Emanuel Supports Moratorium On Public School Closures

By Chuck Sudo in News on Nov 26, 2012 8:40PM

Photo credit: ©2012 Brooke Collins/City of Chicago

Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s office announced today he supports a moratorium on school closures and consolidations within the Chicago Public Schools system. Speaking before the City Club of Chicago earlier today, new Chicago Public Schools CEO Barbara Byrd-Bennett announced plans for the school system to “right-size” the district and impose a five-year moratorium on school closures.

Earlier this month CPS released “draft guidelines” seeking community input regarding school closures and consolidations that were supposed to be due by Dec. 1. Byrd-Bennett and Emanuel asked the Illinois Legislature for an extension of that deadline to March 31 so that the handpicked nine-person committee established to implement the draft guidelines had more time to do their job. During the September teachers strike the Tribune reported that school closures would be an immediate agenda item for the Chicago School Board, with an estimated 120 schools and over 100,000 empty seats targeted for closure.

Byrd-Bennett told the Tribune the School Board “has no credibility” within the community and that parents of students believe the school closure discussion doesn’t adequately involve them.

In a statement to media, Emanuel echoed Byrd-Bennett’s earlier comments.

“We know that our city has a significant number of schools that are underutilized, stretching resources thin and not giving every student a quality education. In the past, there has been too much uncertainty around changes to our schools: year after year, Chicago Public Schools did not do an adequate job of engaging communities in these critical decisions, and year after year students, families and communities were left wondering of what was to come. That ends this year. With the Commission CPS CEO Byrd-Bennett has appointed, Chicagoans will be involved in the conversation about any changes to our district this year; and after this year, I have directed CPS to implement a moratorium on CPS facility closures, ending unnecessary disruption to students and parents and bringing stability to our schools.”