Prairie State Wire

At least 35 of Illinois' 177 state legislators attended private high schools, including two of four caucus leaders.

That's according to a survey of legislator education histories by Prairie State Wire.

The private high school graduates include ten Republicans and 25 Democrats, 15 of whom were raised in the City of Chicago.

Among the 13 state senators with private high school diplomas, eight attended schools in the Chicago Catholic League.

They include St. Ignatius graduate, Senate President Don Harmon (D-Oak Park) and Senate Minority Leader John Curran (R-Downers Grove), who attended Brother Rice in Chicago's Mt. Greenwood neighborhood.

Two Illinois Senate members graduated from Mount Carmel-- State Sen. Robert Peters (D-Hyde Park) and State Sen. Bill Cunningham (D-Beverly)-- and one from St. Rita, newly-elected State Sen. Mike Porfirio (D-Bridgeview).

State Sen. Elgie Sims (D-Chatham) attended Quigley South Seminary, which closed in 1990, and State Sen. Meg Loughran Cappel (D-Crest Hill) attended Providence Catholic in New Lenox. 

State Sen. Mike Simmons (D-Edgewater) attended Catholic grammar school and St. Ignatius on scholarship; fellow North Side State Senator Sara Feigenholtz (D-Lake View) is a graduate of Ida Crown Jewish Academy in Skokie, where tuition is currently $26,725 per year.

IL State Rep. Noreen Hammond (D-Macomb), formerly Noreen Keating, attended Nazareth Academy LaGrange Park, IL.

The son of former Illinois Senate President Emil Jones, State Sen. Emil Jones, III was raised in the Roseland area. But he spurned Fenger High School, just blocks from his home, to attend a private, Christian high school ten miles west in southwest suburban Palos Heights.

Jones graduated from Chicago Christian, as did State Rep. Tim Ozinga (R-Mokena). Tuition there was $14,280 for the 2022-23 school year.

House Speaker Emanuel "Chris" Welch (D-Westchester) grew up in Hillside and attended public Proviso West High School. But he isn't letting his kids attend public schools; they are students at Timothy Christian in Elmhurst.

Until just recently, the House had a Mount Carmel graduate-- Democrat Lamont J. Robinson, Jr., who just resigned to join the Chicago City Council. It also has one from St. Ignatius, State Rep. Kelly Burke (D-Evergreen Park), who moonlights as the mayor of Evergreen Park.

State Rep. LaShawn Ford (D-Austin) attended Our Lady Help of Christians Catholic grammar school in Austin and Weber Catholic H.S. in Cragin, on the city's Northwest side. Both are now closed.

Ford briefly attended Niles College Seminary at Loyola University, and contemplated becoming a priest.

State Rep. Curtis J. Tarver, II (D-Kenwood) attended Marian Catholic High School in Chicago Heights and his father, Curtis J. Tarver, attended now-closed Mendel Catholic in Roseland, the alma mater of Chicago founder and platinum award winning singer Peter Cetera.

Other House members with private high school diplomas include State Rep. Michelle Mussman (D-Schaumburg), who attended Purcell Marian Catholic in Cincinnati, Ohio, State Rep. and Decatur St. Teresa graduate Sue Scherer (D-Decatur), State Rep. and Kankakee Bishop McNamara graduate Jackie Haas (R-Momence) and State Rep. Norine Hammond (R-Macomb), a native of west suburban Berwyn and graduate of Nazareth Academy in La Grange Park.

Recently-retired Illinois House leaders, Democrat House Speaker Michael Madigan (St. Ignatius) and House Minority Leader Jim Durkin (Fenwick H.S.) were also private school graduates.

$42,510 per year

State Reps Anne Stava-Murray (D-Naperville) and Justin Slaughter (D-Washington Heights) boast the most expensive K-12 educations in the Illinois General Assembly.

Stava-Murray attended the Avery Coonley School in Downers Grove-- currently $30,550 per year for grades 5-8-- before moving to Benet Academy in Lisle for high school, which runs a relatively affordable $14,250.

Slaughter attended the University of Chicago Lab School-- where tuition ramps from $38,202 to $42,510 ---for grammar school and high school-- before receiving an athletic scholarship to University of Chicago.

President Barack Obama's daughters both attended the Lab School, known as "U-High."

Many legislators with private school educations continue to stay involved with private schools.

State Rep. Dave Vella (D-Rockford) attended Rockford Boylan Catholic High School and is currently on the board of the private Keith Country Day School, where high school tuition is $11,500. 

State. Rep. Amy Elik (D-Edwardsville) is a graduate of Alton Marquette Catholic and is an existing board member at St. Mary's Catholic School in Edwardsville.

State Rep. Mike Marron (D-Fithian) recently emceed a "Save Schlarman" event in Danville, seeking to rally alumni of the Catholic school to help it thrive.

State Rep. Fred Crespo (D-Hoffman Estates) grew up and attended schools in Puerto Rico. He sent his children to St. Hubert Catholic School in Schaumburg, where he volunteered as a track coach.

State Rep. Joe Sosnowski (D-Rockford) grew up in West Chicago and attended public schools. But he currently works as the director of institutional advancement for Rockford Christian schools.

Illinois legislators aren't the only state leaders who attended private schools.

Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker was in the class of 1982 at Milton Academy, in Milton, Mass. Tuition at the school is $64,800 per year.

Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul is a University of Chicago Lab School graduate. 

Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias attended the Latin School of Chicago in Lincoln Park, where tuition is $41,370. 

Gov. Pritzker and former Gov. Bruce Rauner both sent their children to Latin.

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Which Illinois state legislators attended private high schools?

At least 35 of Illinois' 177 state represenatives and senators attended a private high school, according to a review of records by Prairie State Wire.

Name	Chamber	District	Party	High School
Anne Stava-Murray	House	Naperville	D	Benet Academy
Jackie Haas	House	Kankakee	R	Bishop McNamara
Dave Vella	House	Rockford	D	Boylan Catholic
John F. Curran	Senate	Downers Grove	R	Brother Rice
Tim Ozinga	House	Mokena	R	Chicago Christian
Emil Jones, III	Senate	Chicago	D	Chicago Christian
Michael T. Marron	House	Fithian	R	Danville Schlarman Catholic
Neil Anderson	Senate	Rock Island	R	Davenport Assumption
Sue Scherer	House	Decatur	D	Decatur St. Teresa
Jaime M. Andrade, Jr.	House	Chicago	D	Gordon Tech Catholic
Sara Feigenholtz	Senate	Chicago	D	Ida Crown Jewish Academy
Lawrence "Larry" Walsh, Jr.	House	Elwood	D	Joliet Catholic Academy
Robert F. Martwick	Senate	Chicago	D	Loyola Academy
Curtis J. Tarver, II	House	Chicago	D	Marian Catholic
Laura M. Murphy	Senate	Park Ridge	D	Marillac
Amy Elik	House	East Alton	R	Marquette Catholic
Mary Gill	House	Chicago	D	Mother McAuley
Bill Cunningham	Senate	Chicago	D	Mount Carmel
Robert Peters	Senate	Chicago	D	Mount Carmel
Lamont J. Robinson, Jr.	House	Chicago	D	Mount Carmel
Norine K. Hammond	House	Macomb	R	Nazareth Academy
Bradley Fritts	House	Dixon	R	Newman Central Catholic
Meg Loughran Cappel	Senate	Crest Hill	D	Providence Catholic
Michelle Mussman	House	Schaumburg	D	Purcell Marian Catholic (OH)
Elgie R. Sims, Jr.	Senate	Chicago	D	Quigley South
Michael J. Coffey, Jr.	House	Springfield	R	Sacred Heart-Griffin
Kelly M. Burke	House	Evergreen Park	D	St. Ignatius
Mike Simmons	Senate	Chicago	D	St. Ignatius
Don Harmon	Senate	Oak Park	D	St. Ignatius
Tom Weber	House	Lake Villa	R	St. John's Military Academy
Michael J. Kelly	House	Chicago	D	St. Patrick
Martin J. Moylan	House	Des Plaines	D	St. Philip
Mike Porfirio	Senate	Bridgeview	D	St. Rita
Justin Slaughter	House	Chicago	D	Univ. of Chicago Lab School
La Shawn K. Ford	House	Chicago	D	Weber Catholic

Sources: Public records, published biographies and media reports