TruthOut10
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- Dec 3, 2012
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Citing a budget deficit and declining enrollment, Chicago proposed Thursday that 61 public schools be closed. Teachers and parents warn that the poorest students will be affected the most.
The proposed move is being blasted both by the teachers union and parent groups, who charge that the city is misleading the public regarding the decline in population in certain neighborhoods where it seeks consolidation. They say the decision will ultimately harm the poorest of the citys children by forcing them to commute farther away from their homes and learn in overcrowded classrooms.
The district has never before closed more than 11 schools in a single year.
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No doubt this is going to be deeply disruptive, says Steve Tozer, a professor of education and director of the Center for Urban Education Leadership at the University of Illinois at Chicago.
Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel says the decisions reasoning is financial. The Chicago Public Schools (CPS) system, which is the third largest in the nation and operates under the control of City Hall, faces a $1 billion budget deficit in the new fiscal year and that each closed school will save the district between $500,000 and $800,000.
Our students cannot wait for us to put off these difficult decisions any longer . This problem is not unique to Chicago, and like school systems where enrollment has dropped, we must make tough choices, he said in a statement released Wednesday.
Chicago's proposed school closings called unfair to city's poorest students - CSMonitor.com
The proposed move is being blasted both by the teachers union and parent groups, who charge that the city is misleading the public regarding the decline in population in certain neighborhoods where it seeks consolidation. They say the decision will ultimately harm the poorest of the citys children by forcing them to commute farther away from their homes and learn in overcrowded classrooms.
The district has never before closed more than 11 schools in a single year.
RECOMMENDED: Back to school: How to measure a good teacher
No doubt this is going to be deeply disruptive, says Steve Tozer, a professor of education and director of the Center for Urban Education Leadership at the University of Illinois at Chicago.
Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel says the decisions reasoning is financial. The Chicago Public Schools (CPS) system, which is the third largest in the nation and operates under the control of City Hall, faces a $1 billion budget deficit in the new fiscal year and that each closed school will save the district between $500,000 and $800,000.
Our students cannot wait for us to put off these difficult decisions any longer . This problem is not unique to Chicago, and like school systems where enrollment has dropped, we must make tough choices, he said in a statement released Wednesday.
Chicago's proposed school closings called unfair to city's poorest students - CSMonitor.com
