PEORIA (25News Now) - With a shortage of court reporters in Illinois courtrooms, the state is addressing the issue with a new, free training program.
Court reporters play an important role in the court system. They take verbatim records during criminal hearings, as well as transcribe and certify court records.
Dustie Spradlin is the state’s executive director for court reporting services. She said having a reporter in the courtroom is better than automated recording.
“If we rely on electronic recording, it’s a little more difficult. You can’t see which witness is speaking,” Spradlin said. “You can’t see who might speak next. The court reporter is trained to pick up on those cues.”
Currently, she said there are 1,400 court reporters, but 100 positions are vacant.
Spradlin said half of the staff are age 55 or older. Longtime court reporter and training program instructor Melissa Clagg is one of them.
“We have such a shortage right now. We are kind of in dire straits,” Clagg said. “We’re retiring right and left. It’s putting more of an impact, more of a strain because we’re covering more courts, more hours in court, and trying to get through the volume of cases.”
To boost interest in the career, the state started offering a tuition-free training program in 2024. It features guaranteed job placement and requires a two-year employment contract.
Other court-reporting schools typically cost $20,000 to $50,000 for a two-year program.
The starting salary is $53,000 plus state employee benefits.
Workshops are happening in Springfield on April 12 and Wheaton on May 9.
Classes are five days per week; three days in-person from 9 a.m. to noon, and two days virtually for one hour.
The deadline for applying is March 15.
Those looking for more details can visit the Illinois Court Reporting Services' webpage.
