DON’T BLAME STUDENTS
Marc Magliari wrote a scathing letter lamenting the public media landscape in our state and decided to blame the tuition-paying students at University of Illinois Springfield for not shouldering the bill (“Letters to the editor,” March 7). Of course, he leaves out that many other public media outlets have consolidated in recent years, often for similar reasons. Quincy University rolled off its public radio station to St. Louis Public Media not too long ago – would he call that school a failure?
His lamentations regarding public media are correct, but the target of his ire should be the Statehouse. The chancellor he criticizes successfully navigated the global pandemic, stabilizing student enrollment. Why is this important? There are bonds for facilities that must be paid for with student fees. Tuition dollars cannot go to parking lots, housing units, recreational facilities and the student union. An extended drop in student enrollment would have resulted in automatic doubling of student fees, further eroding student enrollment. The university administration, including this so-called “temp” (Chancellor Karen Whitney), worked fast to stabilize student enrollment. They succeeded.
While tuition dollars cannot be used for our own student services, the legislature conveniently never forbade them from being used to finance public items they fail to finance themselves. While many states have robust, state-funded public media, the Illinois General Assembly has decided to throw pennies at it and then force radio stations to piggyback off student tuition dollars as a “public service.” Students have to vote to charge themselves fees for services that enrich their experience, but tuition can be syphoned away from academics and used for public services. What an Illinois thing to do!
I’ve given to WUIS for many years and I support its mission. Philosophically, however, I cannot support my tuition dollars being used in this way. If the public wants this service, call your lawmakers and demand proper funding. Better yet, demand a statewide network that is worthy of the brand NPR Illinois. Many of these public media outlets in neighboring states also provide gavel-to-gavel coverage of their legislatures.
I also understand the frustration with the public media situation in our state. But it’s not due to the 5,000 or so students at UIS saying, “Enough.” It comes from the Illinois General Assembly shifting the burden and creating what could be construed as an unfunded mandate. Blaming students for not wanting their tuition dollars to pay for a public service is like blaming school teachers for systemic poverty. Look a little deeper and you’ll find the real culprits.
Steven Simpson-Black
Springfield
NO EASY WAY IN
Your article “Revitalizing Route 66” (March 7) notes that the recently completed master plan for Ninth Street and Peoria Road proposes the creation of a Route 66 Welcome Center on Peoria Road: “This location, along Route 66 and near the Route 66 Experience at the Illinois State Fairgrounds, would be the perfect place for it.”Â
Curious about this new Route 66 Experience, I went out to take a look. The only problem is that there is no entrance to the exhibit from Peoria Road. It is behind a chain-link fence with no gate and no signs telling one how to get inside. I got to it only by wandering through various parking lots on the fairgrounds. Once there, however, I found it to be quite creative and delightful, with recreated classic neon signs and jam packed with Illinois Route 66 history.
Before we invest in a Route 66 Welcome Center or a Route 66 sculpture or a Route 66-themed park and splash pad, we should make the Route 66 attraction we already have accessible from Route 66 by putting in an entrance to it from Peoria Road.
William Crook Jr.
Springfield
FIX THE ROADS
When is the city of Springfield going to start rebuilding all of our city streets? They are hideous. We already pay high gas prices and high vehicle taxes and registration. If a high-volume event comes to town, we gouge every penny from our out-of-town visitors from higher gas prices all the way to the hotels, and yet we cannot fix these roads. We pay that money every single day out of our pockets, stop hoarding it for some stupid pet projects.
Sharlett Ryan
Springfield
This article appears in Spring Guide 2024.
