-- Connecting the dots between our economy, government and business --
“We must win a majority of the first 21 person fully elected school board in November,” reads the first point in CTU’s member FAQ document. Another constitutional change was slipped into the dues hike vote, which will take place May 20-21, tries to place limits on when members may bring a lawsuit against the union for violating members’ rights.
“Statewide statistics show that 20 percent of K-12 public school students fall under the category of ‘chronically absent.’ That means they miss 10 percent of the school year — 17.5 days of a 175-school year. … Attendance is ground zero in the quest to see that all students have a shot at a good education.”
Gov. JB Pritzker’s proposed budget includes a cut of $17.5 million to out-of-school programs like After School Matters and Teen REACH, which supports kids who need extra resources and emotional support that a school can not provide. ACT Now, a statewide coalition promoting afterschool and youth development programs, is suing the federal government to pay the $18.5 million worth of grant money that was awarded to Illinois community school programs.
Throughout last year, Mayor Brandon Johnson vowed to protect Chicago’s public health dollars from President Donald Trump. But behind the scenes, his health commissioner voluntarily returned tens of millions of dollars in COVID-19 grants to the federal government months before expiration — funds that could have gone to disease surveillance to help prepare for an outbreak or racial equity programming to improve health outcomes across the city.
“We have learned that this year alone, the Chicago Police Department has refused to act on nearly 300 immigration detainers presented to them for known criminals in our custody who are not citizens,” said Chicago Ald. Ray Lopez. “When are we going to choose the law-abiding, innocent people who deserve our protection over those that are here abusing our systems?”
SIGN UP HERE FOR OUR FREE WIREPOINTS DAILY NEWSLETTER