Even as CPS opens more new schools, children with special needs have a tougher time finding options. Placements in private therapeutic schools are scarce, and some charters are reluctant to enroll them.
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State funding cuts deficit, class sizes won't increase
By: Sarah Karp / June 28, 2010
The Doomsday scenario—featuring CPS classes bulging with 35 students—has been averted, but deep cuts are still on the table and teachers are being pressed hard to forego pay raises.
The Doomsday scenario—featuring CPS classes bulging with 35 students—has been averted, but deep cuts are still on the table and teachers are being pressed hard to forego pay raises.
The district is now shifting much of the burden of the budget shortfall to high schools. And at a press conference Monday, CEO Ron Huberman was joined by two politically-connected civic leaders to pressure teachers to give up their negotiated 4 percent raises.
"I challenge the labor unions to do the right thing so that we can open the schools fully operational," said Leon Finney Jr., president of The Woodlawn Organization. Juan Rangel, president of the United Neighborhood Organization, told teachers that they should recognize that flat salaries are the "new normal." UNO, a 20-year-old community organization, runs eight charter schools, and Rangel said their teachers will not get a pay raise next year.
When a reporter pointed out to him that UNO’s teachers are not unionized and therefore do not have much choice, Rangel noted only that teachers are still returning to work next year.
Incoming Chicago Teachers Union President Karen Lewis accused Huberman of trying to strong-arm the union and repeated her call for him to provide a detailed budget so that union leaders can help the administration find cuts that will not hurt students. Lewis, who officially takes office on July 1, cannot make decisions such as conceding salary increases without teachers’ approval, but says she is not inclined to bring an "either-or scenario" to her members.
Lewis also pointed out that the union contract calls for a hefty increase in health care costs, which would offset the raises teachers are slated to receive.
On the same day that Huberman amped up the pressure on teachers for more financial concessions, he was also celebrating a budget victory: Huberman said state officials were able to save the day by rolling back more than $1 billion in education cuts proposed by Gov. Pat Quinn. Such a cut would have meant $300 million less for CPS.
Instead, it looks like the state’s education budget will only take a $300 million hit, and CPS will only lose $57 million. (Quinn has yet to sign a budget, however.)
That leaves the district with a $370 million deficit, and Huberman announced Monday that he plans to keep elementary class sizes at 28 students. CPS will also pay for full-day kindergarten, rather than the half-day option that Huberman previously proposed.
Still, the CEO was careful to emphasize that not everything is off the table. High school class sizes will increase to 33 students from 31, and other programs will take dramatic hits, including enrichment activities, magnet and selective enrollment school programs and transportation.
Some 1,200 teachers still stand to lose their jobs. And funding to charter schools will be reduced, though not as much as the 18 percent originally proposed. "We are not sure of the severity of the cuts to each of these programs," Huberman said. His administration will make those decisions as they put together the budget over the coming weeks.
The new fiscal year starts July 1, but it is not uncommon for the district to release a budget and hold hearings on it in July. One possible complication: Five schools have some of their students start school in July, while another 200 begin in August.
Huberman said he decided to keep elementary class sizes level because research shows small classes are especially important in kindergarten through 3rd grade. But he admitted that different research shows class size is important at all different grade levels.
Lewis, a chemistry teacher from King College Prep, said the fact that Huberman targeted high schools shows he and his staff don't know much about education. More high school students will drop out, and instead of the “culture of calm” Huberman is trying to create with his $60 million school safety initiative, there will be a culture of chaos, she said.
"You are looking at increasing the high school teacher load from 140 to 165 [students]," Lewis said. "That is 165 essays, 165 lab books. If you are not a teacher who just hands out worksheets, if you care about how students write and how they think, then this will be a significant increase."
Lewis said she met with Huberman for dinner last week, but the two didn't discuss these difficult issues. She said she was disappointed that Huberman was airing the issue in the press, instead of talking to her.
Parents from the advocacy group Raise Your Hand also were put off by the organization of Monday’s press conference. The group of mostly North Side parents came together to lobby for more education money and were asked to stand behind Huberman.
But leaders said they did not know that the CEO was going to use the occasion to lean on the union, and said they do not have a position on what the union should do.
Meanwhile, parent Faith Spencer said that applauding state officials for maintaining education funding sends the wrong message. Maintaining funding when all other expenses are going up is not a victory, she said.
Members of Raise Your Hand want a more comprehensive, long-term solution, such as an end to heavy reliance on property taxes to fund schools and reform of the law governing tax increment financing, which would free up more money for schools.
"It is unacceptable," said Spencer, whose children attend Burley Elementary in Lakeview. Like Burley, many neighborhood schools in wealthy neighborhoods have been asking parents to donate money to offset the detrimental effects of across-the-board class size increases.
Parents now might wrongly feel like the problem no longer exists, Spencer said.
State funding cuts CPS deficit, elementary class sizes will not
Rangel the poverty pimp extraordinaire should shut up and go hide under a rock. He took over $120,000,000 of YOUR state tax money over two years. This has Daley machine written all over it and it stinks.
Huberman Open the books! Open the fiscal books to an audit.
Rangel, keep your hands out of my pocket!!!
State funding cuts CPS deficit, elementary class sizes will not
The Unions must give in, or else face cuts. It's as simple as that. Here is a great new video spoken by teachers themselves on how teachers unions negatively affect education:
http://www.chicagonow.com/blogs/trackitfan/2010/06/video-the-truth-about...
State funding cuts CPS deficit, elementary class sizes will not
We don't need teacher bashing because the policies in place were put in there by Daley and his inept unqualified CEO's and with help with the yahoos of the Chicago Civic Committee. It would be dumb to negotiate anything without the fiscal books open to a forensic audit. You don't negotiate without seeing all the cards on the table. Daley and his patronage CEO refuse to open the books. CPS gets a lot of money but the real question is WHERE DOES IT ALL GO?! Why do regular folks need to have to file a freedom of information act on what is supposed to be a public organization that operates at the service of the public. Open the books before any negotiating. BTW, Getting some TIF Tax relief would be great!!! Open books and TIF Tax relief for education!!!
State funding cuts CPS deficit, elementary class sizes will not
No Chicago teachers interviewed here or even inner city ones. As soon as one of them mentioned jack Welch==there is a set up in this video here. Tripe!
State funding cuts CPS deficit, elementary class sizes will not
and hey Daley, he is using YOU to to this!
State funding cuts CPS deficit, elementary class sizes will not
Daley has been in charge of the schools for 15 years now. Why are people still blaming teachers for CPS's problems?
"That is why we took the political risk to accept the responsibility for education for our students which I am very pleased to have [sic]. Time again it has been shown this was the right step for our city to make education the highest priority. Yes hold the Mayor accountable for it." -- Richard M. Daley, June 23, 2010 Press Conference announcing results of the 2010 ISAT tests
fire Daley and all political appointees(CTA, OEMS, CPD, MBA's) to CPS first, then we can start discussing cost cutting measures. Teachers do the job not Daley and his political cronies.
State funding cuts CPS deficit, elementary class sizes will not
Daley and his boys are guilty as charged. Hire flunky patronage manager to be CEO, get University of Chicago's Consortium on Chicago School Research flunkies, Chicago Civic Committee, and the media to go along, then hire more City Hall castoff patronage managers, and you have a recipe for the disaster that is leaving CPS in the worst position and morale that I have seen in twenty years. The buck stops at the top with Daley!
State funding cuts CPS deficit, elementary class sizes will not
I guarantee that if Huberman sat down for a weekend meeting with a dozen teachers we could find that $327 million he seems to think is "missing" without negatively affecting students or teachers.
State funding cuts CPS deficit, elementary class sizes will not
Take the concessions and give our kids a chance. The BOE has cut enough.
State funding cuts CPS deficit, elementary class sizes will not
i heard BoE approved 12 mil in new furniture does someone have the board report.
how many teachers would $12 million hire?
they have not cut any CO or CAO expenses yet. Only hired more political cronies and purchased equipment.
tracy
why not document for us what cuts BoE has made?
It would help because we have not found to many.
John Kugler
kuglerjohn@comcast.net
State funding cuts CPS deficit, elementary class sizes will not
Tracy,
Really? Now how, pray tell, do you know the BOE has cut enough?
Cutting classroom teachers is the LAST thing CPS should consider. There are plenty of other areas to explore. What's so unreasonable about that? Bring the Union to the table, sit down, go over the budget together, see what actually works for students and teachers and what doesn't, and hash it out. I still maintain we could find that $327 million without affecting the very students you wish to save. Why not give us a chance? Why not work with us to solve the problem instead of against us?
Instead of just a 4% salary concession from the Union (along with central office cuts), how about a 2% concession on literally every single contract CPS has, including outstanding loans. CPS wants the Union to reconsider a contract but not the others who receive hundreds and hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars. Why are the others exempt? Those who work directly with students are the most important part of our students' education. Period.
Cutting IDS alone would save $30-$60 million. There's 10% or more of the remaining deficit right there. Not a bad place to start, huh? Save another $150 million by putting a halt to closing schools for the next two years. (Closing schools costs over $300 million every year.) And a temporary reallocation of some TIF monies could help stem the tide, too, yet still leave the mayor with hundreds of millions in slush funds.
Tell me, what's so unreasonable about all of this? Teachers have already had their pension system put at greater risk through $1.2 billion in pension payments CPS won't have to make. And you want teachers to sacrifice more than that $1.2 billion? When there are so many other ways to give our kids a chance? Really? No thanks. Greater teacher concessions are not good for teachers or students.
State funding cuts CPS deficit, elementary class sizes will not
Then do what teachers do best. Complain like hell and work like turtles. For the work you do, they should take 50%. I'm loving this. And for thr record John, you suck.
State funding cuts CPS deficit, elementary class sizes will not
The irony is thick, isn't it. I'm not complaining at all, Tracy. You are. I'm offering actual solutions but you and the Board and CPS just don't want to hear about solutions. You want to bash teachers.
And just for your reference, I'm a kickass teacher, I'm National Board Certified, I have a master's degree from a top notch university, and I worked 2800 hours last year for my school. And you won't hear me complain about it one bit. But I will stand up for what is right for our students and my profession.
If you've got anything reasonable to say in response to my previous comment I'd love to hear it. Let's dialogue on the merits of the issues at hand rather than on petty personal feelings and grudges.
State funding cuts CPS deficit, elementary class sizes will not
Your statement says what you all about, Dirty politics and arrogance beyond the pale!
State funding cuts CPS deficit, elementary class sizes will not
Here is the challenge: do more with less is worldwide, not only Chicago. Yes we need to be more efficient, yes we need excellence for students on all sides. Students succeed when everyone works together (as proven in many CPS schools making progress when admin/CTU focus on what is best for students FIRST). Because of the mistrust being fostered on both sides of the fence, all of our students will lose. Catalyst used to be a positive force for progress, not a dumping ground for the self-serving. Shame on all of you.
State funding cuts CPS deficit, elementary class sizes will not
No givebacks! No concessions!
Huberman will be back next year asking for more.
Let the people who caused this problem through their mismanagement solve it.
State funding cuts CPS deficit, elementary class sizes will not
No negotiations till Chicago sees where all the money goes. Open the books! Why do we need to file a freedom of information act? There is gold hidden in them there books, how much requires a forensic audit. Huberman and Daley... open the books!
State funding cuts CPS deficit, elementary class sizes will not
schools calling our parents now to get them to send our students to THEIR schools? As a parent LSC member at a small great neighborhood school, why are these schools calling our parents NOW to get them to send our upper grade students to their schools? This hurts our enrollment and budget. Are they allowed to do this? Our principal is worried. This is really screwy. Can anyone direct us to the right answer?
State funding cuts CPS deficit, elementary class sizes will not
Your principal should be meeting with the appropriate folks on Clark St, with LSC, students and Parents to demand an explanation. I don't trust Hubie and his City Hall Patronage Manager Rejects to have any integrity, but call them on it.
State funding cuts CPS deficit, elementary class sizes will not
This situation is a sore spot on all sides. The biggest losers are...
These little children being played as pawns! Who is really pulling these puppet strings? Community members, parents, teachers, students, and all Chicagoans need to stand together. Stop fighting over the petty issues. The real issue is that we pay taxes. Our kids should receive a high quality education. Illinois ranks 49th in school funding. Our school system is broken and riddled with inequalities. Let's stay focused on the real problem and not be distracted.
State funding cuts CPS deficit, elementary class sizes will not
There are serious workplace issues on a system wide level that Daley and Huberman want to be kept on the down low! They should, since it revolves around what many teachers know about Huberman, he doesn't know how to run a school district. That ignorance and arrogance es repeatedly seen in the behavior of his patronage underlings who imitate his behavior. The mandates that distract from instruction than supporting quality instruction. A mountain of assessments that also distracts from instruction. I hope the new CTU is taking count of all the "official" distractions that DON'T support learning. This is serious since it is the children who suffer by losing precious instruction time and teachers suffer because they want to instruct but are instructed to follow mandates to administer bs assessments like Dibels, for example. The folks in the Area offices know that Dibels is junk but CPS keeps paying big bucks on this expensive assessment. The list can go on, on how CPS wastes money.
State funding cuts CPS deficit, elementary class sizes will not
This situation is a sore spot on all sides. The biggest losers are...
These little children being played as pawns! Who is really pulling these puppet strings? Community members, parents, teachers, students, and all Chicagoans need to stand together. Stop fighting over the petty issues. The real issue is that we pay taxes. Our kids should receive a high quality education. Illinois ranks 49th in school funding. Our school system is broken and riddled with inequalities. Let's stay focused on the real problem and not be distracted.
State funding cuts CPS deficit, elementary class sizes will not
I'm totally agreeing with the previous comment about hiding behind the kids. As an employee, I'm tired of discovering information regarding my job at the same time as everyone else! There is something horribly wrong in CPS. It is time to start looking at the real issues. There are too many ineffective and short term programs taking up too much money! I am ready for reform, but no more bullcrap. Children first! If it doesn't directly benefit the kids and instruction, then it is a distraction. Children first! Education first!
State funding cuts CPS deficit, elementary class sizes will not
The thing I dont understand is why Huberman NEVER addresses the employees directly in an email or a video? We have FIRST CLASS, it isnt too hard to send an email to everyone?
Why do we find all of our news via the internet, the newspaper, and the tv?
I know we teachers are not exactly always friendly to him, but doesnt he owe his employees some direct communication??
I dont get it??
State funding cuts CPS deficit, elementary class sizes will not
Are you really asking if we are employees or the enemy?
At the CTA the result of his tenure was
a) creation of a 2-tier pension system
b) reduction in service
c) dismissal of veteran employees
d) reduction in salaries
At the CPS the result of his tenure so far has been
a) creation of a 2-tier pension system
b) reduction in service
c) dismissal of veteran employees
d) reduction in salaries
That doesn't sound like a friend of on-the-ground educators to me. He accomplished all 4 at CTA. He's got 3 done so far at CPS (with more layoffs of veterans in the pipeline) and he's moving forward aggressively. All of Huberman's "let's work together" talk is horsepuckey, a mirage designed to fool reporters and the public about what he's really doing. I don't blame him - it's what I'd do if I was in his position.
Teachers must hold fast and strong in unity. CPS must be forced to do what is best for students. It won't happen willingly.
State funding cuts CPS deficit, elementary class sizes will not
I think one of the major problems with CPS is that it is simply too big.
I think the teachers and students would be better served if they were divided up similar to the suburbs (X elementary schools feed into Y middle schools which go to Z high schools).
But I suspect the CTU prohibits CPS from being broken up because it would break up the union.... But maybe it'd be better to have 10 different Chicago CPS unions than 1 large one. Teachers on the South side might want/need things that are different from teachers on the West side or North side or near the loop. Not all communities are alike in Chicago, so why try to have 1 district that acts like their policies are suitable for everyone?
State funding cuts CPS deficit, elementary class sizes will not
Ok he's the enemy!
He certainly! Gets a 0 out of 10 for employee morale!
Some teachers at my school were seriously DEPRESSED! And I dont meen a little case of the Mondays! We all feel HOPLESS!!
How do you really recruit NEW FRESH teachers when you kicked the old crew our the door!! If it werent for a bad economy CPS would have to hire teachers on sub certificates to fill the ranks!
State funding cuts CPS deficit, elementary class sizes will not
A lot of good it is going to do to "improve" preservice teachers if they are going into the CPS meat grinder. Huberman will spit you faster than...
If the school of education were honest their pre-service teachers, they should read the full post of Dr. Tyson. .. Welcome to Daley and Huberman's CPS Meat Factory
"But times have changed. The corporate business model which formerly placed great value on taking care of dedicated employees (pensions, retirements, health insurance) has given way to a punishing eye on the bottom line with outsourcing to cheaper labor markets. Customer services has gone the way of advertising slogans and PR campaigns. The one thing that matters above all else isn't empathy or social justice but is margins.
To my great concern, I have seen the impact of this market place mentality driven solely by profits, by numbers, take needless, high stakes risks with our earth and with the people who live on it. This singular and systematic way of thinking, this razor sharp focus on the bottom line, on data, on margins has strangled our hearts, has crushed our emotive resonance, has debilitated our capacity for empathy. This new way of being has, like a cancer, eaten away our humanity."
http://drtimtyson.com/blog/archives/2010/06/an_open_letter_to_americas_e...
State funding cuts CPS deficit, elementary class sizes will not
I am a fairly new teacher. Some teachers at my school have said they are willing to take a pay freeze ONLY IF there really IS NOT money in the budget to help save teacher's jobs. I appreciate that. Why is it so hard for Huberman to share the budget? That tells me they have something to hide. I have a child to raise, but I also have 30 students who I feed, buy uniforms and personal items for, mentor, and the list goes on and on. Teachers are a very small part of the problem. We do more than non-teachers will ever know. I am an excellent teacher and I do it for the love of my profession, obviously not for the money. A big part of the problem is non-teachers saying or deciding what should happen. Let educators decide what is best for education not everyone else.
State funding cuts CPS deficit, elementary class sizes will not
A common refrain we hear today (from non-educators) is that teachers are being greedy and selfish.
It is not greedy or selfish to expect CPS to be honest and open in its budget analyses. (Hint: it's not.)
It is not greedy or selfish to expect CPS to fulfill their contactual obligations.
(Hint: they decline to do so in other areas on a regular basis as it is.)
It is not greedy or selfish to push CPS to solve its budget crisis while prioritizing classroom teachers and, therefore, students.
(Hint: they won't.)
I'll gladly and happily forego 2% of my raise this year if the following conditions are met:
1) CPS must submit to a forensic budget audit performed by a CTU selected firm.
2) CPS must cut 2% of every single contract it has - without exception. All of them. Cut mine? Cut everyone's.
3) CPS must put a halt to closing public schools in favor of privatized charters at a cost of $300+ million per year.
4) CPS must insist that the mayor reallocate back to education half the CPS tax money that TIF districts collect for the next three years. Not all - just half.
5) CPS must agree to terminate zero tenured teachers without cause for the next three years and must eliminate any hiring contracts or agreements with the revolving door that is Teach for America. (Sorry TFA newbies, but 80% of you won't stay in teaching past your 2 year commitment anyway.)
6) CPS must agree to eliminate IDS - Instructional Delivery System - at a savings of $30-$60 million and formally give teachers the professional autonomy to decide what to teach and how best to teach it.
7) Effective in the year 2011-2012, CPS must agree to a strict class size limit - below 30 - using a formula that actually results in class sizes below 30. (The current student to teach ratio formula is so inaccurate that it is a joke.)
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