CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (WCIA) — Turmoil in the Champaign School Board is spilling over to Springfield.

State Senator Chapin Rose (R-Mahomet) is weighing in on the situation. He said conflicts between board members and the district are becoming a black eye for the area. Rose reached out to the state's superintendent asking for help to bring board members together.

Now, he's worried about what the embattled district could mean for the community.

"I mean, if you are a Carle, or OSF, or Christie Clinic trying to recruit a physician, the first thing you're going to do if they have kids is do a search for C-U schools," Rose said.

He said the results that search would return would be unfavorable for Champaign schools.

It's not very often a state senator gets involved with a school board's inner workings, but Rose had been reading about frustrations within the district. He decided to reach out to the State Board of Education's Superintendent Tony Sanders about a month ago.

"You maybe just pick up the phone and suggest mediation for this board, maybe organize some facilitators to come down and have a sit-down, and try to put Humpty-Dumpty back together again," Rose said.

Two board members had just resigned because of the turmoil. Rose said Sanders reached out to the district to bring in mediation. The only problem is, some board members knew nothing about this offering.

One of them, Betsy Holder, said at Monday’s board meeting she heard it second-hand from Rose.

"I did not personally hear of anything about that until I heard it on the radio,” Holder said, “and I guess I'm looking for clarification."

Superintendent Shelia Boozer said at the meeting she had talked to Sanders but said she would be open to mediators after the two vacancies on the board were filled.

"[Sanders] offered information on IASB to come down once again to work with our board," Boozer said. "I'm quite tired of being accused of things that I have not said nor done by my bosses."

Two board members have said they want the regional superintendent to fill the empty spots. Rose wishes they would have taken the outside help earlier.

"That is beyond irritating. It is beyond concerning,” he said. “You know, I'm not sure how far that offer was conveyed, if at all, to any of the board members."

WCIA reached out to both the State Board of Education and Champaign School District, but neither responded in time for this story.

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A lot of questions this evening after the abrupt resignation of the Marion High School principal.

Turmoil in the Champaign School Board is spilling over to Springfield.

The secretary of state’s downtown driver services facility is pictured in Chicago. (Capitol News Illinois photo by Andrew Adams)

Secretary of state office continues offering more online services

By ALEX ABBEDUTO 
Capitol News Illinois
abbeduto@capitolnewsillinois.com

Illinoisans who need a notary public can now access those services online through a new “E-Notary” portal launched by the secretary of state’s office.

This process is one of the latest initiatives of Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias’ ongoing effort to modernize the office and its services.

Notaries are state-appointed officials who administer oaths, certify documents and act as witnesses to document signings for things like affidavits and bills of sale.  Until now, notary services could be performed remotely so long as the parties involved were in Illinois and the notary physically signed and sealed the notarized document.

Now, the process can occur fully online through one of 12 notarization service providers listed on the Illinois secretary of state’s website, ilsos.gov. All parties can now participate remotely and notaries are allowed to use electronic signatures and seals. Individuals using e-notary services must have a valid ID and access to a device supporting audio-video communication.

The office is also in the process of moving other functions online, including by creating an electronic lien and title system allowing drivers to manage vehicle titles online instead of through the mail. That system is slated for rollout this summer, according to a “modernization report” published by the secretary of state’s office last week.

Illinoisans can already file incorporation and court of claims documents, access business service and lobbyist databases, search for jobs and locate archived records through the office’s updated website.

The office rolled out “Skip-the-Line” and “Do-it-Online” initiatives last year in an effort to unclog DMV services by extending facility hours and online services and allowing Illinoisans to schedule appointments online.

Alexi Giannoulias announces updates to his “Skip-the-Line” program in July 2023. That program moved driver services to either an appointment-based system or online. (Capitol News Illinois photo by Andrew Adams)

Read more: State driver services facilities to require appointments in more than 40 locations | As online DMV services plagued by no-shows, secretary of state launches changes

More than 1.5 million appointments have been scheduled since the “Skip-the-Line” initiative was rolled out last fall, according to the office’s modernization report. The state has also opened four senior-only facilities in Bridgeview, Calumet Park, Evanston and Westchester.

The office is also going to start rolling out kiosks that would allow Illinoisans to renew their licenses, IDs and vehicle registrations at various community institutions, like libraries and grocery stores.

Giannoulias said they will start with 10 locations – including one on the second floor of the state Capitol – and “hopefully” expand to 150 within a year.

The report also indicates the office is cross-training over 2,000 DMV staff on all offered services to minimize the number of different people a customer might need to speak to during a visit.

Capitol News Illinois is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news service covering state government. It is distributed to hundreds of print and broadcast outlets statewide. It is funded primarily by the Illinois Press Foundation and the Robert R. McCormick Foundation, along with major contributions from the Illinois Broadcasters Foundation and Southern Illinois Editorial Association.