Updates | catalyst-chicago.org

Departments

Catalyst In Depth
Catalyst Notebook
Opinions
In Focus

Current Issue

School closings

As CPS prepares to close a record number of schools, the fate of students and communities is in question.

Read More

Updates

WebExtra: 18 more schools granted autonomy April 04, 2007 By: John Myers After Chicago Public Schools overhauled eligibility criteria for its coveted autonomous schools program, better known as AMPS, 18 more schools qualified. AMPS allows schools to choose from a menu of "autonomies" that are meant as a reward for high test scores and sound management. These liberties range from greater control over budgets to freedom from certain performance assessments and area instructional oversight. Ninety schools are in the program this year. Read More \| (0) Comments	WebExtra: CPS losing one in five principals March 29, 2007 By: Debra Williams Chicago Public Schools will be hit this year with a record number of principal vacancies. One in five school leaders—120 systemwide—have notified the district that they will step down from their jobs at the end of the year, CPS reported in mid-March. That's already a 71 percent increase over last year, when about 70 principals stepped down. And the number could climb even higher, since principals have until April 15 to notify the district that they will be leaving. Read More \| (1) Comments
WebExtra: Jones, for now, in Blagojevich's corner March 26, 2007 By: Aaron Chambers State Senate President Emil Jones Jr. (D-Chicago) is backing away from a tax plan championed by advocates of school funding reform and now says he favors Gov. Rod Blagojevich's proposal to boost education spending. Following the governor's budget address on March 7, Jones unequivocally backed Blagojevich's plan to impose a so-called "gross receipts tax" on businesses to raise more revenue for the state, including an additional $1.5 billion for schools next year. Jones called the governor's proposal idea is a better way to generate more cash for schools. Read More \| (0) Comments	Campaign: $4 billion for schools March 07, 2007 By: Aaron Chambers Education funding reformers in Illinois are eternal optimists, seeing every legislative session as their big chance to dramatically increase state funding of public schools. This year, though, there is reason to believe they may actually pull it off. The latest in a string of developments that bode well for funding reform is the revamped and well-funded legislative campaign by A+ Illinois, a coalition of nonprofit organizations and unions that support education funding reform. Read More \| (0) Comments
Activists: School-based health clinics need cash March 07, 2007 By: Marisol Mastrangelo Advocates for better health services for students are asking Gov. Rod Blagojevich to more than double funding for school-based health centers in 2008. Activists want an additional $5 million to open 20 new centers across the state, including Chicago, and to enhance services in existing facilities. Currently, the state spends roughly $4 million annually on the centers. Read More \| (0) Comments	$24 million proposed for dropouts March 07, 2007 By: Sarah Karp On the heels of the release of a report that finds Illinois spends too little on recapturing dropouts, state education officials are recommending that programs serving dropouts get a significant hike in funding—the first in at least a decade. The Illinois State Board of Education has proposed raising the budget for the department that serves dropouts, as well as truants and students at risk of leaving school, by 33 percent, to more than $24 million. Read More \| (1) Comments
National funders spur grassroots reform March 07, 2007 By: Elizabeth Duffrin Just as two citywide watchdog groups shut their doors last month for lack of funding, national and local donors are poised to give away some $2.4 million over the next three years to broad-based groups of grassroots activists for select school reform efforts. This pot of money, known as the Fund for Education Organizing, is earmarked for community organizing projects that focus on education inequality and improving performance for poor and minority students. Read More \| (0) Comments	WebExtra: Campaign seeks $4 billion for schools March 07, 2007 By: Aaron Chambers SPRINGFIELD—Education funding reformers in Illinois are eternal optimists, seeing every legislative session as their big chance to dramatically increase state funding of public schools. This year, though, there is reason to believe they may actually pull it off. The latest in a string of developments that bode well for funding reform is the revamped and well-funded legislative campaign by A+ Illinois, a coalition of nonprofit organizations and unions that support education funding reform. Read More \| (0) Comments
Toddlers get a sneak peek at school November 29, 2006 By: Tiffany Forte Each morning, Shamile Harris takes her 4-year-old daughter, Nakariel, to a home day-care center about a 5-minute car ride away. But Nakariel won't be there all day. Soon after arriving, she and five other children in the sitter's care will be whisked away by a van to It Takes a Village, an accredited day-care center in Austin, for a couple hours of educational activities—learning basics such as numbers and colors, practicing the alphabet, developing social skills by interacting with other children and exercising by performing jumping jacks and toe-touches. Read More \| (0) Comments

go here for more