Three representatives from the Student Association traveled to Springfield on Wednesday to continue lobbying for higher education.

The students lobbied for House Bill 2344, which would short-term fund public universities, the Illinois Math and Science Academy and Monetary Award Program grants.

A resolution for the bill was introduced Wednesday. Legislators will vote on the bill next week.

Although the students weren’t able to reach as many state legislators as they would have liked, they still feel that the day was successful, said SA Senator Matthew Holt.

“Although we didn’t get to speak with all [of the legislators], they still knew that there were hundreds of people outside of the [Illinois State Capitol],” Holt said.

During recent lobbying events, NIU students have focused on other bills, such as Senate Bill 2043, which would fund MAP grants and higher education. However, NIU students felt that House Bill 2344 was a more logistically realistic bill to lobby for, Holt said.

The lobbying event was coordinated in response to the state lawmakers’ lack of agreement with Gov. Bruce Rauner on a budget for Fiscal Year 2016. Without a finalized budget, funds for higher education and MAP cannot be appropriated. Illinois is the only state without a budget.

More than 100 people attended the lobbying event, including young students, parents and social workers. Some attendees focused on higher education, while others focused on different state-funded initiatives, Holt said.

After attending a rally, NIU students had the chance to network with fellow lobbyists, one being John Cusick, the head lobbyist for the Illinois Federation of Teachers.

Holt said Cusick discussed the possibility of compensating NIU students for their lobbying efforts. Compensation would be for costs such as the gasoline required for traveling from DeKalb to Springfield.

This lobbying event was the first for SA Senator Juan Guajardo and SA Senator-elect Daniel Alarcon.

“I think we met with a lot of great people,” Alarcon said. “I think we laid a great foundation for a lot of other students to [come lobby] with ease and really have their voice heard.”