There is no doubt that success in school spells success in life. Even more telling are the statistics that show that not attending school is the surest road to despair, crime, incarceration and death.
There is no doubt that success in school spells success in life. Even more telling are the statistics that show that not attending school is the surest road to despair, crime, incarceration and death.
That is why we simply cannot condone the publicity stunt foisted upon Chicago Public Schools students by state Sen. Rev. James Meeks (D-15th) and a group of other ministers, who are suggesting that parents keep their children out of school the first day, Sept. 2, and instead, take busloads of them to suburban New Trier High school in Winnetka to register them.
Yes, it is a publicity stunt. Basically, Meeks wants the students to sacrifice the first day of school to become political fodder.
CPS spends $10,000 per student, while New Trier, because they have a stronger property tax base, can spend $17,000 per pupil. And, on Sept. 2, New Trier schools will have already been in session for a week. If Meeks is intent on getting those Chicago students in New Trier, why not send them Aug. 21, the first day of school at New Trier?
Responsible parents should never give the impression that they condone missing school, especially in a school district that loses half of its children between ninth grade and graduation.
That kind of dropout rate shows that too many of our children already regard school as optional.
That a state senator, especially a Black state senator, would take such an irresponsible stance is troubling. Meeks, who has been quiet for more than a year, should know better. If he wants to show that there is a glaring disparity in the amount of per-pupil spending in the various districts, he should find a different way.
He should take that stridency to Springfield, slap the statistics on the desks of House Speaker Mike Madigan, Senate President Emil Jones and Gov. Rod Blagojevich. Whatever fix is going to come to Chicago Public Schools funding will have to come from Springfield.
Yes, we have to call attention to the funding problems, and CPS officials have been doing that. But it is Meeks and his colleagues in Springfield who hold the key.
We applaud the ministers for standing up for Chicago school students, but this is the wrong way to get their point across.
Students should show up the first day (with their parents) because school is the key to their future, and no school truly means no future.
We urge Meeks and his supporters to stop encouraging any students to miss school, any time.
Surely, those students should stand up for something, but first, and foremost, they need to sit–in their classrooms–especially on that first day.
Copyright 2008 Chicago Defender. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
About Post Author
