ISDC
  • Home
  • Senators
    • Alphabetical
    • Committees
    • Leadership
    • Find My Senator
  • Caucus News
    • ILBC Committee Roundup
    • Subscribe
    • Majority Report
  • Issues
    • Agriculture
    • Budget
    • Business
    • Criminal Law
    • Diabetes
    • Economic Development
    • Education
    • Environment
    • Ethics
    • Health
    • Higher Education
    • Law Enforcement
    • Seniors
    • Transportation
    • Veterans
  • Multimedia
    • Monthly Minute
    • Photo of the Day
    • Sound of the State
  • Resources
    • Bills / Resolutions
    • Fact Sheets
    • For Educators
    • I Like Illinois
    • Illinois Compiled Statutes
    • Illinois General Assembly
    • Internships
    • Media Guidelines
    • NCSL
    • Senate Schedule
  • About the Senate
  • Contact Us
    • How to contact a Senator
    • Employment
    • Submit Feedback
  • ILBC Pillars
    • Pillar 1
    • Pillar 2
    • Pillar 3
    • Pillar 4
  • COVID-19

Halpin pleased with Governor support to allow community colleges to award bachelor’s degrees

Details
Category: Senator Mike Halpin News
Tuesday, March 04, 2025 06:05 PM
  • Community College Students
  • Halpin
  • SB 2482

Halpin-01

SPRINGFIELD – This week, Governor Pritzker joined students and leadership from Lewis and Clark Community College to propose expanding access to four-year degrees at community colleges, a similar proposal that State Senator Mike Halpin has introduced in the Senate.

“Although our public universities provide quality education and paths to successful careers, there remain gaps in access and affordability. Community colleges represent a core pillar of Illinois’ higher education system and this bill will allow them to close these gaps and meet the needs of our undergraduate students,” said Halpin (D-Rock Island). “Giving community college students the opportunity to pursue a bachelor’s degree will provide a more affordable, targeted and community-based path to a fulfilling career. ​This legislation represents a commitment to our state’s higher education institutions and students.”

Read more: Halpin pleased with Governor support to allow community colleges to award bachelor’s degrees

Halpin highlights Quad Cities workforce development analysis

Details
Category: Senator Mike Halpin News
Tuesday, January 21, 2025 09:05 AM
  • Workforce Development
  • Halpin
  • Quad Cities
  • Illinois Board of Higher Education

Senator Halpin

ROCK ISLAND – State Senator Mike Halpin responded to the Illinois Board of Higher Education’s Quad Cities Workforce Analysis Report, which provided both a diagnosis of the region’s challenges, as well as potential solutions for community organizations and legislators to consider.

“Through the education and workforce analysis, we have a clearer vision of the needs and goals to better serve the residents in the Quad Cities,” said Halpin (D-Rock Island). “By being able to see where resources are needed to succeed, we are now able to continue leading the charge in investing into the future of our community.”

The report combines a broad spectrum of data examining workforce, economic and educational trends in the region. The report found that there are shortages in high-demand sectors, including manufacturing, health care, information technology and transportation. Disparities in educational attainment and workforce participation across gender, race and ethnicity represent a challenge for the region.

Read more: Halpin highlights Quad Cities workforce development analysis

Halpin announces Health Equity Zone pilot project grant coming to McDonough County

Details
Category: Senator Mike Halpin News
Tuesday, January 07, 2025 05:40 PM
  • Health Equity Zone Pilot Projects
  • Western Illinois

halpin 010725ROCK ISLAND – State Senator Mike Halpin announced Tuesday that Henderson Health Center is set to receive over $110,000 through the Health Equity Zone Pilot Projects pilot program.

“Addressing health inequities within our community continues to be a priority. Everyone deserves to have access to compassionate, quality, and accessible health care,” said Halpin (D-Rock Island). “At a time when corporate health insurance continues to fail regular people in western Illinois, grants such as the Health Equity Zone pilot program play an integral role in bolstering access to care.”

Read more: Halpin announces Health Equity Zone pilot project grant coming to McDonough County

Halpin passes law with assistance from Rock Island probation officer

Details
Category: Senator Mike Halpin News
Wednesday, August 14, 2024 09:03 AM
  • Halpin
  • Community-based Corrections
  • SB3353

HalpinSPRINGFIELD – State Senator Mike Halpin’s measure to create a Community-Based Corrections Task Force to research the benefits of specialty courts and community-based correctional centers was signed into law on Friday.

“Listening to the experts and community residents is how we create common-sense laws that are fair to everyone,” said Halpin (D-Rock Island). “This task force will show us how folks struggling with mental illness or addiction interact with our criminal justice system so we can achieve better outcomes for these individuals while keeping our communities safe.”

Halpin’s law creates a task force to discuss benefits of community-based correctional facilities and specialty courts in Illinois. Community-based correctional centers are alternatives to prison that provide a different way for individuals who are convicted of crimes to be rehabilitated back into society without having to be incarcerated. One alternative to traditional corrections is the use of specialty courts, also known as problem-solving courts. These courts are designed to lead people out of a cycle with the justice system and into treatment programs.

Read more: Halpin passes law with assistance from Rock Island probation officer

Specialty Air Force license plates for combat vets passes thanks to Halpin

Details
Category: Senator Mike Halpin News
Thursday, May 16, 2024 09:09 AM
  • License Plates
  • Halpin
  • HB 4108
  • Air Force Combat Action Medal

Halpin.Airforce1SPRINGFIELD – State Senator Mike Halpin advanced a measure through the Illinois Senate to create specialty Air Force Combat Action Medal license plates. 

“This is a way for us to thank Air Force veterans for their service to our country,” said Halpin (D-Rock Island). “I was proud to see this measure pass with bipartisan support.”

Currently, the Air Force is the only branch of the military that does not have a license plate for combat veterans. The Illinois Secretary of State is authorized to issue Combat Action Ribbon license plates to members of the Navy, Coast Guard and Marine Corps, and Combat Action Badge license plates to special groups within the Army.

Halpin’s measure would allow the Secretary of State to issue Air Force Combat Action Medal license plates to Air Force veterans who were awarded the Air Force Combat Action Medal.

House Bill 4108 passed the Illinois Senate on Wednesday and heads to the governor’s desk.

Halpin creates specialty Air Force license plate for combat vets

Details
Category: Senator Mike Halpin News
Tuesday, April 30, 2024 03:48 PM
  • License Plates
  • Halpin
  • HB 4108
  • Air Force Combat Action Medal

HalpinAirforceSPRINGFIELD – State Senator Mike Halpin advanced a measure to create specialty Air Force Combat Action Medal license plates. 

“We are simply acknowledging the sacrifice these combat veterans made for our country,” said Halpin (D-Rock Island). “This move is a small way for us to give Air Force veterans the recognition they deserve.”

Currently, the Air Force is the only branch of the military that does not have a license plate for combat veterans. The Illinois Secretary of State is authorized to issue Combat Action Ribbon license plates to members of the Navy, Coast Guard and Marine Corps, and Combat Action Badge license plates to special groups within the Army.

Read more: Halpin creates specialty Air Force license plate for combat vets

Halpin helps secure funding to address nursing shortage

Details
Category: Senator Mike Halpin News
Thursday, March 14, 2024 03:30 PM
  • IBHE
  • Halpin
  • Nursing Shortage
  • Carl Sandburg College

halpin 031424ROCK ISLAND – State Senator Mike Halpin helped secure nearly $100,000 in funding heading to Carl Sandburg College to help increase the number of professional nurses in Illinois.

“If we want better health care access, we have to make strategic investments in the health care workforce,” said Halpin (D-Rock Island). “There is a pressing need for professional nurses in hospitals and medical centers across Western Illinois. That’s why it’s so critical we actually try to solve the issue, and not just sit on our hands.”

The Illinois Board of Higher Education awarded a total of $96,401 through a nursing school grant to Carl Sandburg College. The grant was awarded through a competitive application process where institutions submitted enrollment, retention, completion and job placement rates of their students during a multi-year period and how grant funds would be used to enhance their program’s efforts to close equity gaps and improve student success.

Read more: Halpin helps secure funding to address nursing shortage

Halpin advances measure with help from Rock Island probation officer

Details
Category: Senator Mike Halpin News
Thursday, March 07, 2024 11:50 AM
  • Halpin
  • Community-based Corrections
  • SB3353

halpin 030724ROCK ISLAND – State Senator Mike Halpin advanced a measure to create a Community-Based Corrections Task Force that would research the benefits of specialty courts, like drug court and detention alternatives, and the creation of a community-based correctional facility.

“In Springfield, there are many issues that need expert review and recommendations,” said Halpin (D-Rock Island). “This task force brings on-the-ground expertise as to how folks with mental illness or addiction interact with our criminal justice system so we can achieve better outcomes for these individuals while keeping our communities safe.”

The goal of Halpin’s measure is to discuss the benefits of community-based correctional facilities and specialty courts in Illinois. Community-based correctional centers are alternatives to prison that provide a different way for individuals who are convicted of crimes to be rehabilitated back into society without having to be incarcerated. One alternative to traditional corrections is the use of specialty courts, also known as problem-solving courts. These courts are designed to lead people out of a cycle with the justice system and into treatment programs.

Read more: Halpin advances measure with help from Rock Island probation officer

More Articles …

  1. Halpin passes resolution to name February as CTE Month in Illinois
  2. Halpin announces completion of I-280 Bridge
  3. Halpin recognizes October as College Changes Everything Month
  4. New law will give more students access to Illinois universities
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • 5

Page 2 of 5

Follow ILSenDems

Facebook Instagram Twitter YouTube

Sign up for the Majority Report

Laws Going Into Effect 2025

Employment Opportunities

Find Your Senator

Senate Schedule

Bills & Resolutions

SPRINGFIELD OFFICE

phone(217) 782-2728

phone309 State House
Springfield, IL 62706

Senate Floor, Illinois State Capitol, Springfield, IL

Senate President Don Harmon © 2025 Illinois Senate Democratic Caucus
FacebookInstagramTwitterYouTube
CHICAGO OFFICE

phone(312) 814-2075

phone160 N. LaSalle St., Ste. 720
Chicago, IL 60601