By: Diane Benjamin

This is the final consultant report. Stories the last few days total the almost $6 million I reported by on March 18th: https://blnnews.com/2026/03/18/paid-consultants-inccrra/

Heartland Community College got $165,408.88 to run a pilot program to train childcare workers. My original FOIA stated Heartland got $169,408, maybe expenses were exceeded.

All of the rest of these “consultants” were actually subsidized child care centers that agreed to implement Smart Start:

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I know the above states 34 centers were subsidized. My list has 18. I don’t know if they couldn’t find another 16 to participate or if those subsidies weren’t under “consultants”. The spreadsheets I received by FOIA could easily have buried them in the massive amount of data. Just these 18 show patterns of spending.

Reading the above paragraphs show many of the other programs created to redistribute money. I don’t know how the centers centers below were chosen. Why did two Carterville and two Morris locations get subsidies? I have no idea.

I have multiple documents for each of these if anyone wants to see them. Are they still subsidized? I have no idea, more FOIA requests would take weeks again.

Robin’s Nest Learning Center Carterville, Marion, Carbondale subsidized $1,228,889.

Malones Early Learning Center subsidized Carterville $443,779

Spero Family Services Bright Start Mt Vernon subsidized $289,131

YMCA Knox County Galesburg subsidized $105,921

Sunny Days Child Care Vandalia subsidized $100,972

Presbyterian Church Jacksonville subsidized $321,627

The Little School House Matton subsidized $97,666

Perry L and Marilyn Murry – Murry’s Child Dev Desoto subsidized $169,211

Step By Step Morris subsidized $876,581

Prairieland Kids Day Morris subsidized $148,138

Mueller Enterprises Breeze subsidized $139,387

Mcdonough County Council Wee Care Macomb subsidized $137,744

Ivy League Day School subsidized Sandoval $194,816

SAL Community Services subsidized Moline $232,484

Bright Beginning Learning Day Care Center Harrisburg subsidized $325,804

Buckeroo Early Learning Center Flora subsidized $182,514

Keep in mind: The INCCRRA tax return showed $17 million spent on “consultant”.