Number of half-empty Chicago public schools doubles, yet lawmakers want to extend school closing moratorium – Wirepoints
April 19, 2024
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A set of state lawmakers want to extend CPS’ current school closing moratorium to February 1, 2027 – the same year CPS is set to transition to a fully-elected school board. That means schools like Manley High School, with capacity for more than 1,000 students but enrollment of just 78, can’t be closed for anther three years. The school spends $45,000 per student, but just 2.4% of students read at grade level.
Hopefully, all media will get the message, in Illinois, too.
Ted joined Tom Miller of WJPF to talk about Illinois’ highest-in-the-nation property taxes, why lawmakers don’t want to touch the tax’s cost drivers, just how much Illinoisans’ tax burden has grown over the decades, why Gov. Pritzker failed to meet his promise to reform property taxes, and more.
The issue prompting the proposed Chicago ethics ordinance change was a Village of Flossmoor trustee has an unrelated job as a lobbyist, and one of his clients is the City of Chicago. Since the proposed change was defeated in a committee vote, the person either has to give up their Village of Flossmoor trustee position or stop lobbying the City of Chicago. The overall concern about such lobbying is, you scratch my back, I’ll scratch your back. Note no such allegation was made regarding the Flossmoor trustee lobbying the City of Chicago instance named above. A you scratch my back,… Read more »