Turner moves legislation to expand agricultural education for students

SPRINGFIELD- State Senator Doris Turner’s (D-Springfield) plan to add agricultural sciences as a type of course that may be counted towards the requirement for three years of sciences in order to gain admission to an Illinois public university passed the Senate Higher Education Committee Tuesday.

“The study of agriculture is vitally important, and our curricula should reflect that,” said Senator Turner. “The current exclusion as an option for a science course for admission is a huge disservice to students who plan to one day study and/or work in the field.”

Currently, the minimum requirements to gain admission to state universities include the completion of at least 15 units of high school coursework in the following subjects: English, Social studies, Mathematics, (Laboratory) Sciences and electives in either foreign language, music, vocational education, or art.

Currently, some colleges may accept agricultural science under the auspice of a "science course" but not all are doing so. This legislation will add some conformity to the available options.

“This is simply an effort to highlight the importance of agricultural science,” Turner said. “Students should feel confident and passionate about their career choice when choosing to study multidisciplinary sciences.”

The measure passed out of the Senate Higher Education Committee and moves to the Senate for further consideration.

NEW: District Office Hours availble

State Senator Doris Turner (D-Springfield) has new district office hours available to the public. Please visit one of the office locations below or call a district advisor for more imformation.

Decatur Office Hours 

(Monday - Thursday)  - 10:00 a.m. - 3:30 p.m. 

(Friday) - 10:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. (except for traveling office days) 

Decatur Office 

1210 S. Jasper St. Decatur, IL 62321 

Phone: 217-706-5311

Christian County Traveling Office Hours 

Christian County Traveling Office Hours (2^nd & 4^th Friday of each month)  

(Friday) - 9:00 a.m. - noon

Christian County Traveling Office  

115 N Main St, Taylorville, IL 62568 - (Second Floor, Directly Next to Council Chambers). 

Carlinville Office Hours

Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday 8:00 a.m. -4:30 p.m. (with lunch) from 12 p.m. – 1:00 p.m. 

Carlinville Office  

130 East Main Street Suit B 

Phone: 217-854-4502 

Traveling Office Hours for Montgomery & Madison Counties 
2^nd and 4^th Wednesdays of every month: 

9:00 a.m. – noon: Litchfield City Hall Council Chambers - 120 E. Ryder St., Litchfield, IL 62056 (Montgomery)
1:00 p.m. -4:00 p.m.: Worden Village Hall Council Chambers- 115 W. Hall St., Worden, IL 62097 (Madison)

New District Office Hours Available for Decatur and Carlinville

Decatur Office:

District Advisor: Karl Coleman

Decatur Office address: 1210 S. Jasper St. Decatur Illinois 62521

Contact Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Traveling Office Hours: 

(9 a.m. – noon) every other Friday beginning this Friday, March 12.

Carlinville Office:

District Advisor: Brian Zilm

OPENING SOON Carlinville Office address: 130 E. Main St., Suite B, Carlinville, IL 62626

Traveling office hours:
First and third Wednesday located at Carlinville City Hall, 550 N. Broad (9 a.m.- noon) – Visit this location until the Carlinville office is open

Traveling Officer Hours:

Second and fourth Wednesday of every month: Litchfield City Hall (9a.m.- noon), and Worden City Hall (1 p.m. – 4 p.m.)

Contact email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Turner visits Clinton Power Station to discuss Illinois’ clean energy future

CLINTON – State Senator Doris Turner (D-Springfield) joined traveled to the Clinton Power Station to tour the facility and meet with employees.

 Turner joined State Senator Michael E. Hastings (D-Frankfort), who serves as chair of the Senate Energy and Public Utilities Committee, on this visit.

“The situation in Texas serves as a harsh reminder of what can happen when state government neglects existing energy infrastructure while also failing to innovate. Everyday Texans are still enduring unusually frigid temperatures without access to heat and water. This simply cannot be allowed to happen in Illinois,” Turner said. “I look forward to working to ensure that our state’s energy infrastructure remains state-of-the-art, implement training programs for people transitioning to a job in a new energy sector and protect existing, good-paying jobs Downstate.”

The Clinton Power Station has the ability to generate nearly 1,069 net megawatts, enough electricity to power about 1 million average American homes. The 5,000-acre cooling lake is formed by a dam built at the convergence of Salt Creek and the North Fork of Salt Creek. The station serves as an economic driver for numerous Downstate communities, contributing $13 million in property taxes annually. Clinton also supports 2,100 direct and secondary jobs in Illinois.