This is the end of the 11th day of the hunger strike to save Dyett High School in Chicago.
You can help. Here are some suggestions:
Parents 4 Teachers
Parents 4 Teachers (P4T) has come together to stand up for teachers and work for real education reform.
Standing up for teachers means standing up for our kids!
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#WeareDyett too! Call the Mayor, 312-744-3300
Flood Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s office with calls, 312-744-3300, urging him to support the Dyett Global Leadership and Green Technology High School. Breaking news from the Chicago Sun-Times:
CPS, Emanuel hint new school may not be needed at Dyett site – http://chicago.suntimes.com/news/7/71/912424/doctors-urge-mayor-act-hunger-strikers
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We at Parents 4 Teachers express our strongest solidarity with and deepest concern for the health and well-being of Chicago’s Dyett 12, who initiated a hunger strike nearly two weeks ago to urge city and CPS leaders to re-open Dyett High School (which the Board of Education voted to phase out in February 2012) as an open-enrollment, public, neighborhood high school. For years, Mayor Emanuel and his appointed Board of Education has undermined and stalled decision-making on this community-driven proposal to re-open the Bronzeville high school—the last public, neighborhood high school in this historic African American neighborhood—as the Dyett Global Leadership and Green Technology High School (see proposal here).
As an action of last-resort to the years of stalling and underhandedness of Mayor Emanuel and his appointed/unelected Board of Education, these courageous parents, grandparents and community members are putting their bodies on the line so their children and children across Chicago can have high quality, equitable and joyous public schools.
Because of the media blackout on the #FightForDyett hunger strike, P4T, like so many others, has taken to social media to get the word out. We are regularly posting on Twitter (follow us at @P4TChicago) and P4T FB. And most importantly, we have been going to Dyett at 555 E. 51st (they are generally there from 10-3) to support the hunger strikers in any way we can. Please join us!
Here are other ways that you can help now:
1) Call the Mayor’s office at 312-744-3300 and urge him to meet with the Hunger Strikers ASAP and express your support for the Dyett Global Leadership and Green Technology proposal. Also, call your Alderman to put pressure on the Mayor.
2) Attend the #FightForDyett Solidarity and Cultural Event Friday, August 28, 5:00-7:00pm at Operation Push, 50th & Drexel; bring your music, poetry and love to uplift the Hunger Strikers.
3) See the Teachers for Social Justice website and Dyett GLGT FB page for action alerts and updates.
For more information about this important struggle for our children and public education, please see the following:
Phantoms Playing Double-Dutch: Why the Fight for Dyett is Bigger than One Chicago School Closing | Eve L. Ewing, August 26, 2015
Fight for Dyett High School Hunger Strike—Day 8 | CNNiReport, August 25, 2015
In Chicago, Hunger Strikers Fight for a High School | Washington Post, August 26, 2015
Dyett Hunger-Strikers Vow to Continue Fight | Chicago Sun-Times, August 26, 2015
Two School Board Members Press for Resolution of Dyett High Controversy | Catalyst, August 26, 2015
Teachers, Parents, Rail Against CPS Budget, Dyett Hunger Striker Collapses | DNAInfo, August 26, 2015
Dyett Hunger Strikers Gain Support; Striker Collapses at CPS Board Meeting | Chicago Tribune, August 26, 2015
Chicago Parents Launch Hunger Strike for Community Input in School’s Future | Reel News, August 23, 2015
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We have a lot of work ahead of us to ensure quality schools for all Chicago children and fairness and respect for educators.
Please join us and consider making a donation to support our work.
Email info@parents4teachers.net to get involved and then forward this email to a friend!
Parents4Teachers, Defending Public Education, Chicago, IL 60625
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Diane Ravitch's blog 
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The City Club of Chicago had a forum to debate whether they should keep the unelected school board it currently has, or return to an elected school board. On the panel were the then-CEO of Chicago Public Schools Jesse Ruiz—who favors privatizing schools and keeping the board appointed, and not elected—and (future hunger striker) Jitu Brown, a community activist who favors an elected school board, and is against turning over schools to privately-run charters.
At one point in this forum, Ruiz claims that keeping the board appointed also keeps forces from “inserting more politics” into Board operations, and prevents union-backed candidates from having influence on contracts. Jesse insists, “I don’t have to raise a dime from anybody. I don’t have to worry about my next campaign…” to get elected or re-elected.
Jitu Brown, a community activist, and proponent of having an elected school board, counters this, referencing the cushy no-bid contracts, where school buildings / annual school budgets are turned over to the Charter Management Organizations like the “Academy for Urban School Leadership” (AUSL), while former/future AUSL officials are serving on the board.
Can you say “conflict of interest”?
Jitu also references the community’s grassroots fight to keep open Dyett High School, the only remaining traditional (non-charter) public high school (“open-enrollment”) in the Bronzeville neighborhood.
( 30:24 – 31:42 )
( 30:24 – 31:42 )
JITI BROWN: “I got a question for you, though, Jesse.”
JESSE RUIZ: “Yes?”
JITI BROWN: “How could it be any more ‘POLITICAL’ than it is RIGHT NOW?? I mean HONESTLY! You have the Chief Operations Officer for Chicago Public Schools who’s the former CEO of ‘The Academy of Urban School Leadership.’ (AUSL charter chain)
“You have the Board President of the Chicago Board of Education, who is the former Board President of ‘The Academy of Urban School Leadership’ . They (AUSL) get schools (turned over to them) with no-bid contracts. They (AUSL) just—and despite the fact that they (AUSL) have (failed initially and) had to turn around THEIR OWN turn-arounds at two high schools TWICE! They (AUSL) have had to restart Phillips (High School) TWICE! They (AUSL) have had to restart Orr (High School) TWICE! How could it be more… (political)’?
“Right now, right now, the mayor of Chicago… was… this morning was at (Chater School organization) LITTLE BLACK PEARL, which is a politically-connected arts organization when we have been fighting like wet cats for (to save) Dyett High School (as a traditional non-charter school), in Bronzeville, saying that we don’t want to loser our last open-enrollment neighborhood high school, and the mayor is getting a political endorsement at (from) an (privately-run charter) organization that is submitting an application for (taking over) Dyett (High School)???!!!
“Do you ACTUALLY THINK that we that this is FAIR??!!
“How could it possibly be MORE ‘political’?
“You just had a (CPS) board member (Deborah Quazzo, was later forced to resign over this) who was caught taking profits, her company taking profits. So how can it be more ‘POLITICAL’ than it is right now???!! I mean, HONESTLY!!”
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HOW PUBLIC SCHOOL GOVERNANCE WORKS IN CHICAGO:
Jesse Ruiz, a current appointee to Chicago’s unelected School Board, appeared at a forum held at the City Club of Chicago last February 2, 2015. It was a discussion about whether Chicago should keep its appointed (by the mayor) school board, or return to the old system of having citizens elect a board. The return to an elected board was overwhelmingly endorsed by Chicago’s citizens in a non-binding vote last spring.
In defending the unelected Chicago School Board upon which he sits, Jesse opened his mouth and made some “WTF-did-he-just-say?!” statements that were, thankfully, captured for posterity on video.
NOTE: Earlier this summer, Jesse was also briefly the interim Chicago Schools CEO (not Superintendent… schools are a business in Chi-town) when the then-CEO Barbara Byrd-Bennett had to resign after prosecutors announced an investigation of her conflict-of-interests in spearheading a multi-million-dollar contract to a principals’ training organization that she had ties to… but that’s another story.
Anyway, back to Jesse Ruiz, who, years ago, was also appointed to the Illinois’ State Board of Ed, where he served for several years. At Ruiz’ aforementioned appearance at a City Club of Chicago forum, Jesse started talking about how hundreds of school districts in Illinois had elected boards, and while serving on the Illinois board, he got along well with the members of those elected boards—he calls them his “colleagues”.
However, Ruiz nevertheless argues that Chicago must not have an elected school board, and made the following justification: (here’s the video.. go to about 06:58 – 07:35)
(06:59 – 07:35)
JESSE RUIZ, Chicago Board of Ed.: “But for our city, I honestly do believe that it would be best left as it is, as an appointed school board, because it’s an incredibly complicated and diverse district. There are very difficult decisions to be made, and sometimes they’re not very popular decisions, and I would have to—I WOULD HATE to have to worry about my next election when making a vote.
“I NEVER worry about that. I’ve NEVER HAD TO worry about that, or worry about WHO, WHO… uhhh… I am pleasing, or un-pleasing with my vote. All I worry about is what’s best for the students in the city of Chicago. And so therefore, that’s the system that I prefer.”
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I don’t know about you, Peter, but Jesse’s really “un-pleasing” me with his justification for the 20-years-and-counting cancellation of popular democracy in the governance of Chicago’s public schools, and where the corporate reformers and profiteers that bankrolled Rahm Emanuel’s election now drive the policy… and not Chicago’s citizens.
How about you, Peter? Are you as “un-pleased” with then-CEO and
But seriously, istn’t that how democracy works?
When some policy implementation is unpopular and “un-pleasing” with the citizen-taxpayers—no matter how much Board Member Ruiz, or any elected official is desirous of such implementation—that fear of being removed from office in an upcoming election is a necessary check-and-balance, one that reins in Ruiz and his fellow Board members from doing something that the voters—his ultimate “bosses” in a democracy—do not want to happen. The will of the people will prevail in this scenario… theoretically, at least.
This was particularly relevant when Ruiz and his un-elected Board closed 50 traditional public schools—with them replaced by privately-run charters—despite overwhelming polling saying that the tax-paying citizens of Chicago would be very “un-pleased” by this. (I know, I’m beating the “un-pleased” joke to death… that was the last one.)
At the very least, these schools being closed had elected Local Schoolsite Councils (LSC’s) made up of parents and community members, with albeit minimal decision-making power. The privately-managed charters that are currently in the process of replacing them, however, have no such LSC’s, and thus, the parents have ZERO input. Parents are barred from the meetings of that board, which are held in secret, and chaired by businessmen who have ZERO experience as teachers and/or administrators.
MORE ON…”Board Member Ruiz” in my next post.
This Hispanic Jimmy Fallon-look-alike Jesse Ruiz is not the pleasant, engaging, and mild mannered politico that he presents himself as in the ABOVE video. Again, here’s the link:
To contrast this, see how Ruiz behaves when the cameras are off, according an account of activist principal Troy LaRiviere in the Chicago Public Schools (CPS).
LaRiviere is a proponent of having and elected school board, and who backed Chuy Garcia, Emanuel’s opponent and Ruiz’ boss in the recent election.
BELOW is LaRiviere’s first-hand account. In the story that follows, LaRiviere put his job on the line, and boldly confronted Ruiz at principals’ budget meeting, days before Ruiz was replaced as Interim CEO of CPS. LaRiviere took Ruiz to task about how Ruiz and his unelected board diverted $2 billion dollars of school funds to organizations who had backed Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s successful re-election bid.
(NOTE: Years ago, Mayor Emanuel had appointed Ruiz to the Board, and also appointed Ruize to briefly lead the board as its interim CEO earlier this summer.)
In a real mano-a-mano confrontation, Ruiz clumsily attempted to refute LaRiviere’s contentions, but eventually became flustered and gave up, calling Ruiz a “loud-mouthed principal.”
All very entertaining stuff… read on…
This is an enlightening look into how zero free speech and non-democracy reigns with an unelected school board.
http://troylaraviere.net/2015/07/16/adding-insult-to-injury-a-look-inside-a-cps-principals-budget-meeting/
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Outspoken Principal Troy LaRaviere goes at Chicago Public Schools
CEO Jesse Ruiz one-on-one: (days before Ruiz was replaced)
Just before this excerpt begins, LaRiviere has been asking to have to floor, and speak at the principals’ budget meeting, when…
———-
TROY LARIVIERE:
At that point, interim CEO Jesse Ruiz stood up, projected his voice, and with a somewhat stern and agitated tone stated, “You can get your question addressed outside in the hall with me.”
Once again, a CPS official was stating, “Everyone will hear us, but no one will hear you, and no one will hear our response to you.”
His standing up was a bold move, seemingly intended to either intimidate me, or to make other principals think twice about seconding my question.
“My question needs to be addressed right here with the principals in this room,” I replied.
“YOU are disrupting this meeting,” he said.
“And YOU are insulting the intelligence of everyone in this meeting,” I countered.
At that point, my network chief asked that I accept the CEO’s offer to step outside the meeting; so I did. As I left I told principals, “If anyone else is interested in his answer to the question, we’ll be right outside the door.”
TROY LARIVIERE: (continued)
No principal took me up on my offer. When we got into the hallway, we began to engage in what I can only describe as a testosterone-driven, back-and-forth aimed at little else except besting the other’s last comment.
I’m sure there is quite a bit I’ve left out due to the limitations of my own memory, but here is—to the best of that memory—how it went once we left the auditorium.
LARIVIERE: “That political propaganda had no place in a principal’s budget meeting.”
RUIZ: “If you’re so unhappy with CPS, why do YOU stay in it?”
LARIVIERE: “To save it from people like YOU.”
RUIZ: [I can’t remember his exact words, but it had something to do with the budget]
LARIVIERE: “Your mayor has diverted over $2 billion tax payer dollars to his campaign contributors.”
RUIZ: “He’s YOUR mayor, too.”
At this point Ruiz launched into an extended critique of my involvement in the Chuy Garcia campaign.
(NOTE: Garcia was Mayor Emanuel’s opponent, who made history by being the first non-machine candidate to force the machine incumbent into a run-off. Garcia backs keeping traditional public schools—not closing them and replacing them with charters, and also backs going back to an elected school board. JACK)
LARIVIERE: “Please. Don’t lecture me on the ethics of principals being involved in election campaigns, when you work for a mayor who repeatedly pulled CPS principals out of their buildings during work hours to stand on stage with him at his campaign events. Let’s get back to the point. Your mayor diverted $2 billion taxpayer dollars to his campaign contributors (both Daley and Emanuel).”
RUIZ: “And what is your source for that?”
LARIVIERE: “Forbes Magazine.”
RUIZ: “Well, I’m sure they didn’t cite any evidence.”
LARIVIERE: “They cited about a decade of receipts from City Hall’s vendor checkbook.”
RUIZ: “You’re nothing but a loud-mouthed principal!”
“Did the CEO of CPS just resort to name-calling?” I thought. The exchange had already sunk low enough. I wasn’t about to sink to name-calling—especially with my boss. I will tell my boss a truth he doesn’t want to hear, and raise questions he doesn’t want to answer, but I’m not calling him names.
It was after the “loud-mouthed principal” comment that I decided to end the exchange.
LARIVIERE: It’s obvious I’m not going to get my question answered here so I’m going back in to listen to rest of this nonsense propaganda.
RUIZ: If you think it’s nonsense, why would you sit through it. I would not sit through nonsense.
LARIVIERE: That’s because you’re too busy dishing it out.
[I walked away and returned to the auditorium]
We had left the auditorium because Ruiz invited me into the hallway with the understanding that he would address a question I posed about CPS’s reckless spending. However, the exchange we had outside that room quickly degenerated into a chest pounding stand-off, much of which had nothing to do with my question about CPS spending.
I had allowed him to lure me into a verbal cockfight. The CEO of Chicago Pubic Schools and one of its most successful principals were going toe-to-toe like two overstimulated teenaged jocks—in public. It was certainly not my proudest moment, and I doubt it made Ruiz’s top ten list.
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If the mayor and his fellow reformers believe in the sales pitch of “college and career ready” then let them prove it by implementing the Dyett communities choice for a green technology school since that’s a strong growth sector in the current and future economy where a huge number of jobs will be created. If the mayor thinks that the arts are essential to a good education which he must since he sends his own children to a school with a strong, comprehensive arts program, let him show that he wants that same advantage for the black community by closing one of the charters in the area and implementing Little Black Pearl’s proposal in it’s place. Why should the Bronzeville community have endure unnecessary internal conflict created by bad, malinformed Board of Ed decisions to decide on and then settle for just one of their choices if the mayor and his fellow reformers truly believe in choice? The community has spoken loud and clear, they do not want any more charters. They do want high quality, open enrollment public high schools in their community that the community has had the predominant say in creating according to the communities vision and wisdom. If the mayor wants to close a second charter to establish a school, based on the third proposal that focuses on being part of the much smaller job pipeline of the sports industry, then that would be just fine as well. The mayor and his reformy allies have talked the talk of “choice” and “college and career ready” ad nauseum, it’s long past time for him to walk the walk.
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