CHICAGO PUBLIC SCHOOLS RECEIVES COMMENTS ON PROPOSED $1 BILLION BUDGET
Chicago Public Schools Receives Comments On Proposed $1 Billion Budget
BY KATHERINE NEWMAN
Chicago Public Schools recently released a proposed $1 billion budget and capital plan for the 2019 fiscal year. Following the release of the proposed spending plan, a series of public hearings were held across the city to receive public comment on the massive investment.
The capital plan hearing held recently at Kennedy King College, located in Englewood, brought up concerns about favoritism in the city, outdated facilities assessments, and whether or not the schools with the greatest needs are going to see investment through this plan.
The proposed capital plan, if approved, will be the largest single-year investment in more than 20 years, according to Chicago Public Schools. With this plan, the school district is attempting to address equity issues by investing in educational programming, overcrowding relief, facility maintenance, athletic spaces, and IT and security improvements.
“Education investments include state of the art high schools science labs, high-speed internet access and devices, expansion of free full-day PreK, and IB, STEM, Magnet, and Classical expansion programs. We have three key academic initiatives that support our optimal learning. One is warm, safe, and dry and that is deferred maintenance, then there is education programs, and over crowding,” said Mary De Runtz, Deputy Chief of Capital Planning and Construction.
The proposed budget will provide capital projects at over 150 CPS schools, a full list of schools that are being targeted for investment in one way or another is available to view on the Chicago Public Schools’ website.
After the quick review of the Final Year 2019 Capital Plan, the microphone was turned over for public comment. Many people spoke out against the plan saying the struggling schools are still going to struggle under this plan.
“This is one more example year after year of a gross violation of the law and complete reckless spending and is completely inequitable. You haven’t done any facility needs assessments since 2014 so you don’t know the conditions of your buildings. There is no facility master plan which is a complete violation of state law,” said Sarah Rothschild, education policy analyst for the Chicago Teachers Union.
She went on to ask “why are you building annexes when there are nearby schools with under-enrollment and you could just adjust the attendance boundary?”
Part of the proposed budget plan includes building annex buildings for overcrowded schools, but many people at the meeting voiced their opinions that money would be better spent on improving education at existing neighborhood schools which would encourage families to enroll and therefore alleviate overcrowding.
“We are not against any schools getting the necessary repairs and upgrades that they need and we are not here to say any school doesn’t deserve something, most schools have waited far too long for facility upgrades. What we are asking is for information on how CPS chooses who has to wait and who doesn’t,” said Deb Hass on behalf of Raise Your Hand For Illinois Public Education.
To review the proposed budget visit cps.edu/capitalplan.
