CPS SOS

The Chicago Public School system is in complete shambles and has been for as long as I can remember. The latest debacle is the recently announced closing of 4 schools with poor academic performance. All schools are in low-income and predominantly African-American neighborhoods. Will somebody explain to me how closing the schools helps these students? Will disrupting the lives of these families and sending the students to schools outside their neighborhoods improve their studies? Approximately 1,000 students and 270 staff will be displaced. The "reform plan," called Renaissance 2010, doesn't appear to address the administrative fat and mismanagement. The cuts always seem to be schools and programs. Additions and new schools are constructed in some parts of the city while other schools fester in disrepair, to the point where students won't use the bathroom because of the condition of the facilities. Repairs are deferred until there is a local news "special report" that opens the eyes of the parents. It's no wonder attendance and study habits are poor.

Is this what it's like in New York, LA and other large cities? Can Chicago's system really be "reborn" by 2010? Under the current administration, I seriously doubt it.





CPS administrators pose for photo before planning session.