The Chicago Teachers Union is urging the school board to postpone its scheduled vote next week on a proposal to close and consolidate several under performing schools.
The Chicago Teachers Union is urging the school board to postpone its scheduled vote next week on a proposal to close and consolidate several under performing schools. “We are asking the incoming school board president to halt these pending closures until more information about the schools can be gathered, discussed and shared with parents, teachers, students and the public,” said Marilyn Stewart, president of the Chicago Teachers Union. “My concern is that teachers, parents, community groups and students have not been involved in the process, as required by the Illinois School Code.” Last month the Chicago Public Schools announced changes to 14 schools that include closure, consolidation, turnaround and phase out. The Chicago Board of Education is scheduled to vote on the proposal at its Feb. 24 board meeting. According to Stewart, 2,500 Black teachers have been displaced from school closures. However, when teachers are displaced, CPS assists them in finding new teaching positions, said Monique Bond, communications director for CPS. CPS held several public hearings on the proposed school changes from Jan. 26 to Feb. 11 but Stewart said they were a waste of time. “The decisions have been made already, so what’s the point in having meetings when they (CPS) know what they are going to do regardless what the public says,” she said. “After all, ‘our’ children make up CPS. We need to make sure we keep the word ‘public’ in Chicago schools.” Some schools will be consolidated due to low enrollment while others will be consolidated because of low test scores. John Marshall High School on the West Side will become a turnaround school, which means a new principal, teachers and staff will be brought in with the goal of improving the school’s overall academic performance. Marshall and George Curtis Elementary School, 32 E. 115th St. are the two worst performing schools (academically) in the entire district, CPS officials said. “To just sit by idle while these schools continue to under perform would be irresponsible on our part,” said Ron Huberman, chief executive officer for CPS. “We have an obligation to educate and to ensure that we are providing educational opportunities for our students that give them the best chance at success.” Mayor Richard Daley also in supports the proposed school closures. “We’re trying to rebuild every community school in Chicago,” he said. “That’s what you have to do. If you don’t build community schools that people firmly believe that their child can get a quality education there, then we’re going to fail.” And rather than blame teachers for failing schools, Stewart said CPS should instead focus on giving teachers what they need to better educate students at under performing schools. “A lot of kids at under performing schools have social and psychological problems and the teacher is still expected to get past that and teach them,” said Stewart. “So in effect teachers are counselors and psychologists even though they are paid to simply educate.”
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