7/28/2019 Statement Progressive Reform Caucus on Chicago Public
School Budget Cuts
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEContact: Joanna
[email protected]
Statement: Progressive Reform Caucus on Chicago Public
School
Budget Cuts
CHICAGO (June 27, 2013)--Chicago City Council Progressive Reform
Caucus members released
the following statement on Thursday in response to the news of
massive cuts to Chicago Public
School budgets across the city.
Even after all the supposed cost-savings arising from the
closing of 50 public schools, Chicago
Public Schools are now facing the most severe budget cuts in
their history. While we still do not
know the full extent of these cuts, at least 850 CPS employees
will lose their jobs. Schools
received their new budgets this month and found their budgets
severely reduced.
As elected representatives of the communities of Chicago, we are
alarmed by the stripping of
basic necessities which define a school. The neighborhood
schools have been reduced to
beggars, lacking such essentials as sanitation supplies, library
book funds, field trip money,
playground supervision. The principals have been given the new
budgets and told to do more
with less.
In order to hold onto their schools' teaching positions, the
principals are forced to make the
cuts themselves. Some principals are combining classes to
eliminate a teacher position. Thus
class sizes will increase.
Compounding this problem is the fact that next year, teachers
will be evaluated largely upon
the basis of their students' test scores. However, with bigger
class sizes, less individual
attention, and fewer enhancements to the curriculum, test score
decline seems inevitable.
Injustice is written into the new budgets, which were released
in the few remaining days of the
school year. Children will find some of their most enjoyable
activities, subjects and
extracurriculars deleted next year. No money for teaching
artists, no money for art supplies, for
museum visits, for sports equipment.
"It is not too late to prevent these cuts and reverse the
direction of our city. Instead of divesting
from our public education system, we should invest heavily from
the TIF funds. If we act now
and surplus a portion of the annual TIF revenues and re-invest
in neighborhood schools, our
school funding problems would be partially alleviated. We
understand an annual TIF surplus
may not be a sustainable solution, but it's available now and
clearly better than short changing
our children's future with draconian cuts.
If we ordered the City's priorities properly, we would put
millions currently allocated for other
TIF projects where they are most needed, and where they can do
the most good--into the future
of our children and our communities in the city's neediest
neighborhoods. We can still change
course and do what's right for our city."
--Chicago City Council Progressive Reform Caucus Members Ald.
Robert Fioretti (2), Ald. Leslie
mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]
