From the Blogs
The best of our Blogs.
Who's afraid of the low-income vote?
Two voter ID laws making their way through the state Legislature could end up keeping some of Illinois' poorest residents from exercising one of their basic democratic rights–voting. Come Election Day, voters would have to present a government-issued photo identification card at the polling place, if Senate Bill 2496, which was introduced last week, is ulimately approved by lawmakers. A similar measure--House Bill 3903 --was introduced in the lower chamber in December. Read more »
Tougher principal selection process in the works
Chicago Public Schools is embarking on yet another revamp of its controversial principal eligibility process, based on a new set of principal skills that will also play into new state-mandated principal evaluations.
The changes could take effect as soon as this summer, but it’s not clear yet what they will be. The current process includes an application with essays and an initial interview; a scenario exam; a school data case study; a more in-depth interview; and a mock teacher observation. (Those could still be part of the revamped process.) Read more »
At AUSL, progress but ‘this is not magic’
On average, AUSL turnaround schools are outperforming neighborhood schools on state tests. But most of the improvement has been in math and science, while reading achievement is still lagging. And some neighborhood schools that have not gotten the same resources are gaining ground at a similar clip. Read more »
How segregated is this city? Chicago speaks
A recent study of segregation in Chicago by the Manhattan Institute for Policy Research, based on census data, found that while Chicago still has the dubious honor of being the most segregated major city in America, it also experienced one of the sharpest declines in spacial segregation. Read more »
More young people are killed in Chicago than any other American city
Since 2008, more than 530 youth have been killed in Chicago with nearly 80 percent of the homicides occurring in 22 African-American or Latino community areas on the city’s South, Southwest and West sides. Read more »
Vacant homes to rentals has potential but also potential problems
Vacant homes are trouble. There's no doubt about it. From attracting squatters, falling into disrepair or lowering home values, there's not a neighborhood in this city that doesn't have empty homes creating problems. More are piling onto the market every day, with little hope of a quick recovery. Read more »
Neighborhood: The Real You?
In Chicago, neighborhoods are a way to categorize a person. If you live in a bad neighborhood, you are automatically considered to be a bad person; if you live in a good neighborhood, you must be a good person.
But here's one problem: I reside in Pilsen, and I’m not a bad person. Read more »
Subsidized housing and slum landlords
What do you have if you put together a prominent landlord, $300 million in development projects and apartments without heat? Today, tune in to the Barbershop Show on Vocalo at noon, when we'll look into what the conditions are in subsidized housing managed by one polarizing figure on the South Sider--Leon Finney Jr.
As questions arise, more charters planned for Chicago
CEO Jean-Claude Brizard has said that charter schools will not escape tough scrutiny of their performance--including the threat of closure--and that School Board members would consider taking action against one or two charters at the December board meeting. Read more »
The number of minority teachers in Chicago has been on a downturn
The Center for American Progress released a report recently, “Teacher Diversity Matters,”detailing the “teacher diversity gap” state-by-state.
The findings paint a sobering picture of minority under-representation, statewide, in the teaching profession: Just 54 percent of Illinois students are white, but 89 percent of teachers are. Read more »
Community Renewal Society
332 S. Michigan Ave. 500 • Chicago, Illinois 60604 Tel: (312) 427-4830 • Fax: (312) 427-6130 • Email: info@communityrenewalsociety.org
Terms of Use | Privacy Policy
All Site Content ©2012 Community Renewal Society
