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* UPDATED x1 - Meeks shows up * ISBE responds to harsh criticism

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* You’ll remember this press release from yesterday…

GROUP TO RAUNER: ILLINOIS GOV’T IS NOT A DICTATORSHIP!

Coalition Sheds Light On Governor’s Back-Door Move for Massive Charter Expansion, Demands Rejection of Federal Funds

WHAT: Parents, community organizations, school board members and elected officials will join together before the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) meeting on Friday, November 20th at 9am to protest the undemocratic decision making from ISBE to expand charter schools in Illinois without public input.

ISBE applied for and received a federal grant of $42.5 million to open 48 new charter schools – 24 for Chicago over the next 5 years and 24 for the rest of the state. But the grant only covers start-up funding, with no funds to run schools once they open, thus cannibalizing the same inadequate public dollars funding existing schools.

* The ISBE responds…

ISBE could never do what is being suggested in this release. ISBE is required by law to offer the money - once awarded - to start-up charter schools through sub-grants that are decided based on a highly regulated and competitive state procurement process.

This procurement process is governed strictly by the state procurement code to ensure transparency and fairness. The program will help educate and empower school districts to consider the ways in which charter schools can support and encourage educational innovation, community partnerships and improved student outcomes.

It will build on ISBE’s current initiatives to help all schools promote academic excellence by providing equitable options for all students to ultimately close the achievement gap.

In addition, I was told earlier: “There have been no decisions made on selection or funding for any expansion of a charter school at this time as it is still too early in the process. ISBE will release an RFP later this fall by which those determinations will be made. The purpose of the presentation in [today’s] Board meeting is to explain this RFP process.”

*** UPDATE *** Rev. James Meeks, the ISBE Chairman, interrupted the press conference at about the 5:30 mark on this BlueRoomStream video. He was polite, but some of the participants weren’t happy…

Heh.

posted by Rich Miller
Friday, Nov 20, 15 @ 8:47 am

Comments

Great bureaucratic response. Avoids the why and what for questions and describes the process from here on out. Somebody applied for this grant. What’s in the application?

Comment by Sir Reel Friday, Nov 20, 15 @ 9:18 am
Quite an overreaction. Not that logic will deter this “coalition”.

Comment by Anonymous Friday, Nov 20, 15 @ 10:06 am
Of course there’s already a state charter commission, so that if a local district decides that a charter isn’t right for them, they can be forced to open one and pay it more money than a school that they have approved.

Comment by Carhartt Representative Friday, Nov 20, 15 @ 10:13 am
ISBE is doubly incorrect. Under the State Procurement Code grants are exempt, as are procurement with units of government. Absent federal requirements, these funds could be given to local school districts with no procurement process.

Comment by Smitty Irving Friday, Nov 20, 15 @ 10:13 am
Smitty, state grants, and grants to other public institutions or procurement from another institution of government are exempt. Spending grant money of any kind is most certainly covered by the procurement code.

Comment by No increase in appropriations Friday, Nov 20, 15 @ 10:17 am
==Quite an overreaction. Not that logic will deter this “coalition”.==

Considering that many of the groups in this coalition receive significant funding from CTU, your observation regarding logic is probably correct.

Comment by nixit71 Friday, Nov 20, 15 @ 10:20 am
No increase in appropriation -
If the grantee is subject to different procurement regime, they must follow that.

Comment by Smitty Irving Friday, Nov 20, 15 @ 10:28 am
Charters vary tremendously in academic achievement. One of the worst in this area is in Jacksonville - 8 Points which Rauner visited. By far worst school is Jax.

Comment by charters and charters Friday, Nov 20, 15 @ 10:28 am
What Sir Reel said. Essentially ISBE’s response is “we did this & we’ll follow the rules.” This grant deserves all the scrutiny it gets. The feds gave this grant money to Ohio…a state oversaturated with charts where everyone agrees they need to slow charter growth…not expand. Methinks u protest not enough.

Comment by A Parent Friday, Nov 20, 15 @ 10:43 am
Just saw the tape. Way to go Rev. Meeks! He invited them all to speak and give their input at his board meeting which was in progress upstairs.

They declined! LOL!

Comment by Louis G. Atsaves Friday, Nov 20, 15 @ 10:59 am
Can anyone hear what Orr shouted as Meeks left?

Comment by NIU Grad Friday, Nov 20, 15 @ 11:01 am
John Laesch’s move from rural Kendall County to east Aurora seems to be working well for him. New community, new groups to pander to.

Comment by yer boi Friday, Nov 20, 15 @ 11:04 am
Beat me to the question NIU Grad. I was wondering the same thing.

and Mr. Astaves they did not decline, they stated they already had a representative at the meeting.

Comment by burbanite Friday, Nov 20, 15 @ 11:08 am
the main critiscm i have heard of charters, is that they do not have to rovide specialized services for kids with special needs. the school uses the pool of money for kids who do not need extra help to aid in offsetting the total expense for those who do. if you shave off the kids who do not need extra services, the schools become top heavy with kids with special needs and costs go way up.

if that is really the issue (and this is all antecdotal) then why not just mandate the charters to take special meeds kids as well and go on…. free money seems good, so long as we are not incurring some greater cost down the road for it

Comment by Ghost Friday, Nov 20, 15 @ 11:39 am
A reliable way to get the most glib, facile take us to read Louis G. Atsaves’ comments. Meeks interrupted. A representative of the coalition was at the very board meeting Meeks invited them to, surely in earnest out of the kindness of his heart. /s

Comment by Young State Worker Friday, Nov 20, 15 @ 11:45 am
*is, not us.

Comment by Young State Worker Friday, Nov 20, 15 @ 11:46 am
==They declined! LOL!==

They had a Rep there. And if you think barging in on a press conference to invite the group to an in-progress board meeting was a good move, then I hope you aren’t advising any political figures in this state.

Tacky and unnecessary move by Meeks.

Comment by Abe the Babe Friday, Nov 20, 15 @ 11:48 am
==What’s in the application?==

As I said yesterday, take half a second and use the Google. Sheesh.

http://www2.ed.gov/programs/charter/2015/illinoisapp.pdf

Comment by Demoralized Friday, Nov 20, 15 @ 12:07 pm
Sorry folks, they clearly declined Meeks’ invite for ALL of them to speak. Looked like they had 20-30 there. So they settled for one who was already there? LOL!

Congrats to Rep. Martwick for pushing for an elected CPS Board.

Comment by Louis G. Atsaves Friday, Nov 20, 15 @ 12:11 pm
==So they settled for one who was already there? LOL!==

Yeah. Sending one person to speak on your group’s behalf is how you civilly provide your opinion when invited.

What you don’t do is show up uninvited to someone else’s press conference and interrupt with a disingenuous invitation to a meeting that is already in progress.

Sheesh Louis, how do you defend this stuff?

Comment by Abe the Babe Friday, Nov 20, 15 @ 12:26 pm
===What you don’t do is show up uninvited to someone else’s press conference===

Oh, take a breath already.

Comment by Rich Miller Friday, Nov 20, 15 @ 12:33 pm
Demoralized, I read through part of the application last night after you had posted the link. And as someone who is not particularly a fan of charter schools (or at least how they are currently being utilized) it seems pretty clear to me that the purpose of this grant is to improve the performance of what is going to be happening in Illinois regardless of these federal dollars. So I really think this is simply complaining for complaining’ sake, and there really is nothing to see here.

Also, on about page 80, in the letter of support section, who knew that Tony Smith and Governor Rauner had such similar writing styles?

Comment by Juice Friday, Nov 20, 15 @ 12:47 pm
Amen, Mr. Miller. Some people need to take a deep breath. Up to and including some of those present at this press conference today. From their reactions, it appears that they had absolutely no interest in what Reverend Meeks had to say period.

It seemed to me that he was geniunely trying to, quite politely, invite them to come upstairs and air their grievances before the Board. Instead they chose to stay and grandstand in front of the media.

Juice has got it right. Complaining for complaining’s sake.

Comment by Paul Kemp Friday, Nov 20, 15 @ 1:28 pm
@ Paul Kemp
Yeah, next time Rauner speaks in front of his office, let’s just go up to him, inerrupt him and tell him he’s invited to our next union rally scheduled. Meeks knows he can’t serve two masters. Instead Rauner flies to Vegas to be told what he wants to hear, not do what he was elected to do.

Comment by Anonymous Friday, Nov 20, 15 @ 2:07 pm
@ Paul Kemp
Another thing, they had a representative there. And there were three legislators present. He could’ve raised his hand and asked like everyone else had to. Why not ask to air the board meeting before the press conference was scheduled? Its not like this was a same scheduled day event.

Comment by Anonymous Friday, Nov 20, 15 @ 2:13 pm