Marshall High and other turnaround high schools, in Chicago and nationally, face a thorny dilemma. Higher-performing students are being siphoned off through competition, driving down enrollment and raising tough policy questions about the future of these schools.
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So Far, So Good
By: Alexander Russo / July 04, 2009
It's been a strange and interesting few weeks since I started posting
two versions of this blog early last month -- one at Catalyst and one
at the Tribune's ChicagoNow. The verdict is still out at this early
stage, but so far the experiment seems to be working reasonably well.
There was a a little bit of initial confusion as people tried to find the
blog they wanted to find, and there were a few predictable cries of "sellout!"
There was also some concern that there wouldn't be enough readers to
support two versions of the same blog. But so far at least that
doesn't seem to be the case. The Catalyst version is registering as
many if not more readers and comments as it always has. And in just a
few short weeks the Tribune version has been growing its own totally
respectable readership. I'm giving all the ChicagoNow sports and
lifestyle blogs a run for their money (at least until Jay Mariotti
arrives).
Best of all, ChicagoNow readers are starting to
weigh in with their own views and experiences, enlivening the comments
section. I wish that there was some way to post comments on both sites
so that
readers could see the same responses no matter where they log in --
we're working on that one. In the meantime, I'm grateful that interest
in Chicago schools and this site continues to grow.
Complaints, compliments, observations? Let me know.
So Far, So Good
some way to post comments on both sites so that readers could see the same responses no matter where they log in -- we're working on that one.
otherwise, it has been a bit confusing. but i like 299 the best.
So Far, So Good
My concern about the ChicagoNow version of Dist299 is that commenters might not be direct stakeholders in CPS, and might wind up blowing a lot of hot air based on nothing real. More like what you see in comments to online Trib stories - for every commenter who seems to have insight or experience with the topic/event/issue, there a so many more that are just spewing nonsense. Still, FWIW, the nonsense can be interesting because it reveals "public opinion" to some degree.