As CPS prepares to close a record number of schools, the fate of students and communities is in question.
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In the News: Another agency lowers CPS bond rating
By: Cassandra West / August 07, 2012
A second credit rating agency, Fitch Rating, has changed its outlook for Chicago Public Schools bonds from stable to negative because of the district's troubled financial situation, according to the Tribune.
A coalition of Chicago parents, activists and teachers said Monday it has enough signatures to push for an elected school board for Chicago Public Schools on the ballot in November. Communities Organized for Democracy in Education said it presented 10,000 signatures to the Chicago Board of Elections on Monday, supporting an advisory referendum in November on the elected board issue. (CBS Chicago)
A coalition of community groups pushing to get an elected school board believes they have enough signatures to get a referendum gauging public support on the November ballot in 204 precincts, about 9 percent of the precincts in Chicago. (Catalyst)
Alexander Russo, who writes the District 299 blog, managed to find a video of the 1:16:00-hour speech Mayor Rahm Emanuel gave at the NewSchools Venture Fund gathering back in May. Emanuel, in the speech, talked about making Chicago a big place for charters, Chicago's short schools day—all before teacher contract negotiations blew up. Watch the video here.
IN THE NATION
It will be harder for public-school teachers in New Jersey to get tenure and easier to fire bad ones under legislation signed on Monday by Gov. Chris Christie that overhauls the state’s century-old tenure law. (The New York Times)
The Department of Education is one of five Cabinet-level agencies making more progress fulfilling Freedom of Information Act requests, according to a Washington Post analysis. But, Education Week reporter Michele McNeil found that the department is relying more on partially denying requests, which means only some of the information a member of the public was seeking was made available.
Research shows that girls who enjoy — and excel at — math and science in high school are less likely than boys to pursue a college major in those fields. And even if they start college majoring in a STEM field, women are more likely than men to change majors, federal data show. Women make up 24 percent of STEM jobs, which offers some of the most lucrative careers, a Commerce Department report says. More than half have degrees in the physical and life sciences.
What is to gain?
What good does an elected school board do us?
First, the Mayor would no longer be responsible for the schools. While many Rahm-haters would see that as a good thing, remember that the Mayor is always one of the most powerful politicians in the state. This one even has strong ties to the national government. With the mayor out of the equation, we are left with seven (or however many it may be) people whose names aren’t known to anyone and who have no clout anywhere in government.
Whence will come the money needed to run the system? The Mayor would be under no obligation to spend one cent of the city’s treasury, and with no political muscle in the legislature, there is no reason to think the state will come up with more money. The Board has raised taxes to the maximum allowed under the tax caps the last two years, and that hasn’t been enough to pay for keeping the same level of services. Since the majority of taxpayers in the city don’t have school-age children, they may soon tire of maximum tax increases every year and vote in Board members sworn to hold the line on taxes. Forget money from the TIFs because the Board doesn’t have any power over them.
Finally, I think it will erode public support for public education. With no visible, big-name politician in charge, I believe many people will think no one is in charge and there is chaos at the Board. As more parents send their own children to private and charter schools, enrollment will continue to decline and what’s left are the children of mostly dysfunctional families and homes, at-risk and at-need.
And, of course, it doesn't reduce politics in the public schools. The board members will just be beholden to someone other than the Mayor.
What is to gain from having an elected Board?
What is to be gained from an elected school board
An elected school board would establish a bright line between the City of Chicago finances and CPS finances. This is important because last year we already saw that Mayor Emanuel because he totally controls the CPS Board force CPS to increase its payments to the Chicago Police Department for school patrol services covering 2009 through 2012. The original deal CPS made with the CPD and then Mayor Daley was to pay $32.8 million for these services, on July 27, 2011 CPS agreed to increase this budget to $102.8 million (see Board Report 11-0727-PR18).
The CPS even forced to agree to make back payments to the CPD reported to be $46 million. CPS went from paying about 8 million a year to the CPD to $25.5 million with one vote forced by order of the Mayor. This decision added to the CPS's fiscal problems and did not have to be made because the intergovernmental agreement CPS made with the CPD under the Daley administration did not provide for this cost escalation. This was wrong, CPS should not have agreed to pay a higher rate for police services than it agreed to under the Daley administration based on a formal intergovernmental agreement.
Similarly an elected school Board could play an independent role in relation to TIF districts. The CPS as an independent corporate entity has unique interests in relation to these tax dollars from those of the City of Chicago government.
Now an elected school Board could still be controlled by the current or future Mayors via the election process. But in order to exert that power the Mayor would have to field candidates for the Board based on community districts or even by the city at large who actually put forward their educational agenda to the public at large. I mean really what does the public know about current Board member Rodrigo Sierra's perspectives on anything relating to public education? Does he for example support English language immersion programs or transitional bilingual instruction programs? We do not even know if any of the appointed members of the CPS Board support vouchers.
Danny V raised the issue of City of Chicago funding for CPS, what funding would that be exactly? The modern schools across Chicago capital program was funded with TIF dollars and not city of Chicago tax dollar being reallocated to CPS. I would like to think I know a little about public school funding in Chicago and I have a hard time thinking of direct funding given to CPS by the City of Chicago.
Rod Estvan
CEO Brizard to take a leave? Is this true?
Look for CEO JC Brizard to take a leave of absence from CPS.
We need another CEO. We've only had 4 of them in the last 3 years.
Duncan 'til 2009.
Huberman in 2009.
Mazany in 2010.
Brizard in 2011.
Who's next in 2012?
It's about time this district shook things up a bit! Oh. Wait....
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