Guess whose schools were closed? The poorest, the neediest, the children of color. Now the charter operators will decide which ones they want. They will take the “strivers.” Who will take the others?
Which children will be left behind in the era of No Child Left Behind?
Which children come in last in Arne Duncan’s Race to the Top?
How will the PR folks spin the mass closure of 50 public schools as a victory in “the civil rights issue of our time?”
It is historic. Never in our history have 50 public schools been shuttered at one time. Rahm Emanuel and Barbara Byrd-Bennett will enter the history books, undoubtedly in a chapter about the corporate assault on the very principle of public education. No doubt, the hedge fund managers and equity investors are clicking their champagne glasses tonight. Quite a victory for them and Stand for Children and Democrats for Education Reform, and yes, for ALEC.
The great social movements of the past 60 years advanced through the mechanism of public education: racial desegregation; gender equity; the inclusion of children with disabilities. And what began in the public schools radiated out into the society as a whole.
The page on which Rahm Emanuel’s name is inscribed in the history books will record this day of infamy, this betrayal of children, this abandonment of an institution that has been so essential to our democracy.
.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
Diane, this is all terrible enough on its own, but I want to point out an interesting sidebar. As you know, the states now have established charter commissions as part of Race to the Top, and Illinois has one of these appointed commissions, which can overrule school districts’ charter decisions.
The Illinois commission only a couple days ago approved a new charter for Illinois, overriding the Chicago Public Schools board’s earlier decision not to approve this particular charter.
The charter has already applied for a zoning variance right down the street from one of the public schools on this closure list! There’s a community meeting tonight about the zoning.
In the midst of an historic attack on public education, the state steps in an adds another charter into the mix.
Just for icing on the cake, the charter is a Concept school— one of the Gulen school networks that you wrote about some time ago.
Ugh. Tim, we have the same situation in PA where the state charter appeal board can, and has, overturned a local board’s decision. Just this week the School District of Lancaster voted to deny an attempted Gulen Charter School (and wrote an amazingly scathing 35 page denial) but they are almost certain to appeal and this travesty could be foisted upon us anyway –We put together a community group to battle them–I hope parents, teachers and community members in Chicago can do the same.
Mara, the idea of having a state board overturn the decision of local school boards was devised by ALEC, the far-right organization that values corporate interests over local control.
I find it fascinating that the idea of “local government” is a mantra to the far right, except when it isn’t. This awful news out of Chicago takes my breath away (my sister is a CPS teacher and her son and another niece are students there–my sisters are actively protesting the dealings of Rahm and co.) but makes my our little grassroots group more determined than ever to make some noise and make a difference. We called, petitioned and generally bothered everyone we know to fight this charter app. The SDoL’s scathing denial is worth a read: http://lancasteronline.com/article/local/828342_Text-of-Lancaster-school-board-s-decision-on-Academy-of-Business-and-Entrepreneurship-Charter-School-.html Onto the state charter board–and finding our way through Harrisburg! Yikes.
“I find it fascinating that the idea of “local government” is a mantra to the far right, except when it isn’t.”
That is the pattern with the GOP/TEA which has no remaining centrists and has become over the top ultra-conservative –and that’s precisely why no power should ever be ceded to them. They say they want to see less government telling people what to do, but all that changes whenever it’s not in the best interests of corporations. And their compatriots, the religious right, want to make everyone comply with their interpretations of Christian moral standards, as if they are the national religion
The GOP/TEA, along with the phony so-called “Democrat” liars, all really represent the fringes of our nation, while the 99% have very few politicians on their side, like Independent Bernie Sanders. Time to vote third party.
Wow, Mara. That really is a scathing denial letter. I’m going to reprint it for future reference. I have very little doubt that your state charter authority will overrule the board; that’s the purpose of the state charter authority. Diane, I have done what I can to pore over the ALEC templates, but I have never found the one that establishes these state boards. If you have a link to it, I would like to see it. It’s the sort of thing that needs to waved publicly in front of all of these state lawmakers to let them know we’re on to them.
Tim, Look here: http://www.alec.org/model-legislation/the-next-generation-charter-schools-act/
See this, too, Tim (It looks like ALEC has all their basis covered): http://www.alec.org/model-legislation/charter-school-growth-with-quality-act/
As long as they get their paycheck from the puppetmaster they do not care. That is all there is to it.
And it’s appalling how Obama stands silently by. He has been far more successful, it appears, than GW Bush at accelerating privitization.
But that’s who Obama is: the President of Privitization and Profiteers digsuised as the Constitutional law professor and human rights advocate.
I have never voted Republican, but I loathe this president’s orientation towards public education.
He is ACTIVELY involved because he is a fraud who infiltrated the Democratic Party to kill it from within.
I NEVER voted for him last year, and I don’t support him because I feel he is very possibly the very worst president we have ever had.
Just wait until he eviscerates Social Security and Medicare. Those are in his sights.
According to Karen Lewis, Rahm has flown the coop–out of town on vacation–as the news comes down. Gives new meaning to, “When the going gets tough, the tough get going.”
I weep for the children, parents, teachers and other community members impacted by this horrible decision. As goes Chicago, so goes the nation.
Kindergeek–Quite chilling, your last sentence,”As goes Chicago…”
In large part, methinks, this is payback/punishment being meted out to the CTU for making national news, so it’s even more than being about the charter school $$$. Teachers who today received a notification that their school is going into turnaround were given–in that letter–a list of mental health facilities. (See “Fred Klonsky’s Blog” for more.)
Mental health facilities? I thought they closed all of those long ago. At least the public ones. So I guess those are private, for-profit services?
“Which children come in last in Arne Duncan’s Race to the Top?”
Heartbreaking.
S HAME!
I came upon this interesting article on the Crooks and Liars website.
http://crooksandliars.com/willbunch/long-hot-summer-2013
A great read, but tucked inside is the BROAD playbook for closing public schools. If you have the stomach for it, please read. It foretells what is currently happening all over the country with school closings. It is actually titled “School Closure Guide”. As described in this extraordinarily insightful article it “was published in 2009 to guide presumably Broad-trained superintendents on a step by step method to implement mass closures of public schools in already distressed communities — exactly what’s happening now in Philadelphia, Chicago and elsewhere.” Take a look.
Click to access school-closure-guide1.pdf
In my own little “City of No Illusions”, Buffalo, NY, our reformy Superintendent is beginning to questions the need for all of our schools to be open. We are counting “seats” and giving per-pupil budgets to principals. This, of course, favors the large schools and effective begins the closure of small schools sue to lack of funds. I think all urban Superintendents received this Broad manifesto and for some reason they adhere to it like a holy message from God. So, God help us, I guess.
The Trib is reporting 61 school buildings to be closed: http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/chi-chicago-public-school-closings-20130321,0,6209792.story
Co-locations of NEW charter schools were also announced. There are schools on that list where I have worked and know very well that they were not “under-utilized.” Now all those kids are to be crammed into classes in other buildings and all of my colleagues will be jobless. This is so sad
I would never vote GOP/TEA, but I may never vote for another so-called “Democrat” again.
Where will the “others” go? Low paying retail and services sectors, the streets, military, prison. Eugenics, by design, of that lower 47%.
That is where they go now! Push through and drop out to ????
And where is the public scream being shown on media? Where is
the discussion beyond this blog? Where are the organizations who
profess their advocacy for a level playing education field for our children? GREED rules the day and the nation, indeed, Greed rules the world! The sanctimonious paternalist belief by the puppet masters that this is for our good, and of course theirs, is sickening!
As for the President that I believed would have had a real concern for inclusive fair and progressive concerns for all of our children, it appears he and his administration, especially Mr. Duncan have gone
AWOL. They have turned the children over to the privateers and their intellectual elitist quest for the best and brightest leaving the rest behind. Disturbing and deceitful!!! Worse then disappointing!
As bad as 30 years of the business model in education “reform” has been in Chicago, including the Paul Vallas nightmare years, the turnarounds and school closings didn’t begin until Duncan was appointed CEO of CPS. Duncan started that all here and he and Obama unleashed it on the nation. No doubt, they’re celebrating these school closings, as more fodder for their corporate sponsors to swoop in and privatize. CPS often charges only $1 for rent to charters.
Time to put so-called “Democrats” in quotes, too, along with so-called corporate “reformers” and so-called TFA “teachers.”
This is a “Democrat” who is every bit a fraud as the president.
The American people are truly screwed if this is what has become of once was the Democratic Party.
We’ve got to turn the tide of oppressive discriminatory policy. It’s not just about education, yes it starts in schools, but this is how the ultra conservative agenda will prevail in the future for all.
I feel I was completely hoodwinked by fighting aganist Romney’s 47% comment, the bankers, the choice issue, all a distraction to slide this 1% agenda right by us.
We have Diane Ravitch’s blog of course and her daily advocation. We have CTU and how they pushed back the tsunami temporarily, but what else? What else can we do. Chicago, Philly, Sacramento. ugh.
Last week, I was watching on a Chicago community cable network some of the parents who were speaking out against the public school closures. There were some very passionate, outspoken white parents, on this particular show, all of whom were from Daley’s old stomping ground, the Bridgeport and Back of the Yards neighborhoods. Not one of their schools is on the closure list now.
All but two of the schools on the closure list are in the heavily low income Black and Hispanic south side and west side. The only two schools slated for closure on the north side are in pockets that serve primarily Hispanic and Black children.
These decisions appear to be very racist.
I just read an article in the Huffington post about this and it was insinuated that this is the unions fault because of the strike, and their high demands for teachers.
kb, read my reply, above, to kindergeek. I have NO doubt whatsoever that a part of this is punishment for the national attention gained by the CTU–not even so much the strike, but the POSITIVE attention, making CPS, et. al., look like villains.