UPDATE: Springfield stand-off. + “Just laying my body on top of as many kids as I could.” | Fred Klonsky

“Just laying my body on top of as many kids as I could.” What kind of person would actually vote to put children in a Danger Zone? | Fred Klonsky:

Why I love teachers and am proud to call myself one.

by Fred Klonsky

Why I love teachers and am proud to call myself one:

“Briarwood, where the teachers put their bodies over the children and told them to hold their backpacks over their heads—mini-rooftops. At AgapeLand Learning Center, according to the Times, teachers “hustled some 15 children into two bathrooms, draping them with a protective covering.” The roof of was blown off, and some debris fell on the tarp, but the children weren’t hurt. Underneath, the teachers were leading them in singing ‘You Are My Sunshine.’”

A Springfield stand-off.

by Fred Klonsky

While some who are defending the We Are One/Cullerton circumvention of the Illinois Constitution would say otherwise, I encourage you to call your representatives in Springfield and tell them to vote against any bill that diminishes or impairs our pension rights.
Whether it is We Are One/Cullerton’s SB2404 OR SB1.
Nobody’s rights are safe while the Illinois legislature is in session.
But Greg Hinz reports:

Mr. Cullerton’s bill has the support of key unions but would save taxpayers only about $50 billion in coming decades. Mr. Madigan’s measure would save almost three times as 

The in box. “Ms. Bennett said that ‘the average student need only walk two city blocks’ to their new schools… and some only 800 feet! Does anyone really believe that?”

by Fred Klonsky

Fred,
When it comes to the Chicago Public School system there are always multiple political agendas. The welfare and safety of children is rarely a priority. The education and enrichment of students is an after thought. Chicago Public Schools have been historically under funded with obsolete resources, deteriorated structures and failed programs. Teacher and student moral are low and parent input and influence is only a consideration.
Shortly after I retired (2009) I became a member of a Chicago neighborhood “CAC” Community Advisory Committee. There were about 40 parents, teachers, administrators and CPS staffers on the committee. The meetings became a venue for parents and teachers to “vent their frustrations” 

“Just laying my body on top of as many kids as I could.” What kind of person would actually vote to put children in a Danger Zone?

by Fred Klonsky

“Well, I had actually stepped out of my classroom to let a parent into the classroom because she was an assistant teacher in the school, and I actually saw the tornado coming and knew how serious it was and was just trying to calm the children down, but yet more of the same. Just like sherry said, getting them covered up, you know, we practice tornado drills and things like this and I had to tell them, this is not a drill, and we need to be safe and just laying my body on top of as many kids as I could to help out.” – Cindy Lowe, teacher. Moore, Oklahoma.
We were spared any disaster like the one that occurred in Moore, Oklahoma yesterday.
In Park Ridge, where I taught for 30 years, sirens would go off if the conditions were ripe for a tornado.
Not that many years ago the sirens went off at 3:30, just as our students were