SPRINGFIELD— Last year, in Georgia, an elderly man suffering from Alzheimer’s slipped away from his home in the middle of the night and wandered into a nearby neighborhood in the cold only to be shot dead when mistaken for an intruder.

And this year in Texas, an elderly man suffering from Alzheimer’s wandered away from his family’s home in the middle of the night in the midst of freezing temperatures. He was later found dead.

These are the tragic stories state Senator Jennifer Bertino-Tarrant (D-Shorewood) is hoping to prevent through legislation she helped pass out of the Illinois Senate yesterday. Her plan would allow law enforcement, Department on Aging and local law enforcement agencies to create a statewide awareness program to help locate individuals with Alzheimer’s and other cognitive diseases who go missing.

“It is imperative that Illinois has a coordinated plan for locating individuals with Alzheimer’s,” said Bertino-Tarrant. “We have an obligation to get individuals with Alzheimer’s who wander back home safely.”

The Illinois Chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association estimates more than 200,000 Illinois residents have Alzheimer’s disease or related dementias. Nearly one-third of those will likely wander off and the state currently doesn’t have an adequate system to alert the public.

Bertino-Tarrant discussed the need for a coordinated plan earlier this year during a meeting with the Alzheimer Association’s Illinois chapter in Springfield.

“I look forward to working with the Illinois House to bring this system to Illinois,” Bertino-Tarrant said.

SPRINGFIELD— State Senator Jennifer Bertino-Tarrant (D-Shorewood) passed legislation today that would require the Illinois Senate to approve the State Superintendent of Education.

The State Superintendent of Education is the chief education officer in the state and serves as the State Board of Education’s chief executive officer.

Though members of the State Board of Education have to be confirmed by the Senate, the State Superintendent of Education does not have to be confirmed.

Bertino-Tarrant wants that to change.

“My legislation is about transparency and accountability,” Bertino-Tarrant said. “A Senate confirmation process would give the Senate an opportunity to learn about the qualifications, experience and philosophy of the state official making the day-to-day decisions about our local schools.”

Senate Bill 1505 now moves to the Illinois House.

SPRINGFIELD— Last year, 18-year-old Logan Stiner of Ohio died from a caffeine powder overdose.

According to local reports, Stiner was found by his brother, collapsed on the floor of his home. The same day his brother found him, his mother discovered several bags of caffeine powder in their house. Sadly, Stiner, a popular student-athlete, was one week away from graduating from high school.

The County Coroner’s report said that Stiner suffered cardiac arrhythmia and a seizure as a result of ingesting toxic amounts of caffeine. One teaspoon of the powder is equal to drinking approximately 25 cups of coffee.

In order to prevent a tragedy like Stiner’s from occurring in Illinois, Senator Jennifer Bertino-Tarrant (D-Plainfield) secured Senate passage today of legislation that would make it illegal for toxic caffeine powder to be sold to anyone under age 18.

“Powdered caffeine is dangerous because the substance is nearly 100 percent pure caffeine and difficult to measure with common kitchen tools,” Bertino-Tarrant said. “My legislation is a proactive approach to prevent minors from being able to use a substance that, by simple mistake, could be deadly.”

Bertino-Tarrant’s legislation, Senate Bill 9, now advances to the Illinois House.

SPRINGFIELD— State Senator Jennifer Bertino-Tarrant (D-Shorewood) passed legislation today that would require three members of the State Board of Education to be representatives of the educator community.

State law does not currently require any appointees to the State Board of Education to be educators.

This would change under Sen. Bertino-Tarrant’s proposal. Her plan comes at a time when local schools are being overburdened by unfunded mandates that force them to do more with less.

“The State Board of Education plays an important role in how our state’s education system operates,” Bertino-Tarrant said. “The people who teach students and serve in management positions have the experience to help improve education in Illinois, and their voices need to be heard on the board.”

Under Senate Bill 1506, the appointed educators will be from different regions in the state.

The State Board of Education helps oversee public schools from preschool through grade 12 and adult and vocational schools.

Senate Bill 1506 is an initiative of Vision 20/20, an organization made up of school administrators, superintendents and school boards.

Senate Bill 1506 now advances to the Illinois House for consideration.