By Lotty Blumenthal

CHICAGO. The Chicago Board of Education met for its final meeting of 2005 on December 21, 2005. After nearly an hour of pre-holiday festivities and awards, the first phase of the meeting began. Public Participation started at 11:25 and was scheduled to end at 1:25. According to the rules of the board, speeches are to be no more than two minutes long, as the secretary announces each month.

Despite the fact that parents and teachers from InterAmerican Magnet Elementary School made it clear at both the December 2005 and January 2006 Chicago Board of Education meetings that they did not want their school moved into the LeMoyne school building, Board President Michael Scott tried to claim in January that the wishes of InterAmerican were unclear, while the Board moved immediately to sell the InterAmerican building to developers. Above, InterAmerican teacher Norine Gutekanst (center) joins parents at the December 21, 2005, meeting to protest the planned sale of the building. Substance photo by George N. Schmidt.

The first speaker was #21 on the speakers’ list — Rev. Jessie Jackson Sr. of Operation PUSH. Rev. Jackson spoke of the disparity in school funding from the state which he felt was illegal because of its disparity resulting from the present system and the lack of money from the state both for capital spending and educational needs. He compared Schaumberg with Englewood. He said that those who attend school are being punished by those who don’t since Chicago missed $150 million because of missing attendees. He then talked of the condition of Harper High School, where he has been focusing attention. Among other problems, he said Harper is trying to make due with only three girls toilets working out of six, 200 band members trying to do band with 40 instruments, and a swimming pool which has not been working for ten years. Jackson added that the school had a principal without a contract The library, Jackson said, had very few books in it. Observers asked whether all schools are given a library budget.

He also asked for a job fair and GED classes for not only students, but parents since 88 percent of the student body has semi-employed or unemployed parents. He asked for truant officers, since Harper is 81 out of 81 in attendance.

The Chicago Teachers Union has asked for the return of truant officers, dismissed by previous school boards, for more than ten years. Since this meeting, U.S. Rep Bobby Rush reportedly has obtained a federal grant for two truant officers. The main themes were that the state is not doing what it should in funding and that the board should help.

However, he didn’t to go to the suburbs to see disparity in students quality of learning. He only had to go to Senn where disparity is in the same building. The “Rickover Naval Academy” has a gym, computer room, normal size classes, and one librarian for 125 students. The Rickover librarian is not to work with the other 1,700 children in the building who have no gym, no computer room (a rolling cart program), oversized classes and one librarian to work with the other 1700 students. Can Jessie talk to Scott about it? No one can blame the state Government for this disparity.

Duncan droned a list of fixing of the many broken parts of Harper. Jackson spoke far longer than two minutes. No one called time. The next speaker was called for time.

She was Bonita Robinson, reading specialist at Ellington Elementary School, who spoke about Jonathan Kozol book The Shame of the Nation applying to some CPS schools. She also spoke of good, experienced and highly qualified teachers in classrooms being harassed out of classrooms by the usually political appointees in the region offices who go through the “walk throughs” insulting teachers by using stupid comments about minutia. These people are not only a waste of our budget by not being productive, they are unproductive since they often are causes for losing those who are. Just think, put a truant officer in every region to bring children back instead of their aggravating everyone with “walkthroughs.”She made suggestions as all students should have a library card, shutting off television for reading by parents, lessening of hostility by “walkthrough” people, and ending of retaliation. “Retaliation is Real,” she said.

Next Queen Searles asked for a quick settlement to her case and a return to work. She was wrongfully removed from her job by one of those trumped-up charges through a psychological exam. Accompanied by members of the community and reports from two doctors who are not Board employees, she asked for faster communication from the law department since not working for two years is about to make her homeless. No board has ever explained why reports from all other doctors except their own have no standing in these cases which usually have women for victims. Queen said that she was a victim of the very retaliation already mentioned.

Next Perry Gibson, a minister from Southside Missionary Baptist Church, spoke on behalf of Queen Searles as have other community members including former students in the past. Reverend Gibson, who has police experience, said he’d seen the evidence possessed by Ms Searles and would trust his own grandchildren to be taught by her. He hoped for a speedy end to the situation. Michael Scott talked about this case being in litigation with much evidence. He said he’d look into it. Many have suggested that he should look at the other cases like it, since this abuse of psychologists has been going on for some time.

Laurie Hasbrook of the Save Senn Coalition told of all of the disparity for students in the same building: 1600-1700 Senn students and about 125 Rickover Naval Academy students. Naval academy students have empty rooms and supplies. Senn students are in overcrowded classes (40 to 67, depending on who’s talking) without the same supplies and facility as naval academy students, although they apparently have better teachers. This disparity is caused by CPS Board and administrators. When Laurie Hasbrook asked Scott to visit, he said “He’d try” to go there. How long will Senn students be deprived?

Helen Murtaugh, a retired Senn teacher, instead thanked the Board, Scott and Duncan, for fixing Senn’s roof. She said white parents in feeder elementary schools have expressed interest in sending their children to Senn. However, they’d like an IB or other program in those elementary schools to enhance education.

Matthew Morgenthau of Mary Lyon Elementary and Steinmetz High School told of a meeting of the Belmont-Cragin Neighborhood Association and the Area Instructional Officer. Promises were made. The roof still needed to be fixed. It is scheduled to be worked on in the summer.

Dwayne Truss of Austin asked where the capital improvements were that were promised to be done. Scott promised they’d be done.

Thomas Ramos complained again about the principal of Curie High School refusing to send home to parents the agenda for the NCLB meeting. This complaint is one of many in the struggle with the NCLB group and the Principal. $20,000 had not been released for adult classes in the evening for computers, GED, and ESL. Also the principal refused sending out notices to the more than 3,000 students with an agenda for NCLB meetings. Both Board member Carrera and James Deanes were attempting to resolve these issues. The LSC is with the Principal.

Mitchell Hutton of Pritzker Elementary School told of three rooms with either no heat or overheating, asbestos in floor tiles all over the building, and one of those mysterious break-ins where thieves seem to know where everything is including the entire set of school keys. Security is one of the biggest problems with people seen on roofs, computers and other valuables stolen amounting to tens of thousands of dollars. Operations Chief Sean Murphy is working with Andres Durbak (the board’s chief of security) and will work on three more rooms during Spring break.

Clarice Berry of the Chicago Principals and Administrators Association (CPAA) told of problems in salary for administrators. She said they had low moral and felt unappreciated because they did not get a four percent raise like other unionized employees since she felt it would only save $4.5 million of our tax money. But some critics were skeptical, given the large salaries currently budgeted for principals. Perhaps raises should not be given in percentages any more, but in flat amounts. For instance, which is greater four percent of 35, 40, 45, 50 or 55 thousand dollars — or two percent of $120,000? Which would you rather have? Michael Scott told Ms. Berry that he and the board appreciated all the administrators.

Viridia Hatchett said the conference for empowering parents was a success despite long distances between rooms. She then asked if a bunch of questions were true or not such as certain courses being required. James Deanes answered two questions and said he’d get answers to the other questions.

Noreen Gutekanst of Inter-American Magnet Elementary School — with a large group of parents — asked that the sale of the current building housing Inter-American be delayed since the parents were not sure that Le Moyne is the correct site for relocation. She said their opposition to the LeMoyne move was because so few people in the gentrified Wrigleyville area are Latinos. They feel to function well, 50 percent of students should be Latino speaking, learning English. Scott said that he felt that there were more groups who had other views, that all was complex, and he would get back to the signed up speaker in writing. Since the December meeting, the sale has not been delayed, the building being sold to developers.

At this point, will the Inter-American group have a selection of sites?

Next Meena Brongel and another parent of minority students at Payton College Prep High School said they felt that their children were being unjustly treated, given no help in order to harass them into leaving the school. They suggested steps that could help the situation. High Schools Chief Donald Pittman, who previously had not responded to parents, was told to solve the problem and the parents to return in 30 days if he didn’t respond to them again.

Henry Cervantes, of Telpochacalli Community Education Project, asked about the future of Farragut High School. A recent graduate, he felt that the LSC was being manipulated by the administration. He also asked if the school was to be phased out. Scott emphatically told him that Farragut neither rumor was true. Farragut has been steadily improving with some honored programs, and the future look good.

Then Patrcia Buenrostro said perhaps Farragut should change. She has worked in charter schools and is in favor of change. If Farragut is to continue, she wondered how to improve it. Arne Duncan told her to run (as community rep) for the LSC elections coming this spring.

Janice Jeffries came to thank those who had worked hard all year (like Okema Lewis) and delay criticism until January. She said she hoped for great LSC elections and had given James Deanes a list of suggestions to that end. One was that Principals not be present during the election in order to not influence people.

Debra Stigler and Inga Parker (with a large group including teachers from Langston Hughes Elementary School) asked about funding for a building. At present, the walls are leaning, bubbling, with holes in the floor, lunchroom in a sub-basement, many fire violations and overcrowding so that students have no spaces between them seated. The new school was promised by the previous administration. The Alderwoman has made appearances about the problems several times. The parents were eloquent is talking of the promised school. Scott said Langston Hughes was his priority, that he would make an announcement soon, and that they should tell the Alderwoman he had talked to them. He promised to make a personal appearance at the school with any news.

Gwendolyn Talley of the beleaguered Choir Academy of CCC, a charter school which keeps losing its partners, spoke next. She said that the situation has left them in limbo, unable to raise funds, recruit teachers and students. A member of the Department of New School Support said that she’d talked to Tally, those former support organizations, and new support partners. She said they were putting together a package that would maintain the school. As soon as it was complete, she’d talk to the parents.

Valencia Rias of Designs for Change gave the Board, Scott and Duncan a ‘wish list’ for the new year. First on the list was reconvening of the “LSC Roundtable” meetings to restore communications between CPS and LSCs so that LSCs would know what’s going on with programs before they hit the press. Scott asked if she’d work out a budget. She said it was a no-cost process which only required “commitment and concern.” She said the process involves “Logistics, Policy and Law, Conflict Mediation, and Principal Selection and Evaluation Committees as well as a time for updates and announcements.” Restoring the Roundtable would provide another method beside Board meetings to discuss issues and problems. She also presented a list of eight items for LSC elections, and three suggestions for bettering CPS and LSC relations. Duncan recited some of the steps being taken for LSC elections. After this speaker, the public participation ended. After the official Board meeting started, James Deanes gave a presentation on the steps being taken for the upcoming LSC elections.