School Overhaul Plan A Boon to Private Groups
Despite rumors that Chicago Public Schools officials planned to close a record number of schools this year, just four will be shuttered and four others will be phased out or share space with charter schools.
Of the eight schools, seven will foster the expansion of schools operated by outside education management organizations, expanding the number of schools run by private groups and furthering Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s efforts to increase the private sector’s role in rescuing underperforming public schools. All of the targeted schools are on the city’s South and West Sides.
The closure plans come on the heels of the district’s announcement on Tuesday that it will overhaul a record number of schools through the controversial process called turnaround, in which existing staff is fired and changes are made in the school’s curriculum and learning climate. In total, 10 schools are slated for the process next year, and the Academy for Urban School Leadership, a private organization that specializes in turnarounds, will manage six of them.
CPS chief executive Jean-Claude Brizard said the 19 schools are just the beginning of a “multi-year strategy” to transform the school district through closings and turnarounds. “There’s a tremendous need in this city,” he said today.
In Wednesday’s announcement, district leaders outlined three remedial actions: Closures, in which a school is shut down; phase-outs, in which existing students are allowed to continue attending a school, but no new students can enroll; and “co-locations,” in which two schools share a building.
Schools marked for closure are:
- Simon Guggenheim Elementary School, 7141 S Morgan St.
- Florence Price Elementary School, 4351 S Drexel Blvd.
- Julia Lathrop Elementary School, 1440 S Christiana Ave.
- Walter Reed Elementary School, 6350 S Stewart Ave.
- Best Practice High School, 2040 W. Adams St. (Closed in 2009)
Phase-out:
- Richard Crane Technical Prep High School, 2245 W Jackson Blvd.
- Dyett High School, 555 E 51st St.
Co-location:
- Henry H. Nash Elementary School, 4837 W Erie St., will share with ACT Charter School.
- Doolittle East Elementary School, 535 E 35th St., will share with Chi Arts High School.
- Richard Crane Technical Prep High School, 2245 W Jackson Blvd., will share with Talent Development Charter High School.