What Debt Crisis?

Not only are the turnaround schools costing CPS big money in terms of training principals and teachers but we now have word that Mayor Emanuel is set to spend $200 million on the schools who will be taking in students who are being relocated due to closures.

$200 million...WOW!!!  By the way, if all of these updates and repairs are needed, why weren't they taken care of prior to the closures?

There's no telling what the final tab will be when all of the expenses are added up.  Between closures, consolidations, necessary safety concerns and the turnarounds, the tab will go over $1/4 billion.  I wonder just how long it will take for all these closings to pay down that debt.   It seems hard to believe that the city and CPS brass would want to tack this debt onto an existing one that totals a staggering $1 billion.

And beyond this debt crunch I wonder how CPS will deal with many student concerns when the closings take place.  No doubt, some schools will be overcrowded.  I wouldn't be surprised to see some class sizes rise as one school is closed into another.  With some schools experiencing expanded growth, just how will CPS address health concerns?  Will nurses be staffed every day of the week along with school psychologists?  Don't hold your breath on some of these very real issues.

A debt crisis?  Yes, but the crisis doesn't deal with money alone.

Dick