During yesterday’s budget address by Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker, the Governor proposed increasing public higher education funding by $208 million, which would result in Western Illinois University’s state appropriation increasing by five percent to $52.1 million, upon approval by the Illinois General Assembly. WIU’s current state appropriation is $49.6 million.
“We appreciate Gov. Pritzker’s recommendation to increase appropriations for higher education, and for his ongoing support and commitment to WIU and Illinois higher education,” said WIU President Guiyou Huang. “We extend our sincere thanks to the Governor for recommending a greater investment in public higher education.”
In total, the Governor’s proposed higher education budget of $2.2 billion includes FY22 supplemental funding, an increase of $122 million for Monetary Award Program (MAP) grants, an additional $15 million for behavioral health programming, strengthens early childhood education consortium work, stabilizes College Illinois funding and increases funding for nursing scholarships. The Governor has also recommended re-appropriating all of Western’s capital development funds, including funds for the WIU-Quad Cities campus in Moline and Center for the Performing Arts (CPA) on the Macomb campus.
“Western Illinois University is on a positive trajectory, and I am optimistic about our great institution’s future,” Huang added. “Gov. Pritzker’s FY23 recommendations for higher education provide critical support for our students, and our University remains dedicated to providing an accessible education for all. We will continue our work with the Governor and the General Assembly to advocate for WIU.”
***Report Courtesy of Western Illinois University***
