Chicago Public Education
Below are several of Bob’s albums related to the Chicago Public Education.
The Chicago Teachers Union contract battle: 2016
The Chicago Teachers Union is a progressive American Federation of Teachers local now engaged in difficult contract negotiations with the unelected Chicago school board, one hand picked by Mayor Rahm Emanuel. Mayor Rahm Emanuel says CTU members must sacrifice, but the Board has already:
• cut special education spending,
• laid off thousands of teachers & staff in the past several years,
• raided teachers’ pensions for 20 years,
• closed more than 100 schools, and
• forced parents to pay for school basics like toilet paper and books.
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Chicago Teachers Union: No more cuts
February 4 2016 : Facing massive cuts and layoffs the CTU has called for community support to defend public education.
The union spent fifteen months trying to get a serious offer out of the Board. After only three weeks of negotiations, CPS made an offer that (1) relied on a reduction of more than 2,000 educators from the system, (2) made no provision against ballooning class sizes as a result, and (3) included nothing but the vaguest indicators of where new revenue will be pursued.
The mayor has had every opportunity to pursue revenue from his wealthy friends and backers. Instead he has targeted educators and students to pay for the Board’s mismanagement. CPS has shot down the flag of truce and peace talks are over. It was time for Chicago’s educators and public school supporters to take off the gloves and head out to the streets.
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University of Illinois at Chicago on strike
February 18, 2014: University of Illinois at Chicago on strike! After 18 months of attempting to negotiate a fair union contract that benefits faculty, students and UIC, faculty have been forced to go on strike February 18-19. They hope the administration will begin serious negotiations as a result.
Chicago Teachers Union LGBTQ Committee
June 26, 2015: At Chicago Annual Pride Parade. We teach with pride. The Chicago Teachers Union's Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Rights Committee announced today that "We Teach Pride Around the World" will be the theme of the union's debut entry in Chicago's annual Pride Parade on June 26.
"Our GLBT Rights Committee is proud to lead the first-ever Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) float in our city's annual celebration event. Our union officers, leaders, scores of teachers and other school staffers will be marching with us. We invite GLBT teachers and our allies from the entire Chicagoland area to march with us."
CTU Advancing Black Educators
June 17, 2015: Union democracy in action: The Caucus of Rank and File Educators (CORE)Chicago Teachers Union 2015. Among the Chicago Teachers Union’s contract demands are a librarian and a nurse in every school; limits on standardized testing; enforced class size limits; and racial justice for students by way of restorative justice coordinators and more
Segregation and racial disparities in our schools
May 15, 2014: Celebrating the 60th anniversary of Brown v. Board of Education. The 1954 Brown decision outlawed legal segregation in the schools, but left much work to do in the 21st century.
It's time for an elected school board in Chicago
Chicago is the only place in Illinois that does not have an elected school board. Since the school board in Chicago is selected by the Mayor, that is sometimes called mayoral control.
But that is really a misnomer. Mayor Emanuel represents the wealthy financial and corporate interests who dominate politics in the city and the state. Mayoral control is really corporate control.
Corporate control has brought us mismanagement and financial scandal. It has brought us high stakes testing and poorly conceived curricula. It has meant school closings, privatization, teacher overwork, and and general demoralization throughout the system. That is is why Chicago voters have voted for an elected school board in two non-binding referenda.
The Chicago school population is made up overwhelmingly of Black, Latino and other youth of color, many them living in poverty. The failures of corporate control are profoundly racist and insult to the people of the city.
The struggle against school turnarounds in Chicago
April 9, 2014: Parents, students and community allies rally in front of Chicago Board of Ed President David Vitale's house. Led by Action Now, the participants were opposed to the takeover of 3 schools by the Academy of Urban School Leadership (AUSL)
April 1, 2014: West Side Chicago defends Dvorak Technology. AcademyThe Chicago Board of Education wants to fire the entire staff and have the school managed by the private Academy for Urban School Leadership (AUSL).
April 9, 2014: At the April 9 Chicago Public Schools hearing on privatization. Parents, students, teachers and allies came to defend Gresham, McNair and Dvorak schools from CPS "turnaround" plans. The "turnaround" would fire all staff and put the schools under control of the politically connected Academy of Urban School leadership.
June 12, 2014: Parents, students and their allies attempted a sit-in to try & save Gresham School from privatization but were thwarted by security.
Milwaukee defends public education
Sept 20, 2013: Defending public education in Milwaukee. The Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce is pushing a proposal that would create a New Orleans style “recovery zone” in Milwaukee. That superintendent would then turn those public schools over to privately-run charter schools.
Stop the Chicago Public Schools budget cuts
June 21, 2013: Stop the cuts in the Chicago public schools budget. Release the TIF funds to education and get the big corporations to pay a fair share of the taxes.
June 23, 2013: Chicagoans protest school cutbacks and layoffs. Chicago Public Schools HQ and City Hall were the targets of July 24th demonstrations
CTU called for an April one-day strike
April 1, 2016: West Side local action. The State of Illinois and Chicago, its largest city, are in the grips of a social crisis that amounts to economic class war. Politicians like Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner and Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, backed by powerful corporate and financial interests have backed policies to slash social services, dismantle public education, allow rampant police violence, attack the labor movement, turn a blind eye to racial injustice, and increase the wealth inequality in the state.
This is austerity capitalism Rahm & Rauner-style. This form of toxic economics has met significant opposition and among the leaders of the opposition has been the Chicago Teachers Union (CTU).
The CTU called for an April 1 one-day strike by its members to protest these policies and encouraged its labor and community allies to hold local actions during the day and then assemble for a massive rally and march through downtown Chicago in the late afternoon. Many thousands participated.
Lafayette Elementary School Occupation
June 18, 2013: Parents and students occupy Lafayette Elementary to protest school closings. Lafayette was one of the schools closed. It was well known for its excellent music program.
Chicago Public Schools Budget Cuts
June 25, 2013: Chicago Teachers Union protests school budget cuts. The union wants the City to open up TIF funds, negotiate a lower interest rate for toxic credit swaps and fight against corporate tax avoidance.
June 17, 2013: Chicago parents collect paper rolls. Harsh budget cuts in the Chicago schools mean a toilet paper shortage for the children.https://www.flickr.com/photos/bobbosphere/albums/72157634201465885
June 21, 2013: Oak Park Spring 2013. Backyard meeting
July 10, 2013: The Kelly High School band at their last performance. Because of massive budget cuts by the Chicago Public Schools (CPS), Kelly High School will lose it band. The band played its last tunes on a protest march through the Chicago Loop accompanied by many of its supporters.
Sept 28, 2016: The Grassroots Education Movement(GEM) outside of the Chicago Board of Education
September 28, 2016: The Grassroots Education Movement (GEM) led a press conference outside of the Chicago Board of Education meeting to explain why they are fighting for an elected representative school board, a shift of TIF money toward education funding and a fair contract for Chicago teachers and school staff. Chicago parents object to a 19th Ward school consolidation plan
19th Ward Alderman Michael O'Shea is pushing a school consolidation and relocation plan which parent groups say will,"...shift overcrowding, not alleviate it, while simultaneously reducing the racial and economic diversity of neighborhood schools."
Pope School
April 23, 2013: March of parents and students. Pope School is among the 54 schools scheduled to be closed in Chicago. Pope School Press Conference
Chicago School Struggle
March 28, 2014: Protesting attacks on public education in Chicago, Rahm wants to fire the staffs of 3 schools and turn another one into a military academy.
March 10, 2014: Protesting standardized testing abuse in the Chicago Public Schools. No retaliation against students, teachers or parents.
March 3, 2014: Sonia Flores: Teacher at Maria Saucedo Scholastic Academy. Nate Goldbaum: Chicago Teachers Union and Caucus of Rank and File Educators. Commmunity supporters of the Maria Saucedo Scholastic Academy ISAT test boycott
March 4, 2014: Sign of the times at Maria Salcedo Scholaastic Academy
February 27, 2014: Ice the ISAT rally at Maria Saucedo Scholastic Academy on the near SW Side of Chicago. The teachers, students and parents have joined forces to boycott the ISAT standardized test. It’s part of a general revolt against testing abuse.
February 18, 1014: Defending public sector pensions in Illinois
May 21, 2013: The 3 Day March for Education Justice: Day 3, After Marching through Chicago's West Side where many schools are on Rahm's hit list, we headed for City Hall.
May 16, 2013: Chicago Teachers Union election party, The progressive CORE Caucus won 80% of votes, affirming the union's social vision and opposition to racist school closings and hi-stakes testing.
April 16, 2013: Play-In at the Chicago Public Schools HQ. Not enough play. Too many standardized tests
January1, 2000: Protesting attacks on public education in Chicago. Rahm wants to fire the staffs of 3 schools and turn another one into a military academy.
April 21, 2014: Faces of the resistance at the April 23 2014 Chicago School Board meeting, Some of the people who came to oppose further privatization of the Chicago Public Schools
May 25, 2014: Press conference on school turnarounds
Community groups report on investigation of the chicago Public Schools and conflicts of interest
June 19, 2014:Screening of film “63 Boycott." Chicagoans gathered to view the film 63 Boycott about the battle against Chicago school segregation in the 1960's.
January 6, 2015: The Bright Futures Coalition was at City Hall. Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel had lied about his commitment to early childhood education.
Rally to stop Chicago school closings
March 26, 2013
Hunger Strike at Dyett High School
September 29, 2015: The strikers are asking for a green technology and global leadership high school for the historically African American community of Bronzeville in Chicago. The Dyett High School hunger is over but the struggle continues. The hunger strikers & their allies celebrated the reopening of Dyett H.S. and pledged to continue to push for an elected school board. The hunger strike did reopen Dyett High School, but not as the green technology and global leadership school that they had fought so hard for.
Insuring a future for Chicago's children
May 29, 2014: Early childhood teachers and childcare providers joined forces with parents and community allies. They met at the Chicago Service Employees International Union (SEIU) HQ to work on making early and pre-k education a reality for all Chicagoans.
