Regular readers know that Illinois schools have been taken for quite a ride this year. It started back in February when Gov. Quinn decided to use $2 billion in stimulus money to plug the state budget deficit -- despite the fact the sum was earmarked for education. To make matters worse, Quinn's proposed budget included the smallest increase in general state aid in more than a decade. But as James Meeks' tax plan (HB 174) gained some momentum in late March, education officials remained optimistic that they might see a desperately-needed income tax increase and a rejiggering of the inequitable school funding formula. They were ultimately left disappointed, however, when the House buried the measure, which could have generated an extra $4 billion for schools each year beginning in 2011.  To add insult to injury, the stop-gap budget passed by the General Assembly last week further decreased the meager hike in state aid Quinn proposed in the spring (the increase in per-pupil spending was lowered to $160, as compared to an increase of $225 in FY 2009).

The result? The Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) met this morning to decide how to fund $900 million worth of programs on a $511 million appropriation.

ISBE spokesperson Mary Fergus tells us the board faced some "tough decisions" in trimming $389 million from this year's already-lean budget. The largest of the cuts, which ultimately passed this afternoon, is a 32 percent ($123 million) reduction in the state's nationally-recognized early childhood education programs.  That's sure to cause a good deal of pain over the coming year, particularly for low-income families who rely on universal preschool programs. In his weekly announcement (PDF) Supt. Chris Koch acknowledged as much:

Unfortunately, the remainder of the budget is similar to the “50 percent budget” previously passed by the General Assembly and vetoed by the Governor. After GSA [general state aid] and MCATS [mandated categorical spending], the budget includes only slightly more than $500 million for all of our other educational programs. This will mean that many very good programs will have to be substantially reduced or cut altogether [...]

We know each of these programs is about people. They are not just numbers on pieces of paper. In many cases, these programs can be life changing for participants and that's what makes this so difficult.

In all, $272 million worth of grant-funded initiatives -- including after-school programs, gifted education, and rural technology instruction -- were wiped out. And funding for mental health services and mentoring for principals, teachers, and aspiring educators (such as the Grow Your Own program) were either halved or eliminated all together.

The complete list of cuts that went before the board are available here (PDF). With the prospect of having to cut billions more just to make ends meet in FY 2011,  Jesse Ruiz, chairman of the state board of education, told the Tribune this round will seem relatively painless. "Next year will be catastrophic," he said.

UPDATE: The Ounce of Prevention Fund estimates that  the early childhood education cuts will eliminate preschool for 30,000 this fall. More from a statement:

“It is unconscionable that Illinois lawmakers have put politics before the most vulnerable children in our state,”said Diana Rauner, Executive Director of the Ounce of Prevention Fund. “Without high-quality early childhood programs, low-income children will arrive at kindergarten unprepared and will struggle throughout their school years to catch up. The state will ultimately pay more for costly remedial education later by cutting preschool programs today.” [...]

The Ounce is calling on state legislators to go back to Springfield to create a budget that includes increased revenue to adequately fund early childhood programs.