WBEZ | Chicago Board of Education

CPS board votes to close 50 schools

Wed, 22 May 2013 05:17:00 -0500

The Chicago Board of Education voted to close 50 public schools Wednesday, the largest round of school closings in recent American history.

Before the vote, Chicago Teachers Union President Karen Lewis told board members, “I personally feel you’re on the wrong side of history, and history will judge you.”

But after two hours of final pleas by parents, teachers, aldermen and activists to save the schools, and after several raucous disruptions to the proceedings, board members voted unanimously to close 49 of the schools. One school, Von Humboldt, was closed on divided vote.

In addition to closing 50 schools, the board voted to replace the entire staff at five grammar schools and have 23 schools share 11 buildings.

Listen: WBEZ visits two of the spared schools

Chicago Public Schools officials have said the closures are necessary to operate the district more efficiently. They unveiled a list of 54 schools they wanted to close in March, after months of public hearings the district says attracted 20,000 people. School officials originally identified more than 300 schools as “underutilized.”

Despite opposition in the streets and at public hearings and some critical reports by hearing officers, that list of 54 closings held--until the eleventh hour. On Wednesday, Chicago Public Schools CEO Barbara Byrd-Bennett withdrew her recommendation to close four schools: Garvey, Ericson, Mahalia Jackson and Manierre. Byrd-Bennett also recommended delaying the closure of Canter Middle School for one year and sparing Barton Elementary from having its staff fired.

Ultimately, board members voted on more than 100 different proposals to massively restructure the school system next year and add to the programming in schools slated to take in students from closing schools. The one school with a divided vote, Von Humboldt Elementary, was closed on a 4-2 vote. Dissenting votes came from Board Vice President Jesse Ruiz and Carlos Azcoitia.

In testimony before the vote, Ald. Joe Moreno (1st) pressed board members to preserve Von Humboldt as the surviving CPS school in the East Humboldt Park community.

“I know you don’t want your legacy to be that you closed public schools in a neighborhood and have left zero schools remaining. I know you don’t want that, board members,” Moreno said.

Listen: Aldermen speak against school closings in their wards

The closings, turnarounds and co-locations will affect roughly 40,000 students and 120 schools, mostly on the South and West sides of the city. Eighty percent of the affected students are African American.

CPS officials made several last minute tweaks to the overall plan. More closing schools will get busing to their new school, bringing the total number of schools being provided transportation to 15. The additional schools are: Dodge (to Morton), Melody (to Delano), Parkman (to Sherwood), Wentworth (to Altgeld) and West Pullman (to Haley).

After the vote, board member Henry Bienen said many of the changes were made in response to the concerns of board members. Jesse Ruiz, who sat on the Illinois State Board of Education for several years before being appointed to the Chicago Board of Education, described it as the most difficult vote of his life.

Politics and education

Aldermen have no official say in what goes on at CPS, but many have been lobbying for months to keep schools in their wards open. In addition to Moreno, eight others showed up Wednesday to fight for schools in their communities.

Ald. Bob Fioretti (2nd), who has been at many of the public hearings over the past five months, said he almost didn’t show up to testify. “I’m worried that all those hearings were a charade. The decisions were already made,” he said.

Shortly after the meeting, the Chicago Teachers Union lambasted mayoral control of the public schools, and announced a new effort to unseat Mayor Rahm Emanuel and other elected officials because of the school closings vote.

“We will start registering people to become deputy registrars. We’re doing training… because clearly we have to change the political landscape in this city,” CTU president Karen Lewis said after the vote.

Lewis said allowing the mayor to control the public schools is an “absolute failed experiment and nightmare.”

CPS officials, for their part, have repeatedly said an elected Board of Education would only inject more politics into public education.

Making schools better

Chicago has been closing schools and opening new ones for more than a decade. But, overall, academic performance has not dramatically improved.

Still, board members, CPS officials and Mayor Emanuel maintain that closing schools will get students out of under-resourced, failing schools.

“I know this is incredibly difficult, but I firmly believe the most important thing we can do as a city is provide the next generation with a brighter future,” Emanuel said in a statement Wednesday evening.

A WBEZ analysis of school performance shows only three closings sending kids to a top-performing school. About one-third will send kids to equally low-performing schools. This was the case for three of the schools removed from the closings list at the last minute—Manierre, Mahalia Jackson and Garvey.

To help keep the promise that children would be going to better schools, the Board of Education approved significant investments for schools that will receive children from closing schools. Many of the receiving schools will get extra money and positions next year to implement new programs. Schools getting Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) programs will receive $376,000 in startup funds and two extra positions, and schools implementing International Baccalaureate (IB) programs will get $255,000 and two positions. One receiving school, Haley Elementary, will get $237,000 to start a fine and performing arts program.

The Board last month approved spending $329 million to fix up the remaining school buildings; $217 million of that will go directly to schools impacted by closings, turnarounds and co-locations. The total cost will be financed by selling bonds. (http://www.wbez.org/news/education/cps-will-go-further-debt-pay-upgrades-receiving-schools-106627)

Closing schools, opening schools

Buried in the school shake-ups voted on today were plans to open 13 new schools (http://www.wbez.org/news/proportion-privately-run-chicago-public-schools-increase-104303) and a handful of alternative programs. Many of those have already been approved by the board.

“The questions that I keep hearing over and over again from my constituents, is, ‘How do we close schools, while simultaneously opening charter schools?’ and ‘Why are we closing schools to crowd schools to then eventually open charter schools?’” said Ald. Ameya Pawar (47th), who only has one charter school in his ward. Two of his ward’s schools, Courtenay and McPherson, are affected by the closings.

But a number of charter school parents, with a newly formed group that calls itself the Charter Parents United (CPU), spoke on Wednesday to ask for more funding. They claim charters are not funded equally with other public schools. CPS increased funding to charters this past year and officials have said the schools are funded fairly.

While they spoke mainly about funding, some of the charter school parents in attendance said they felt attacks on their children’s schools are unfair.

“We’re tired of being blamed for the choice that we made,” said Antoinette Sea-Gerald, a parent from Noble Street Charter School – Gary Comer College Prep. “Please, please, please continue to let us have our choice.”

“The school’s staying open?”

Before school started Wednesday, parents outside of Manierre Elementary were all smiles, after hearing the news that their school would remain open. Parent Charae Williams was walking her daughter to preschool when she heard the news from a WBEZ reporter.

“It’s going to stay open?” Williams asked. “Ooh, that is good! That’s amazing. I’m just so happy now.”

“I got a text from another parent…and I just immediately started crying,” said parent Shereena Allison. “It was a happy experience, but I hate the fact that all of the schools (were) not included in it.”

Follow @WBEZeducation on Twitter for live updates.

Affected schools: Closures, turnarounds and receiving schools

Chicago school officials approve new schools, but no neighborhood options

Wed, 23 Jan 2013 16:52:00 -0600

Parents who live near downtown Chicago are not happy with Mayor Rahm Emanuel this week.

Emanuel announced a plan Tuesday to add 200 more spots a year to Jones College Prep -- one of Chicago Public Schools’ coveted selective enrollment schools.

The expansion will be accomplished by keeping the old Jones College Prep building open. Parents like John Jacoby, who lives near the school, have fought to have Jones as a neighborhood option.

“Unfortunately, his plan to add selective seats does nothing to help the families in the community that paid the tax dollars that built Jones and have paid the tax dollars that will now repair Jones,” Jacoby said.

Alderman Bob Fioretti (2nd) is also upset with the plan. Parents throughout Fioretti’s ward, which includes the South Loop, West Loop, Chinatown and University Village, are pushing for a neighborhood high school, where children are guaranteed a seat and don’t have to test in.

“Help keep thousands of middle class families here in this city,” Fioretti said. “Don’t push them out to the suburbs or elsewhere.”

Last year, CPS officials announced a plan to serve the community by reserving 75 spots in each grade for neighborhood students. But CPS Officer of Access and Enrollment Kathryn Ellis said Tuesday that neighborhood students still must qualify with grades and test scores.

CPS Board President David Vitale said the district met countless times with alderman and the community to come up with solutions. He also noted the overwhelming demand for selective enrollment schools—last year CPS received 18,000 applications for 3,000 spots citywide.

The Board of Education also approved two new charter schools—an arts-based elementary called The Orange School and a 6th through 12th grade high school called Foundations College Prep. Both have conditional approval and will need to have a location approved. Board member Andrea Zopp said she felt strongly that new schools locate in neighborhoods where there is a need.

In addition to the two charters, the Board approved four new alternative schools, mostly to serve high school dropouts. Those schools are: Banner School, Pathways in Education, Little Black Pearl Art and Design Academy and Edison Learning’s Magic Johnson Academy.

At Wednesday’s meeting, CPS officials again reiterated that they plan to close schools and need to do so to spend money more efficiently, but did not provide a detailed description of the long term cost savings. A second round of community meetings regarding school closings start Monday.

Did CPS let building go to pot before ‘turnaround’?

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 11:25:00 -0600

The Chicago Board of Education on Wednesday is scheduled to vote on proposals to close or completely restaff 17 schools. That would make more than 100 the district has shut down or restaffed in the last decade. School officials say their approach gives students in poorly performing schools more options. But there’s an old accusation that the district lets some school buildings go to pot until just before turning them over to private management groups. From our West Side bureau, we look at a school where parents and teachers are making that accusation.

MITCHELL: Lajuan Criswell’s daughter is a first-grader at Herzl Elementary, a school in Chicago’s North Lawndale neighborhood. Criswell’s mom teaches there. And Criswell herself serves on the Local School Council and volunteers after school twice a week. She says the building gets too hot in the winter — some days as high as 80 or 90 degrees. And Criswell says there are other problems.

CRISWELL: We don’t have air conditioning. The water fountains on some of the floors don’t function either. Some outlets — that look like they have perhaps had electrical fires at one point — they have the scorch marks. Paint and plaster that was peeling off for the last few years. And something with the plumbing so that the first floor has paint peeling off some of the ceilings.

MITCHELL: And don’t even get Criswell started on the building’s asbestos and lead. She says the problems have gone on awhile. The district is starting to send in more repair crews.

CRISWELL: But only because a new company is coming in, not because they really care about the safety or health of my child or anybody else’s child in that building.

MITCHELL: Because they’re going to have a private company come in and run the school.

CRISWELL: Exactly. That’s the driving force trying to fix it up.

MITCHELL: The private group will replace the entire staff. Chicago Public Schools calls that process a “turnaround.” Now, something Criswell doesn’t mention is that the Local School Council she serves on will have no control at Herzl if this turnaround proceeds. So you could say she’d have a motive to exaggerate about the building’s conditions. But there are lots of critics of the turnaround model. And many say district management has unspoken motives, too. Some of Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s top CPS appointees came from AUSL, short for the Academy for Urban School Leadership. That’s the private group that would run the Herzl turnaround. Those officials include Tim Cawley, the district’s administrative chief. During a December call with reporters, Cawley acknowledged CPS avoids sinking money into buildings it might close within the next 10 years.

CAWLEY: We really believe the investment in the facility makes sense when it’s partnered with a program change. So, in going into those schools without a doing a more comprehensive change — just painting the walls and putting new lighting in and creating a more positive interior when nothing else has changed at the school — doesn’t get you the same return on the investment as it does when there’s a fresh start.

MITCHELL: By fresh start, he means the turnaround. And, again, in that phone call Cawley said CPS considers closing schools as long as 10 years ahead of time. If that’s the case, kindergarteners at some poor-performing schools might never see major building improvements before leaving for high school. So where has this approach left Herzl Elementary, a school on academic probation for years? I decided to check out the building myself. Last week I asked for a quick tour in a message to the school’s principal. Her name’s Teresa Anderson. I didn’t hear back, so I called again. And again. Tuesday, I went over to Herzl without an appointment.

MITCHELL: I’ve been calling since Thursday. She hasn’t been returning my calls. Taxpayers pay for this building. We’ve been hearing a lot about the conditions here and we want to see them.

STAFFER: She’s not available to speak right now.

MITCHELL: Is that her right there?

STAFFER: (Indecipherable).

MITCHELL: She was off the phone looking right at me just a minute ago. She can’t step out here to speak with me for five minutes?

STAFFER: No, she’s on a conference call right now.

MITCHELL: OK, I’ll wait until the end of her call.

STAFFER: OK.

MITCHELL: Principal Anderson eventually came out but said I could not look around the building and asked me to leave. The CPS central office backed her up. The district says Herzl building upgrades this summer will total about $9 million. If the school board approves the turnaround Wednesday, those improvements will be just in time for the arrival of private management.

WBEZ’s Linda Lutton contributed audio to this story.

Lunch staffers to CPS: We want to cook

Wed, 25 Jan 2012 00:43:00 -0600

Chicago schools are serving more healthy food than they were a couple years ago, but many kitchen workers seem to think the district still has a long way to go.

For the 2010-11 school year, Chicago Public Schools switched to menus with more whole grains, a wider array of vegetables, and less sodium, starch, sugar and fat. For the current school year, the district made its breakfast offerings more nutritious. The district says it’s also adding more salad bars.

A union that represents about 3,200 CPS food workers on Tuesday released survey findings suggesting that many students and even school principals are not eating the chow. UNITE HERE Local 1 criticized the district’s use of frozen food prepared off site, and called on the Board of Education to “ensure that all new school construction projects are planned with full-size kitchen facilities capable of real cooking.”

Linda Green, a 22-year CPS employee who works in the Southwest Side’s Grimes Elementary kitchen, said students are eating less of what she serves than they once did. “There is a lot of waste because it’s just unappetizing,” said Green, who helped conduct the survey. “If it’s cooked on site you can use more seasoning and make it more flavorful.”

Local 1 said 436 CPS food employees completed the survey in December. According to the union, 42 percent felt that students were eating the new food, 50 percent reported they rarely or never had observed their principals eating their cafeteria’s lunch offerings, 75 percent indicated they had not had a chance to provide input about the new menu and recipes, 62 percent wanted more training on healthy food and 39 percent felt they could report food quality or safety concerns to parents or students without facing discipline.

A CPS statement says about a quarter of the district’s schools now serve food prepared mostly off site. The statement says that “all new elementary schools are being built with a warming kitchen” and that “all new middle and high schools are being built with cooking kitchens.”

“The food that is brought into the warming kitchen meets the same nutritional guidelines as the food in the cooking school model,” the statement adds. “We are committed to providing healthy and nutritious meals for all students at all schools. Delivery of this meal may depend on a variety of factors including kitchen capacity, facility size and condition as well as cost. However, nutritional standards are consistent across all schools. Vendors, regardless of delivery system, are expected to meet the same nutritional standards.”

The survey findings came as the U.S. Department of Agriculture planned a Wednesday unveiling of the first major changes in school meal standards in more than 15 years. The department says the new rules aim to reduce childhood obesity by “ensuring kids are offered fruits and vegetables every day of the week, substantially increasing offerings of whole grain-rich foods, offering only fat-free or low-fat milk varieties and making sure kids are getting proper portion sizes.”

A version of the guidelines the department proposed more than a year ago would also have cut down on potatoes, made it harder for schools to report pizza tomato paste as a vegetable, and halved the amount of sodium in school meals. In November, lawmakers blocked the department from carrying out those rules.

CPS to stock EpiPens, propose new health policies

Tue, 24 Jan 2012 13:45:00 -0600

Chicago Public Schools announced it will begin to stock EpiPens, which are used to inject medication into a person experiencing anaphylaxis shock. The medication and delivery tool of the EpiPen can be life-saving for those with severe allergies to food or other substances.

EpiPens will begin being stocked at all Chicago Public Schools pending approval by the Board of Education at a meeting Wednesday.

According to a CPS press release, if approved, CPS will have authorization to purchase "a quantity sufficient to provide between four and six devices per school."

Stocking schools with EpiPens will bring the District into compliance with a state law passed this year, and is expected to cost around $195,000. The District's Office of Special Education and Supports is charged with the purchase and distribution of the devices.

EpiPens are expected to be in schools before the 2012-13 school year. CPS estimates 4,000 of its students have diagnosed allergies. The press release did not state whether EpiPens would be rstocked after use, and who would pay for restocking. The new policy also allows students to carry and self-administer EpiPens, as well as their own asthma inhalers when authorized by a parent or guardian.

All CPS staff would also be required to undergo training for: management and prevention of allergic reactions; identifying and treating Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD); and on diabetes management and asthma.

Regarding diabetes management, the district is also proposing policy that complies with state guidelines. Under state policy, if a school nurse can not assist a student with diabetes, the school must have a "Delegated Care Aide" for every student with diabetes at a school. CPS cited 659 documented cases of students with Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes.

A CPS press release also said it will propose its first-ever asthma management policy to the Board of Education this week. CPS said it has more than 19,000 students with documented cases of asthma, or roughly five percent of its student population.

Proposed policy also addresses requirements for student access to over-the-counter medication. Students would no longer require a medical provider to authorize OTC use, but would require a parent or guardian to do so. Students would not be allowed to carry OTC medication during school hours.

Chicago School closings, Board of Ed meeting gets shut down, and North Side students react to losing 'magnet' status

Fri, 16 Dec 2011 18:37:00 -0600

From a contentious Board of Education meeting to the phasing out of a coveted magnet school in Lincoln Park/Old Town, this week and last has been a big moment for Chicago's schools system.

Board of Education Meeting gets 'Occupied'

WBEZ's education reporter Linda Lutton reported from the Chicago Board of Education meeting on Wednesday, where protesters took over, and shouted down school CEO Jean-Claude Brizard. (Click article for audio)

Security guards escorted protesters out of the board chambers. but as quickly the leader could be removed, someone else took up the chanting.

Protesters frequently cited school closing data that was first reported by WBEZ.

City proposals would have Chicago shutter its 100th school since Williams, Terrell and Dodge, the first of many schools closed over 10 years ago. WBEZ and Catalyst plotted out annual school closings and turnarounds over the last decade in Chicago.

Commission that can authorize charter schools, raise its own private funds

WBEZ West Side reporter Chip Mitchell examined the agency responsible for overseeing charter schools and the source of their funding.

The Illinois State Charter School Commission, created by a law enacted this summer, can authorize charter schools that fail to win approval of local school districts. The commission is allowed to raise private money to fund itself. The commission’s sole funding so far is a $50,000 grant from the Walton Family Foundation, which supports several Illinois charter school operators and their state trade group.

In Chicago, some find public transit fares linked to school attendance

What would happen if every student in Chicago got a free ride to school and back? Some parents, students and educators think that could help get more kids to school. Kate Dries reports.

Popular magnet school targeted for 'Phase Out' in Lincoln Park: Students respond, diversity questioned

Chicago Public Schools is floating a plan to phase out one of its most popular magnet schools. Linda Lutton reports.

LaSalle Language Academy magnet school in Old Town gets 1,500 applications a year for around 70 openings.

Now, CPS wants to slowly convert the magnet to a neighborhood school that draws from the immediate area, one of the ritziest in the city. The school would take no new magnet school kindergartners in the fall, unless they already had a sibling enrolled in the school. Instead, the kindergarten would be filled with neighborhood children.

Students respond in the comments of our report:

"I think that it would be really bad if we lose our magnet status. By losing our magnet status, we lose what we stand for, which is our diversity, ability to learn a new language, and the experience to travel overseas. LaSalle has given us the opportunity to learn multiple languages and celebrate/learn multiple cultures...."
--Daisy
"I am currently an 8th grader at LaSalle. I have cherished the experience that I have had at this school. I will soon be going to France and Washington D.C. With my class, and that is something that many other schools don't have. If the city changes the school from magnet to neighborrhood, no one will have that experience."
--Bryce Montgomery
"If LaSalle became a neighborhood school, it would lose many qualities that it is known for, today. Its diversity would vanish, and so would the language programs. These could possibly affect kids later in life."
--Andie

Read more from the comment thread

Charter-school agency’s funding raises questions

Thu, 15 Dec 2011 11:49:00 -0600

A new government agency could boost the number of charter schools in Illinois. But the way the agency is financing itself raises questions.

The Illinois State Charter School Commission, created by a law enacted this summer, can authorize charter schools that fail to win approval of local school districts. The per-pupil state funding for the charter schools comes at the expense of the districts. The commission will also monitor the performance of schools it authorizes.

Despite the commission’s responsibilities, the state has not provided it any startup money. The only public-funding mechanism won’t be in place until next July, when the commission can begin collecting a fee from schools it authorizes.

Greg Richmond, the commission chairman, said his agency will need between $100,000 and $200,000 to operate until then.

The law that set up the commission allows it to raise private money. The commission’s sole funding so far is a $50,000 grant from the Walton Family Foundation, which supports several Illinois charter school operators and their state trade group.

Told by WBEZ about this financing, Illinois Federation of Teachers President Dan Montgomery said it created a conflict of interest.

“This is really the rubber hitting the road — why we thought this was a bad law,” said Montgomery, whose union includes most K-12 teachers in Chicago. “The state should reconsider this. I don’t think the people of Illinois would stand for the gaming industry, say, to have the right to reverse a community’s decision not to allow a race track in its town. I don’t know why we wouldn’t give at least the same protections to the children of Illinois.”

A spokesman for the Illinois Education Association, the state’s largest teacher union, echoed Montgomery.

But the law’s chief sponsor, state Sen. Heather Steans, D-Chicago, said providing taxpayer funds for the commission’s launch would have been unpopular. “It was not going to make folks happy [to take] dollars away that could be going to the traditional public schools,” she said.

Other states have allowed charter school commissions to launch with private funding, Steans said.

The Illinois State Board of Education doesn’t see a conflict with the commission accepting foundation money, according to board spokeswoman Mary Fergus. “If we had any information that specific strings were attached to the donation/funding, that would be a problem,” Fergus said in a statement.

Before the commission’s creation, charter school operators that failed to win authorization from local school districts could appeal to ISBE. That state board received dozens of appeals but, according to Fergus, it reversed a district and authorized a charter school just three times.

Charter schools are independently run but depend on public funds. Most of their taxpayer support would otherwise go to local school districts.

Chicago officials have encouraged charter schools. On Wednesday, the city’s Board of Education approved a plan for 12 new charter school campuses. Chicago already has 109, a district spokeswoman said.

Elsewhere in Illinois, only 14 charter schools are operating. Officials in many districts say charters would weaken other schools by taking away students and resources. Those officials have been reluctant to authorize charter schools.

The nine commission members — recommended by Gov. Pat Quinn and appointed by ISBE — are already holding official meetings and overseeing a staff member, attorney Jeanne Nowaczewski.

The commission this month handled its first case, an appeal from a charter school operator spurned by school officials in west suburban Maywood. That operator withdrew the appeal last week after meeting with Nowaczewski, according to Richmond, the commission chairman.

The money for the commission’s staffing and other expenses so far comes from the Walton foundation. That family started Walmart and Sam’s Club. Other recipients of Walton grants include the Illinois Network of Charter Schools, a statewide umbrella. The foundation reports that it gave the network more than $1 million in 2010. Andrew Broy, the network’s president, said the amount for 2011 is about $950,000.

The network also serves as an intermediary — a “fiscal agent” in nonprofit parlance — for Walton’s funding of the state commission. Richmond said Nowaczewski receives her paychecks from the network, not the commission.

Richmond acknowledged that the Walton money could create the perception that the commission has a conflict of interest. But he urged the public to withhold judgment on the financing until seeing how the commission performs.

“We’re going to do everything possible to do the right thing, to act ethically, to make decisions based on the merits of what’s in the interest of kids, what’s in compliance with the law,” Richmond said.

Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan’s office hasn’t issued an opinion about whether the commission’s funding meets legal and ethical standards, a spokeswoman said.

The Illinois Association of School Administrators, which represents most school district superintendents in the state, declined to comment about the commission’s financing.

Chicago Board of Education votes to limit number credit cards to 5

Wed, 28 Sep 2011 21:32:00 -0500

The Chicago Board of Education voted on Wednesday to change its credit card policy.

Under the new plan, there will now be five credit cards for the entire Chicago Public Schools system. Previously, each of Chicago's 675 public schools could have up to three.

The credit cards will be under the direction of the CPS chief administrative officer.

In mid-September, the Board deactivated nearly 500 credit cards that had been issued to principals and other school personnel as per a new city-wide policy forcing agencies to reduce the number of issued cards to save money.

Chicago Teachers' Union president Karen Lewis discusses teachers' side of education debate

Thu, 01 Sep 2011 13:30:00 -0500

The president of the Chicago Teachers Union continued to criticize Mayor Emanuel's approach to implementing a longer school day at Chicago's public schools.

Speaking Thursday on WBEZ's Eight Forty-Eight, Lewis said an advisory committee formed to make recommendations about the specific shape of a longer school day is biased against public education and that the composition of the committee is "unpalatable".

“This committee is composed of people who believe in the destruction of general public - traditional public - schools and I don’t want to be a party to that because that's something that doesn't interest me," Lewis told WBEZ's Alison Cuddy.

Members of the Longer School Day Advisory Committee include Phyllis Lockett of New Schools for Chicago, Brian Brady of Mikva Challenge, Dr. Byron Brazier of the Apolistic Church of God, Celine Coggins of Teach Plus, Sarah Cobb of Neighborhood Parents Network, Guillermo Gomez of The Healthy Schools Campaign, Timothy Knowles of the Urban Education Institute, Father Michael Pfleger of St. Sabina’s Church, Juan Soto of Pilsen Neighbors Community Council , Alderman Latasha Thomas, Robin Steans of Advance Illinois, and Illinois Senator Kimberly Lightford, among others.

Schools on the Line

Chicago Public Schools CEO Jean-Claude Brizard will appear Thursday night on WBEZ at 7pm for a live monthly call-in program called Schools on the Line, where he'll take listener questions. Listeners can participate live or can submit questions in advance via email at Schoolsontheline@wbez.org or voicemail at 312-948-4886.

The proposal to extend Chicago's public school day was one of the key items discussed during the interview on Eight Forty-Eight, which also touched on the prospect for a strike, negotiations over a vote to rescind a four percent pay raise, and Lewis' relationship with schools CEO Jean Claude Brizard. Brizard will appear Thursday night on WBEZ at 7pm for a live monthly call-in program called Schools on the Line.

Here are some highlights from the interview with Lewis:

On the Longer School Day Advisory Committee:

“There are people I don’t wish to work with because they don’t have our best interests at heart. I'm not going to sit across the table and pretend that's ok. It's not. It's just not. So, if you want to sit across the table and stab me into little pieces, OK. I understand that. But I am not going to sit down and allow you to do it to me. So what I am saying is I will have my discussions with the CEO because I think that's important and they can have their discussions and I'm sure he'll bring to me some of the ideas they have. I am not sitting at the table with those folks."

On a longer school day:

"We want to make sure that a longer school day is not simply elongating the day we already have, because adding minutes to the day without adding quality to the curriculum is absolutely not going to see any fundamental change."

"We want to make sure that our students have a very broad curriculum and that that curriculum is not only broad, but that there is time for depth in the curriculum. But what we don’t want is an elongated day that is spent on test prep because that's what we've been seeing. And this is obviously not working."

On her priorities for a better school day:

"What we want to make sure is that we have art, music, P.E., social studies and science involved in [the] school day on a regular basis.”

"We’re working on bringing lunch to the middle of the day and also adding recess to make sure that our children have the opportunity to get a chance to work out a lot of energy and not feel so cooped up and so stressed."

On prospects for a teachers strike this year:

“To strike or not to strike is, quite frankly, a decision of our membership. Our membership has been extremely upset about the rescinding of the raises. However, they have also said we would like to keep this contract until the end because they do not want a longer school day imposed without proper planning and an opportunity to say how that looks."

On her relationship with CPS CEO Jean-Claude Brizard:

“We haven’t had as substantive conversations as I’d like. We are very new in our relationship. But I will tell you there is no hostility, there's no animosity and I’m looking forward to working him.”

Chicago schools CEO Brizard to take listener calls on new WBEZ program

Thu, 04 Aug 2011 16:19:00 -0500

It's not often the public gets a chance to speak directly with a key city leader, but not so now if you're a student, teacher, parent or citizen interested in public education in Chicago.

The head of Chicago Public Schools has agreed to appear monthly on WBEZ 91.5FM in a new, live special call-in program about the state of education in the nation's third largest school district.

CPS CEO Jean-Claude Brizard will join WBEZ hosts for a full hour each month to take questions and comments from listeners via phone, email and Twitter.

The program, called Schools on the Line, debuts Monday, August 8th from 7pm-8pm on WBEZ 91.5 FM and wbez.org. Thereafter, the program will air on the first Thursday of each month.

“I believe strongly in having an open and transparent dialogue with the public and doing so in as many ways as I can, " said Brizard. "Public radio has always been at the forefront of engaging the public in issues of vital importance to our communities, such as education, and I believe this will provide an incredible opportunity for them to hear from me directly about all issues impacting our children’s academic success.”

I'll be hosting the first episode of Schools on the Line - and we invite you to participate. You can do so, of course, during the live broadcast Monday at 7pm - or by submitting questions and comments in advance.

To participate

-Email questions to: SchoolsOnTheLine@wbez.org

-Leave a question or comment for Mr. Brizard ahead of time by calling 312-948-4886

-Join the live broadcast at 7pm by sending an email or by calling 312-923-9239

-Twitter: @AskBrizard