Chambana Sun

Tony Sanders as state superintendent of Education doesn't sit well with State Rep. Brad Halbrook (R-Shelbyville). 

Gov. J.B. Pritzker said there is "no better person to lead the Illinois State Board of Education as we continue to invest in, support, and elevate our students and educators,” than Sanders, which Halbrook does not agree with. 

“All too often it seems Governor Pritzker is more concerned about rewarding political insiders and allies than he is about placing people who have a strong track record of success in key positions within his Administration,” Halbrook said. “Our schools have some real challenges they are facing. We need dynamic leaders to fix these concerns. Elevating an individual who is more a part of the problem than the solution seems counterproductive.” 

He emphasized that “Education should be about helping students learn and get the tools they need for future success." Unfortunately, the education system is "more focused on indoctrination and advancing a political agenda. We need leaders in our school system who will focus on education rather than indoctrination.”

“The vast majority of Illinois students can’t read at grade level," Halbrook said. "The most important aspect of education is being able to read and comprehend written material. People with strong reading comprehension can be successful in virtually every walk of life. Reading is key to not just formal education but self-education that should happen throughout our entire lives. The failure of our schools to teach people to read and comprehend what they read is unacceptable.” 

Sanders was promoted to the state superintendent despite a nine-year tenure at U-46 that Wirepoints pointed out ended with poor outcomes for many students. 

“At U-46, just 1 in every 10 minority students can read at grade level. For all students, it’s just 2 in 10. Sanders has been in the district since 2007 and was named superintendent there in 2014,” Wirepoints’ Ted Dabrowski and John Klingner wrote.

Wirepoints followed up on Facebook noting that "Anybody following Wirepoints’ recent reporting on Illinois’ educational crisis already knows the numbers: statewide just 1 of every 10 black students can read at grade level, and for Hispanics, it’s just 2 in every 10. For white students, it’s a better but still dismal 4 in 10. It’s not an exaggeration to say the state’s public schools are condemning an entire generation of #Illinois children to failure.” And when the governor had the opportunity to name a new superintendent to lead the state, Wirepoints opined Pritzker "could have picked somebody to shake up the system, somebody whose district was actually leading the state in reading and math outcomes. Maybe somebody from outside the system or outside the state. Somebody who would, finally, prioritize merit, achievement and competence. Somebody who would obsess about dramatically raising student scores.” 

But that didn't happen, Wirepoints added. The governor has rather opted for Sanders, whose record at U-46 is dismal. "There, just 1 in every 10 minority students can read at grade level. For all students, it’s just 2 in 10. Sanders has been in the district since 2007 and was named superintendent there in 2014, so he owns those numbers.”

Sanders became the superintendent of Elgin-based School District U-46 in 2014. Elgin U46 is the state’s second-largest school district with over 39,000 students in 40 elementary schools, eight middle schools, and five high schools. He received criticism after several incidents of bullying were publicized. “They are letting the anti-mask children –– they’re calling them –– be assaulted, literally assaulted, and they are congratulating those students,” Elgin parent Joshua Martin told the Kane County Reporter. “She got her hand shaken by the teachers and my child.” U-46 also continued a mask mandate policy after mandatory masking was ruled unconstitutional. That rule would have enacted mandatory masking based on Covid rates in the school district.