Chicago Public Schools

Devil’s Night

By Paul Kersey
08/13/2013
I grew up in Detroit, and as far back as I can remember my hometown was in trouble. But if there was a time when people just gave up on the place, it was probably October 30, 1984 — just a couple weeks after the Tigers won the World Series — when fires on “Devil’s...

TAGS: Detroit

Detroit’s tipping point is a warning for Chicago

07/26/2013
by Paul Kersey How did Detroit get to be the urban disaster area it is today? One tipping point come in 1978, when a union got a “win” that cost the city, and eventually its own members, dearly. This “win” came in the form of a raise concession granted to a powerful police union, which...

CPS four notches above junk bond status

By Ted Dabrowski
07/26/2013
In what’s become a torrent of bad news regarding Illinois’ fiscal health, Moody’s Investors Service has downgraded Chicago Public Schools’ $6.3 billion general obligation debt one notch. The credit rating agency’s outlook remains negative, and CPS debt is now just four levels above junk bond status. The CPS ranking drop to A3 from A2 follows recent downgrades...

Another misstep in CPS’ school closing boondoggle

07/24/2013
Buried beneath the news of Chicago Public Schools’ dismal Illinois Standard Achievement Test scoreslast week was another bombshell: students from receiving schools – those schools that students from closed schools will attend next year – saw less than half of the gains on the ISAT as the rest of the district. In other words, thousands of displaced...

CTU recommendations for new revenue mirror Detroit’s failed policies

07/24/2013
When Chicago Public Schools laid off more than 2,000 employees – including 1,036 teachers – last week, Chicago Teachers Union President Karen Lewis skewered Mayor Rahm Emanuel for not supporting tax-increasing policies that she claims would bring additional revenue to the city. She said: “It is equally shameful that as CPS slashes school budgets, they have not offered one...

Chicago Public Schools lays off more than 2,000, including 1,000 teachers

07/19/2013
Chicago Public Schools plans to layoff more than 2,000 Chicago Teachers Union members on Friday. CTU released a statement saying CPS plans to lay off nearly 2,100 total employees, including “veteran teachers, teacher assistants, clerks, technology coordinators, instructional aides, lunchroom workers and security guards.” “Once again, CPS has lied to parents, employees and the public...

CPS layoffs should not surprise CTU

07/19/2013
When Chicago Public Schools officials announced Thursday that the district will be laying off more than 2,000 employees – including 1,036 teachers – Chicago Teachers Union President Karen Lewis issued a press release that made no mention of the role the CTU played in creating CPS’s $1 billion deficit. These important facts were missing: The CTU supported all of...

Taxing sophistry

By Benjamin VanMetre
07/18/2013
Earlier this month, the Chicago Tribune published an editorial sounding the alarm on “the next Illinois tax hike” – a progressive tax. While many in the state have come to recognize this upcoming tax fight, others, such as Jan Goldberg of Riverside, Ill., refuse to admit the truth. In a recent letter to the editor titled “Benefits of a...

New ISAT standards reveal poor performance for Chicago Public Schools

07/18/2013
Illinois parents have been hoodwinked once again. Two years ago, the Chicago Tribune revealed that Illinois’ graduation rates weren’t as impressive as once reported. Now comes news that the state has been inflating district test scores for more than a decade. New Illinois Standard Achievement Test, or ISAT, scores released Tuesday by Chicago Public Schools officials, prove as much....
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Chicago Forward 2026: A pro-growth plan to end city budget deficits

Chicago’s $1.15 billion projected budget gap is the latest in a decades-long string of structural deficits. Making Chicago’s high taxes worse is not the solution.

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Diana Graham

Process for unionizing non-state workers raises red flags

By Paul Kersey
06/19/2014

CBS Chicago: Illinois’ highest-paid superintendent receives $400K per year to oversee 1,200 students

By Ted Dabrowski
05/02/2016