UIC Professors: Daley's CPS "Miracle" Smoke and Mirrors

By Chuck Sudo in News on Feb 18, 2011 7:20PM

Two University of Illinois at Chicago professors contend in a study that the "miracle" of reform of Chicago Public Schools under Mayor Daley instead widened the gap between white, African American, and Hispanic students and created a "two-tier" public school system.

The study by Pauline Lipman and Eric "Rico" Gutman concludes that school leaders appointed by Daley have created a network of selective enrollment schools that are three times whiter and three times more affluent than the overall school system. Meanwhile, Black and Hispanic students have been subject to "drilling" to improve standardized tests and poor school and teaching conditions in the larger system.

Lipman and Gutman also contend that, while some aspects of the school system have improved since Daley took control of it, CPS would be better served with an elected, rather than an appointed, board of directors. The study is also noteworthy as Gery Chico has been touting his time as President of the Chicago School Board as an example of the leadership and reform he would bring to the Fifth Floor, if elected mayor.