Chicago Citizens United to Preserve Public Education

Media Alert For Immediate Release: May 17, 2014 Valerie F. Leonard 773-571-3886 (cell) valeriefleonard@msn.com

Community Groups Take Board of Education

Ethics Fight to the Feds Who: Chicago Citizens United to Preserve Education, including Blocks Together, Educational Village

Keepers Parent Teacher Student Association; Valerie F. Leonard, Co-Founder, the Lawndale

Alliance; Dr. Pauline Lipman, Teachers for Social Justice; Dr. Grady Jordan, Retired

Administrator, Chicago Public Schools; Yvette Moyo, Co-Founder, Real Men Charities, Inc. and

Real Men Cook; Dr. Carmen Palmer, President, Educational Village Keepers Parent Teacher

Student Association; Dwayne Truss, PACE; Julie Woestehoff, Executive Director, Parents

United for Responsible Education (PURE).

What: Chicago Citizens United to Preserve Education will hold a press conference to reveal the details

of complaints lodged with the Inspectors General of USDOE and CPS regarding the Board of

Education's last vote to turn over three schools to the Academy of Urban School Leadership

(AUSL) for Turnaround. At issue: Apparent conflicts of interest between members of the Board

of Education and AUSL; the cost effectiveness of the AUSL school Turnaround model versus

the School Transformation model and other means of school improvement; the lack of a

competitive bidding process in selecting vendors to improve schools; the absence of minority-

owned or women-owned businesses providing School Turnarounds and other improvement

services.

When: Monday, May 19, 2014, 10:00 a.m.

Where: In front of Region V Office

U.S. Department of Education

Citigroup Center

500 W. Madison Street, Suite 1427

Chicago, IL 60661

Why: The complainants questions the independence of the decisions being made, because CPS Board

President Vitale is the former AUSL board chairman; and Tim Cawley, CPS’ Chief

Administrative Officer is a former AUSL executive. Another member of the Board of Education,

Dr. Carlos Azcoitia, currently holds a Professorship at National Louis University,. AUSL's

exclusive teacher preparation partner. Dr. Azcoitia, along with President Vitale voted to turn the

schools over to AUSL for turnaround. While Dr. Azcoitia recused himself from voting on the

most recent AUSL management contracts due to his position at National Louis University, Mr.

Vitale has never recuse himself from awarding contracts to AUSL.