Education is an area of public policy that has a broad impact on the very structure of our society, and that means a great deal to Daniel personally – he's spent over a decade in the classroom, teaching students of all ages.

These times of budget austerity are an opportunity to seek creative solutions to the complex problems surrounding education policy.  Over the next two months, Daniel will foster a brainstorming session in our community about creative, low-cost solutions to the many challenges we face. Please start the community discussion by clicking below to send him your questions and ideas. Thank you for your time and input!

Daniel meets thousands of 17th District residents during the course of his door to door walks.  This is the first of a series of profiles of people in our community who first got to know Daniel at their doors.

I met Daniel when he knocked on my door on a hot, humid day in July 2008. That was the first time someone running for office had come to my home to talk to me personally. I vented all my frustrations—for 45 minutes! He really valued my ideas, was attentive and respectful. I support Daniel because he is passionate and intelligent. He can bring fresh ideas and change to Springfield and is not influenced by corrupt politics. Some friends and I were recently helping him stuff envelopes for a mailing, and as we were working, Daniel told us about the people who the letters were going to. He'd say, 'Oh, that person moved, or "that person passed away.'" He remembered 90 percent of the people on the address labels. I was amazed: He met them going door to door, and he remembered just about everyone."

We are blessed to live in a top-quality school district. Teachers value the children and want them to fulfill their potential. The education is so positive; it's not just about achieving a certain score but about developing a child's creativity. But I think there is a problem with math education. When our young relatives come from Korea, they are two or three years more advanced in math than our kids who are in the same grade. They have more school days, and they drill them and work them hard. It's a global market, and our children will have to compete internationally. I am afraid they won't find it easy.

The inequity in education funding in Illinois is troubling. As a social worker with the YWCA of Metropolitan Chicago, I am very aware of how privileged our children are. Communities all over the state that have lower property values have fewer dollars for their local schools. In Wilmette, the school districts are among the best in the state. But it is unfair. If you live in a poor neighborhood, the children don't have an equal start. They are already economically disadvantaged; they shouldn't also be at an educational disadvantage. We need to decrease the gap.

Gina Lee and her husband, Jay, left Korea 25 years ago for the U.S. and its educational and economic opportunities. They earned advanced degrees at the University of Wisconsin in Madison—Gina an MSW and Jay a Ph.D. in chemistry—and 12 years ago chose to settle in Wilmette because of its highly rated schools. They have two daughters: Steffi, 23, graduated from Cornell University and plans to go to medical school. Rebecca, 10, attends Romona Elementary School. Education is one of Gina's primary concerns.