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State Reports                 

Items listed under "State Documents" have been received by the Documents Unit, Illinois State Library, Springfield, and are usually available from public libraries in the state through interlibrary loan. Issuing agencies may have copies available. For items listed under "Other Reports." write to the publisher as noted.

State Documents

• Vision 2000: Strategic Plan for the Illinois Community College System, Illinois Community College Board, 509 S. Sixth, Suite 400, Springfield 62701-1874 (December 1993), 53 pp.

This strategic plan for the state's system of 49 community colleges is an ambitious step in the process of defining the schools' role in the 21st century, a role that may be quite different from the one they have fulfilled so well in the past. The plan grew out of a series of meetings, including 13 town meetings that were held in May and June 1993. In addition to a vision statement and a mission statement, the plan offers five themes with goals, objectives and strategies for each. These themes are: teaching/learning; student access and opportunity; accountability; community; and resources. The next, more crucial (and perhaps more difficult) step will be the implementation of the plan at the local level.

• Comprehensive Housing Affordability Strategy (CHAS): FFY 1994-1998, Illinois Housing Development Authority, 401 N. Michigan, Suite 900, Chicago 60611 (December 1993), 306 pp.

This massive report, which identifies the state's overall needs for affordable and supportive housing for low-income households, is divided into three main sections: a state profile (including market and inventory characteristics, a needs assessment and discussion of available resources), a five-year strategy and an annual plan. In addition to this five-year report, the Illinois Housing Development Authority has prepared a separate 115-page regional data supplement as well as its annual performance report for FFY 1993 (157 pp.), both of which are available from the above address.

Other Reports

• Tell Me a Story: Memories of early life around the coal fields of Illinois, Coal Research Center, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale 62901 (1992), 58 pp.

The 17 essays collected in this pamphlet were chosen from among 51 entries in a contest for senior citizens that asked for stories about how coal and coal mining had affected their lives. The stories are divided into two sections: the first is about mines and the miners, the second deals with home life and the woman's role. An introduction to the collection offers interesting historical information about coal mining in this state. The collection would be a wonderful teaching tool for a class in writing, social studies or history. It could also be the basis for an interesting discussion in a reading group. And for anyone who simply enjoys reading, each story is a superb read.

• Rural Illinois Demographic and Economic Trends, Illinois Institute for Rural Affairs, Western Illinois University, 518 Stipes Hall, Macomb 61455 (November 1993), 120pp.

The data presented in this handbook update and expand the analyses contained in A Profile of Conditions and Trends in Rural Illinois, which was published in 1990. Data are presented for population, income, employment, earnings, human and financial resources, local government finance, quality of life and agriculture. In each case, data comparisons are presented for all Illinois counties as well as by region, and a brief text provides background information and explanations for the data. Information using Labor Market Areas based on 1980 census data is also presented.

• Jobs and Housing: A Study of the Relationship Between Attainable Housing and Employment Opportunities in the Chicago Metropolitan Region, The Greater Chica-goland Housing Foundation, 635 Butterfield Road, Suite 100, Oak Brook Terrace 60181 (November 1993), 68 pp.

Following up on a statewide housing conference held in late 1992, the Greater Chicagoland Housing Foundation commissioned a study that would determine the impact the cost of housing may have on the retention and expansion of jobs and that would outline possible actions that could be taken to keep the cost of home ownership in the Chicago region competitive. Data collected for the study and information gathered through numerous interviews lead to a series of recommendations and general conclusions, among them: the lack of attainable housing threatens the economic health of the Chicago metropolitan area; jobs and housing cannot be examined without considering issues such as tax policies, transportation and regional land use patterns; and localities need to be assisted in their efforts to improve their supply of attainable housing.

Anna J. Merritt

March 1994/Illinois Issues/35