies like this are being added to a growing database of research that will culminate in a series of reports and resources educators and leaders can use to enact policies that will result in greater retention and more positive school cultures for educators across Illinois.

If you want to learn more about KEEP Illinois, contact Tim Dohrer (tdohrer@niu.edu).

Factsheet Released on Proposed Amendment to the Dual Credit Quality Act

Stand for Children Illinois has released a two-page summary factsheet of House Bill 5020. This document provides information on student enrollment gaps across different demographic groups as well as highlights the pace at which dual credit continues to grow.  

More importantly, the factsheet provides a quick summary of the proposed amendment to the Dual Credit Quality Act. This includes: 

• Multiple measures for student eligibility and increased communication with families. 
• Statewide framework for minimum qualifications to teach (per the new HLC guidelines). 
• Guidance on partnering with alternative postsecondary institutions. 

The Illinois P-20 Network’s Dual Credit Think Tank will continue to collect feedback from educators across Illinois from both school districts and postsecondary institutions throughout the process.  

If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to contact Rodrigo López, Director of P-20 Initiatives (rodrigo.lopez@niu.edu).

Career Pathways Virtual Trailheads – Darren Mitchell – Chief of Police

Originally launched during the COVID-19 Pandemic when students could not engage in face-to-face or on-site work-based learning experiences, the Career Pathways Virtual Trailheads video series brings people from a wide range of occupations to students remotely to learn about their careers and the competencies necessary for success.

In this Career Pathways Virtual Trailheads episode, we interview we interview Darren Mitchell, the Chief of Police at Northern Illinois University. 

After graduating from Northern Illinois University in 1988, Mitchell began his career as a police officer and was later promoted to Chief.

In this video, Chief Mitchell shares his journey to becoming a policeman, the resilience needed to be a successful police officer, and his daily responsibilities. He talks about the importance of respect for the community, overcoming challenges, and the critical connections that he makes with his clients. Chief Mithcell discusses the importance of career exploration, encouraging teachers, and the importance of literacy. Chief Mitchell discusses celebrating his successes and the critical thinking skills he needs in his field. He also emphasizes the importance of cultural competence, communication, and problem-solving.  He also stresses that he has fun in his role and doing what he loves is an essential aspect of his career.

Chief Mitchell’s work as a police officer is part of the Human and Public Services Career Pathway.

To keep up-to-date as new Career Pathways Virtual Trailheads videos are released, subscribe to the P-20 Network YouTube Channel.