PLAINFIELD – The Oswegoland Park District Nature Preschool has received an Illinois Schoolyard Habitat Grant to fund a pollinator garden at the school, State Senator Meg Loughran Cappel (D-Plainfield) announced. 

“Kids learn best through hands-on experience, so this grant opportunity is a great way to give them that opportunity,” said Loughran Cappel, who was a teacher prior to becoming senator. “This project will benefit both the kids who get to learn about Illinois habitats and the wildlife species the garden will attract.”

SPRINGFIELD – This week’s lame duck session was a win for students and teachers with the passing of the Black Caucus’s education pillar and legislation restoring collective bargaining rights to Chicago teachers. With her background in education, State Senator Meg Loughran Cappel (D- Shorewood) is especially proud to have been a part of such monumental votes.

“As a mother and former teacher and school board member, I’m proud one of the first votes I cast was to improve our school system for all children,” Loughran Cappel said. “Ensuring every child has the tools they need to success in their education is one of my top priorities.”

The education reform measure, part of the Black Caucus’s plan to improve conditions for minorities and low-income families touches on early childhood, K-12 and higher education. It includes measures to expand high school graduation requirements to include two years of laboratory science and foreign language and to improve curriculums teaching about minority groups and civil rights.

PLAINFIELD – State Senator Meg Loughran Cappel (D- Shorewood) was sworn in to the 102^nd General Assembly as state senator for the 49^th District Wednesday.

“I am excited and humbled to continue representing the 49^th District in Springfield,” Loughran Cappel said. “As we begin the next legislative session, especially in these unprecedented times, I am ready to fight to ensure the people in my community have the resources they need to be healthy and successful.”

Before being elected to the Senate, Loughran Cappel served the community as a special education teacher, a school board member and a volunteer at various organizations throughout Will County.

PLAINFIELD – State Senator Meg Loughran Cappel (D- Shorewood) was proud that one of her first votes was to prohibit school district employees and independent contractors from disciplining children by secluding them in a locked or unlocked space.

“Studies show that isolating students as punishment does not change behavior,” said Loughran Cappel, who served on the Joliet Township High School Board, including its discipline committee. “This legislation will protect our students from the harmful mental health effects of seclusion rooms.”

Specifically, the legislation would ban all isolated seclusion practices and ban the use of physical restraints that could impair a student’s ability to breathe or speak normally. It would still allow for time outs with a trained adult in the room with an unlocked door for therapeutic reasons or to protect the safety of students and staff.