WHY VOTE?

If you believe that change is needed at South Loop School (SLS), then you should seriously consider voting in its LSC election on April 21. Likewise, if you believe that things are fine at SLS, you should also consider voting.

Whatever you thoughts on how things are at SLS, the fact that a competitive election exists means that you have a prime opportunity to make your vote count.

Please do consider voting on April 21.




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Voting in an LSC Election

The following individuals may vote in the South Loop School LSC election:

1. Parents who have a child enrolled at SLS, regardless of where they live

2. Any resident (parent or not) who lives within the school attendance boundary (see map)


NOTE: One common misconception about LSCs is that you need to have children at the school in order to vote in an LSC election. You don't. You also DO NOT need to be a registered voter to vote in an LSC election, BUT TWO FORMS OF I.D. ARE REQUIRED TO VOTE.

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Candidates Running for the South Loop School LSC

PARENT REP CANDIDATES
(LISTED IN BALLOT ORDER)

1. Maria Munoz

2. John Madden

3. TaTanisha Hall

4. Ellen Lorden

5. John Jacoby

6. Jacqueline Toepfer

7. Beth Aversa

8. Emily Farr

9. Kathy Watson

10. John Mathew

11. Mejai Dyson

12. Pat Adams

COMMUNITY REP CANDIDATES
(LISTED IN BALLOT ORDER)

1. Julie Murphy

2. Jonathan Chaparro

3. Cariann Bills

4. Kevin Wright

5. Ernest Garner

6. Michael Towns



NOTE: The ballot you receive will list the above 18 individuals (12 parent and 6 community rep candidates). You may vote for a TOTAL OF FIVE CANDIDATES maximum from any of the above listed 18 candidates, but you may only cast one vote per candidate. Ballots with more than five votes cast will be disqualified.



TEACHER REP CANDIDATES
(LISTED FOR REFERENCE ONLY AS ONLY SLS TEACHERS CAN VOTE FOR THESE CANDIDATES. ALSO, SINCE THERE ARE TWO TEACHERS RUNNING FOR TWO SPOTS, THIS IS A NON-COMPETITIVE RACE)

1. Tara Kendt

2. Kevin LaCoco




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SOME THOUGHTS ON LOCAL SCHOOL COUNCILS

What is an LSC, and how does it work:

An LSC, or Local School Council, is the system of school governance that exists within the Chicago Public Schools (CPS) system. In Chicago, you have the Chicago Board of Education, which oversees all of the public schools in Chicago, whereas at the individual school level you have individual LSCs that oversee individual schools. An LSC consists of council members that are elected by their respective constituencies for a two-year term, those constituencies being the parents, the teachers, and the community at large. For elementary schools, an LSC consists of eleven members - the principal, 6 parent reps (who are elected by the parents and the community at large), 2 community reps (who are also elected by the parents and the community at large), and 2 teacher reps (who are elected by the teachers at the school). At the high-school level, the make-up of an LSC is the same, with the exception that one student rep is also elected to the LSC by the student body. The principal is automatically on the LSC in all cases.

What specific powers does an LSC have? Where does it derive its authority:

Specifically, LSCs do three things: 1) Approve the School Improvement Plan for Advancing Academic Achievement or SIPAAA; 2) Approve the (discretionary) budget for the SIPAAA; & 3) Hire and evaluate the principal, and renew (or not renew) the principal's employment contract. Beyond that, and depending on how proactive the LSC is, it can also influence many things, including but not limited to school/community relations. Regarding an LSC's authority, it is derived, not from City of Chicago ordinance as many have assumed, but from State law (i.e. the Illinois School Code). The School Code makes for interesting reading because the section of the Code that applies solely to the City of Chicago is not listed in the Code as such, but refers to all Illinois Cities with a population over 500,000 people - for which only Chicago qualifies. Hence, a section of State law was passed that only applies to Chicago.

On a related note:

Chicago is unique among large cities in the United States in that in addition to having a board of education that oversees the entire city, it also has individual LSCs that oversee individual schools. To my knowledge, no other large city has a similar public school governance structure. A key difference between LSCs and the Chicago Board of Education is that LSCs are elected bodies, where Board of Education members are appointed by the Mayor.

Why is it important for local residents to vote in a Local School Council election:

I am often asked this question, but mainly by people who do not have children at the school in question. For those who do have children at a particular school, the answer is obvious - because of the well-being of your child(ren). For those who simply live in the same neighborhood as a school but who do not have children at that school, the answer is somewhat less certain. The simple answer is because the well-being of the community is to a large extent influenced by the well-being of the neighborhood school. Likewise, the well-being of a school is also influenced by the LSC. IF an LSC is led by hard-working, conscientious people with the interests of the children at the forefront, the chances are higher that the school will end up better-off. And if the school is better-off, then the chances are that the community surrounding the school will benefit from increasing property values, an improved neighborhood quality of life, and most importantly, a great place to send one's children.

Some additional thoughts:

At the end of the day, it is in all of our interests to support and involve ourselves in our local school. Whether you are a parent, a community resident, a local business owner, or even a casual visitor, the quality of the local school will in some way affect your experience in the surrounding community. The old saying about what we get out of something being a function of what we put into it is all the more true when it involves our local school. For that reason, I strongly recommend that as a local resident, you come out to vote in the April 21 LSC election at your local elementary school, or on April 22 at your local high school. Come make your voice be heard.