When Enrollment Is Declining, Let Communities Decide Next Steps for Schools

Urban school systems all over the Northeast and Midwest are facing declining enrollment and struggle with the challenge of downsizing without shortchanging students’ education. Unfortunately,…

Our Students Need Every Educator to Speak Up to Ensure DeVos Hears Our Support for Restorative Justice

In my decade in Chicago Public Schools as a social worker and currently as a behavioral health specialist, I’ve learned a great education goes beyond…

In Chicago, Charter Schools Are Helping the ‘Underdog’ Kids Get to College

If you’re an underdog kind of kid in Chicago, and you want to go to college and graduate, your chances of success are better now…

This Is What It’s Gonna Take to Get More Chicago Kids All the Way to College Graduation

New studies on college enrollment and completion in Chicago Public Schools (CPS) show signs of progress. But there’s work yet to do to ensure Chicago’s…

Chance The Rapper Donates 30,000 Backpacks to Chicago Students

Grammy Award-winning artist Chance The Rapper is once again helping students in need. The Chicago native has teamed up with STATE bags and his nonprofit,…

It’s Gonna Take A Miracle To Keep My Kid in Chicago Public Schools All Year

It’s August, yet it’s chilly enough in Chicago to roast marshmallows. That’s what some friends from our daughter’s preschool invited us to do over the…

Hey Pondiscio, Before We Talk Curriculum, Let’s Talk Turkey

In his recent response to a David Brooks column, Fordham’s Robert Pondiscio writes about the language of privilege in the United States and argues that…

Arts Education Isn’t Taking a Backseat in Chicago Public Schools

In the midst of a financial crisis, Chicago’s public schools have continued to strengthen their commitment to arts education. So says a new report from the…

3 Ways We Can Start Counting High School Graduates Accurately and Raise Graduation Rates

This week, the GradNation campaign released a report allowing people to compare graduation rates among states and to the national average of 83.2 percent. If…

We Don’t Need Another Batman, We Need Educators Who Are in It for the Long Haul

My favorite superhero—Batman—is a failure. And if young educators take Batman as our role model, we’re likely to fail, too. You see, every Batman comic…