When it comes to closing or opening pubic schools, firing or hiring new principals or simply adding new programs, a 2007 survey concluded that parents want a greater say in these decisions. Parents & Residents Invested in School & Education Reform (PRISE
When it comes to closing or opening pubic schools, firing or hiring new principals or simply adding new programs, a 2007 survey concluded that parents want a greater say in these decisions.
Parents & Residents Invested in School & Education Reform (PRISE Reform), a citywide coalition of organizations, surveyed 2,000 households and 504 parents of 6th to 12th graders.
The survey, which was released Oct. 6, found that 98 percent of parents said they wanted a greater say in school restructurings by Chicago Public Schools. Additionally, the coalition is calling on CPS officials to engage parents and students on reform issues.
“Chicago Public Schools restructuring efforts on the West Side have impacted many families, creating difficulties that might not have arisen if community members had been given a say in reform decisions,” said the Rev. Patricia Watkins, TARGET Area executive director and a PRISE Reform member. “We have a responsibility as parents and caretakers of CPS students to become informed advocates and to make sure our children get the quality education they deserve.”
But Michael Vaughn, spokesman for Chicago Public Schools, dismisses the notion that parents have no say so in how schools are run.
“We want more parents and community members to be involved in how their schools are run. The vast majority of our schools are run by Local School Councils–publicly elected groups of parents and community members,” Vaughn said. “LSC elections were held last April, and there were many schools that didn’t have contested elections because not enough people signed up to run. There are numerous opportunities for parents and community members to have their say–at school board and LSC meetings.”
Among the other survey findings:
• 98 percent of parents want to be included or consulted in decisions about school changes
• 96 percent of parents want to be kept informed about such changes
• 92 percent think it’s important to have a first-class high school in their neighborhoods
• 84 percent are interested in sharing their opinion with school officials
• 75 percent think that public safety is an important school issue
• Another 75 percent of parents had been summoned to school to discuss their children’s progress, but only one third were ever told that their children’s school was performing poorly.
• 60 percent did not know that most West Side CPS schools could be forced to close for poor performance under the national No Child Left Behind Act.
One community activist said before CPS officials reach out to them, a lot of times decisions are already made even though parents are the ones who know what really goes on at schools, not administrators sitting downtown at CPS headquarters.
“The consumers of education–students and parents–are prepared better than anyone to let officials know about the day-to-day problems affecting Chicago’s public schools,” said Ethel Mitchell, PRISE Reform resident leader of the Austin community on the West Side.
Wendell Hutson can be reached at [email protected].
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