NOWLAN ON ILLINOIS

This site is about Illinois, especially its public policies and public finances. The purpose is to provide public officials, editors, academics, and active citizens with both fact and speculation about "the state of the state"--problems, potential, prospects. It contains many features, including articles, ideas completed or in progress, and illustrated graphics by myself and others.

January 2, 02: First Article of the New Year: PURE GOLD
December 27, 2001: ILLINOIS BUDGET-MAKING DONE INSIDE A DARK HOLE
August 19, 2001: OLD STANDBY ISSUES WILL MASK TOUGH CHALLENGES FACING NEXT GOVERNOR
July 6, 2001: Another new article: GUV SHOULD MOVE FROM STATE TO NATIONAL STAGE
July 5, 2001: Two new articles: NEXT FOCUS FOR CHICAGO SCHOOLS MUST BE NEIGHBORHOODS, and SUN SETS ON SOUTHERN ILLINOIS.
May 28, 2001: SMALL TOWNS ON SLOW DIRT ROAD TO INTERNET HIGHWAY. WE DESERVE BETTER; LET'S DEMAND IT

When U.S. senator Terry Sanford was governor of North Carolina, he lamented that "there is no one in the governor's office whose only job is to gaze out the window and brood about the problems of the future." I hope that this site will be a window to look and cause us to think long and deeply.

The features of this site are:

• A collection of writings -- academic papers and opinion essays, by myself and others, now organized by topic. As I expand this section, I would like to emphasize the word "others" I used above. If you have an article or essay on one of the listed topics, or a topic of your own (regarding issues confronting Illinois), please submit it via Email: jnowlan@nidus.com, or use one of the feedback spots on this site. I look forward to hearing from you.
• If you have a need, please check the page describing my public issues consulting practice: Nowlan Research.
• Work in Progress contains my "musings", where I will lay out ideas that are percolating (some will say half-baked) in my noggin. I hope that readers of the site will react, comment, and offer correction to these musings.
• There is Illinois Gossip, which is taken from Rich Miller's "Capitol Fax."
• A collection of links to a number of other Web sites about Illinois policy and public finance. I have begun with sites I am aware of, and I hope that readers will supply me with others so that this can develop into a comprehensive list.
• There is a form for you to give me comments and feedback on this site, issues discussed here, or even my writing style. You can also e-mail your comments to jnowlan@nidus.com.
• Also, if you are interested, Samuel Gove, my colleague at the University of Illinois Institute of Government and Public Affairs, and I have co-authored a new book: Illinois Politics and Government: The Expanding Metropolitan Frontier.
• Finally, for the curious, I have included my biography so that you can learn more about who I am and what I'm doing here.

I invite you to fully use these resources as you see fit, and to come back often.

Sincerely,

Jim Nowlan

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