The Year of Living Civically
  • The Daily Blog
  • This Week's Schedule
  • The YLC Toolkit
  • The Back Story

Let's learn about Chicago schools!

9/12/2012

 
Picture
I went to the teachers march  on Monday.

I learned a lot there.

That one school nurse can have three schools and 2400 students to watch over. And that she is monitoring students receiving cancer treatments, taking medications for diabetes and asthma, etc. And that this situation is common.

That only 25% of Chicago schools have art AND music.

That there are lots of issues involved in the strike and they are not all about money for the teachers.

There are lots of links in this posting because no one would believe me if I wrote what the reports and studies show about the IDIOCY and LACK OF PLANNING by the BOARD OF EDUCATION and the Chicago Public Schools (CPS). 

Y’all would think I was making it up because I am no fan of Daley or Rahm.

But facts is facts.

So here are links to:
 the 2011 study on CPS facilities from the Illinois State Board of Education http://www.isbe.state.il.us/CEF/pdf/ceftf_recom_0211_pres.pdf.

Page 13 really caught my eye.

Actually it made my eyes bug out and roll back in my head.

CPS has 600+ schools and from 2006 to 2010, $625 million of $1.14 billion capital spending on buildings was spent on only 67 of 603 schools.

Another $1.4 billion from a "specially funded" program called Modern Schools Across Chicago was spent to build 17 new schools and do 2 major renovations. 

Here are the links to the factual backup the map http://pbcchicago.com/upload/10012.pdf
and the press release
“PBC Announces Project Surplus, Other Positive Results For City's Modern Schools Across Chicago Initiative” http://pbcchicago.com/content/about/press_detail.asp?pID=300

No capital funds were spent on 330 schools.

And while some schools have no air conditioning CPS spent  $36 million on landscaping, parking and athletic fields.

If the Daley administration and the Emanuel administration want schools to be year round with longer days in the classrooms and if summer days can have temperatures in the 80’s, 90’s and even the 100’s doesn’t it make sense that providing a/c to all schools should be a goal for the CPS.

Well its not.

I’m not the only one thinking that air-conditioning schools is a real issue.

This link goes to an article in the Washington Post, “Why shouldn’t Chicago teachers ask for air- conditioned schools?”
 http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/post/why-shouldnt-chicago-teachers-ask-for-air--conditioned-schools/2012/09/12/453c61fe-fc34-11e1-a31e-804fccb658f9_blog.html

The teachers are only part of the school equation.

When will Rahm and Vitale deal with the administrative patronage bloat?

There are close to 20,000 "administrative/non-teaching" positions within the CPS, where patronage hiring is not prohibited by the Shakman decree.

Here are the links to the employment data.

The entire employee roster and salary info
http://www.cps.edu/About_CPS/At-a-glance/Documents/EmployeePositionRoster_07112012.pdf

and

the administrator (principals) roster and salary info
http://www.cps.edu/About_CPS/At-a-glance/Documents/CompensationReport.pdf

and overall CPS statistics
http://www.cps.edu/About_CPS/At-a-glance/Pages/Stats_and_facts.aspx

So, if we want to find money for arts and music and PE for all kids I say examine and thin out administration.

And for sure fire the ass of the administrators who can't get textbooks to students on time.

And, by the way, why does the CPS use different books at different schools?

And why hasn't anyone sued the CPS about the disparity in programs provided by the CPS in an educational system financed by public taxes?



    Author

    Rachel Goodstein

    Archives

    September 2020
    July 2017
    November 2016
    February 2015
    August 2013
    September 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    February 2012
    January 2012
    November 2011
    October 2011

    Categories

    All
    Cheboygan Memorial Hospital
    Congressman Dan Benishak
    Corporate Responsibility
    Medicare
    Northern Initiatives
    Starbucks
    Voting

    RSS Feed

Content copyright Rachel Goodstein 2011-2012
Photos used under Creative Commons from karlenj5, umjanedoan, Peter Fuchs, quinn.anya, Julian Stallabrass, How I See Life, Howdy, I'm H. Michael Karshis, chadmagiera, Andrew Ciscel, JasonParis, JoopDorresteijn, juggernautco, Around the rings1992, USDAgov, juggernautco, Urban Outbacker, oddsock, Damian Cugley, twm1340, League of Women Voters of California, kate.gardiner, Dylan Passmore, Caveman Chuck Coker, Benimoto, jelloneck, Michigan Municipal League (MML), jiazi, DonkeyHotey, wallygrom, USDAgov, Lee Coursey, danielmoyle, Cee-Lo Knows, artifishall, Marty Hogan, Adam Jones, Ph.D., quinn.anya, Cee-Lo Knows, Images_of_Money, raybdbomb, anarchosyn, dok1, Tony Armstrong [The Personal Account], AlishaV, dibau_naum_h, yoppy, Sally E J Hunter, puroticorico, Glyn Lowe Photoworks