With August just around the corner, school is about to commence all around the country in a matter of a few weeks. That is true for many of the schools we work with in the city.
Today's Chicago Sun-Times carried a massive piece on the 'extra cash' going to some 135 schools in the public school system. Plenty of material was provided on the guidelines for doling out the money. Fortunately, a good portion of the funds will go to the schools with the greatest needs. Sounds good.
But wait, a majority of the schools are getting a paultry $35,000 or $70,000. Some schools will get as much as $100,000. Let's be honest, that is a very small amount of money to help schools that operate on a budget in the millions of dollars each school year. Besides that minimal additional funding, a smaller article on the same page raised the point concerning the amount of classroom funding that was CUT for the coming year. That amount is a staggering $68 million!
So when one takes a look at what appears to be the windfall accruing to the schools in need, you shouldn't be surprised that the 'extra cash' isn't so 'extra' after all. Of course, the real reason the 'extra cash' is being provided is because the schools aren't properly funded in the first place.
I see the big splash in the Sun-Times article (page 9) as little more than the CPS brass putting a positive spin on their workings, working which included shutting down four dozen schools this spring!
Dick
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