Politics & Government
Cunningham lands $2.249M In Evidence-Based Funding For Oak Lawn Schools
The evidence-based funding is critical for helping local school districts provide a high-quality education for students and families.
CHICAGO – State Senator Bill Cunningham (18th District) announced that 12 school districts across the southwest suburbs will receive nearly $8 million in evidence-based funding, in addition to the base funding that the state provides.
“Additional funding to our public schools will lead to improved student outcomes,” said Cunningham, a Democrat who represents portions of Chicago and the southwest suburbs. “This evidence-based funding is critical for helping our local school districts provide a high-quality education that students and families deserve.”
The funding comes from the 2017 Illinois Senate Democrat-backed evidence-based funding formula — an overhaul of the way the state funds K-12 education. The law made school funding more equitable by calculating the needs of individual school districts and basing state revenue on those needs. The formula takes into account a district’s total enrollment, poverty rate and number of special education or English language learners, among other factors.
Find out what's happening in Oak Lawnfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
School districts in the Oak Lawn area set to receive funding through the formula include Alsip-Hazelgreen-Oak Lawn SD 126 ($32,572), Atwood Heights Dist. 125 ($230,706), Oak Lawn-Hometown School District 123 ($1,872,453), Oak Lawn Community High School District 229: $1,457,089 and CHSD 218 ($1,986,189).
Other southwest suburban school districts receiving funding through the formula include:
Find out what's happening in Oak Lawnfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
- Chicago Ridge School District 127-5: $1,015,711
- Evergreen Park Community High School District 231: $23,881
- Evergreen Park Elementary School District 124: $69,843
- North Palos School District 117: $1,019,269
- Palos Community School Dist.118 ($13,973)
- Palos Heights Community School Dist. 118 ($53,663)
- Worth School District 127: $23,281
The Fiscal Year 2026 budget invested $300 million in new funding into students’ success through the evidence-based funding model.
For more information on the FY 26 evidence-based funding distribution, visit the Illinois State Board of Education.
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