•March 3, 2021•
By Capitol News Illinois

A new survey of Illinois school districts shows most are continuing to have trouble filling open teaching positions with qualified teachers and even more are having difficulty hiring substitute teachers.
It’s a problem that has existed in the state for many years and one that experts attribute to a variety of factors, such as low pay and the difficulty in attracting new teachers to work in certain parts of the state.
The survey has been conducted each of the past four years by the Illinois Association of Regional Superintendents of Schools. Regional superintendents are in charge of supervising schools in the state’s 38 educational regions and operating regional offices of education. They also act as a kind of conduit of information and support between the Illinois State Board of Education and the state’s 853 local school districts. Read More

•March 3, 2021•
Moultrie County has been issued a final property assessment equalization factor of 1.0000, according to David Harris, Director of the Illinois Department of Revenue.
The property assessment equalization factor, often called the “multiplier”, is the method used to achieve uniform property assessments among counties, as required by law. This equalization is particularly important because some of the state’s 6,600 local taxing districts overlap into two or more counties (e.g. school districts, junior college districts, fire protection districts). If there were no equalization among counties, substantial inequities among taxpayers with comparable properties would result.
Under a law passed in 1975, property in Illinois should be assessed at one-third (1/3) of its market value. Farm property is assessed differently, with farm homesites and dwellings subject to regular assessing and equalization procedures, but with farmland assessed at one-third of its agriculture economic value. Farmland is not subject to the state equalization factor.
Assessments in Moultrie County are at 33.24 percent of market value, based on sales of properties in 2017, 2018, and 2019. Read More

•March 3, 2021•
Sullivan Dance Studio’s Competition Team attended their first competition of the year February 5 at the Indiana Convention Center in Indianapolis. The team had dancers in Mini, Junior, Teen and Senior age divisions.
The following are their results:
Group dances--“Headphones,” “Live Your Story,” and “Grasslands” all competed in the Junior Age Category as small group dances and each placed in the Top 10 Overall Group Dances in the Novice Skill Level. The “Jailhouse Rock” Small Group Routine earned 2nd Place Overall in the Teen Category and received a GOLDEN TICKET invitation to a Nationals Competition. “Girl Party” also competed as a Junior Small Group Dance. Read More