Caucus of Rank and File Educators

From Catalyst:

Potter teaches at Little Village Lawndale High School and is Co-Chair of CORE.

Huberman says he needs major union concessions to balance the budget this year, and that sets up a scenario in which the district will ask teachers to pick their poison: Agree not to fight pension changes, concede to larger class sizes or give up their 4 percent raises. Eliminating contractual raises would save about $169 million; increasing class sizes to 31 would mean a loss of 600 teaching positions and save only $40 million.

But Stewart faces a tough re-election campaign this spring. In fact, her union caucus recently lost two seats on the Pension Board to the new, hard-line caucus called CORE (the Caucus of Rank and File Educators). It was a major victory for CORE, whose members say the Pension Board needs better watchdogs to protect it from a cash-starved district administration and prevent mismanagement. CORE still lacks a majority on the Pension Board, however.

CORE Co-Chair Jackson Potter says the Pension Board has already made several important changes under new leadership. Lawsuits have been filed to recoup losses from some investment groups, he notes, and the board is squashing investments it has with companies that support charter schools.

In Potter’s book, Huberman’s budget announcement amounts to little more than scare tactics. That position suggests a tough political road ahead for district officials seeking concessions from the Pension Board and elsewhere.

Before asking teachers to support pension relief or any other compromises, Potter wants the district to cut a number of controversial reform programs, such as the Office of School Turnarounds and Huberman’s signature performance management initiative. Such cuts could save the district upwards of $70 million, he estimates.

He also wants Huberman and Mayor Richard Daley to consider directing tax-increment financing revenues toward the deficit. (TIF funds are diverted from schools and other local taxing bodies to stimulate business development, but critics say the creation of TIF districts has contributed to budget problems facing the schools and the rest of the city.)

Potter admits more savings are needed, but “the fact that [Huberman] hasn’t put any of this on the table shows you what his priorities are.”

By Jim Vail

February 24, 2010

The Chicago Board of Education members voted to destroy eight Chicago public schools after massive community outrage forced schools chief Ron Huberman to take six schools off the list to be closed, consolidated, phased out or face turnaround.

“This is a sad day for public education,” said Alderman Pat Dowell, who sponsored a one-year moratorium resolution in the City Council. “I don’t think neighborhood schools should be punished.”

Bradwell, Curtis, and Deneen Elementary schools and Phillips and Marshall High Schools will fire their entire staff and all except Marshall will outsource the AUSL management company to run the schools. Schneider Elementary will be phased out, McCorkle Elementary will be consolidated into Beethoven school and De Las Casas Occupational High School will be closed and the students sent to private operators.

Last year not one Chicago alderman addressed the Board about school closings at the meeting that voted on their fate. This year Alderman Sandi Jackson, Alderman Ed Smith and Alderman Dowell spoke out against a process they say does not include the community and is seriously flawed.

“I’m here because I’m concerned about the posterity of our children,” Alderman Smith told the Board. “Marconi has some problems, but we simply can’t jettison these kids. It seems we have a problem to get together. Just because these people don’t have PhDs and MBAs doesn’t mean we don’t need to bring in these parents. We got to work together to give the children what they need.”
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From WBEZ:

Public testimony from thousands of parents and teachers has school officials reconsidering their original plans to close, consolidate or re-staff 14 schools.

[CPS Chief Administrative Officer]: We’ve considered community input and other information that we’ve gathered through the public hearing process, and we are strongly considering modifying the proposals that we submitted. And this is why we’ve had public hearings…

…Board members attended most public hearings this year. They’ve been criticized in the past for voting to kill schools without attending hearings.

This year and last, CORE attended every closing hearing and testified at most. We kept the heat on the Board and last year, we got 6 schools off the chopping block. According to this WBEZ report, we’re getting a few reprisals this year as well. CORE encourages all schools to continue their fights. We will continue to help. If your school is on the closing list, contact coreteachers@gmail.com.