A CPS Takeover?

Any way you slice it, the IL GOP State Legislature plan to offer, in their words, a 'lifeline' to CPS is nothing short of remarkable. To many others the plan no chance of seeing the light of day. Leaders on the other side of the aisle along with the CPS brass and CTU officials have said no way.

Illinois GOP leaders want to bring two pieces of legislation to the floor for starters. One bill would say that the city of Chicago and CPS can declare bankruptcy and the second bill would get rid of the current Board of Education and allow the state's Board of Education to create an independent board.

Let me tackle the bankruptcy idea or plan. It is a FACT that going through bankruptcy for a school district is far different than a company declaring bankruptcy. Check with any attorney who specializes in this area and they'll confirm this. It isn't a simple matter. It leads me to wonder if the GOP leaders REALLY investigated this prior to make their grand pronouncement.

One other issue. Before anyone (in either political party) floats such a plan in public, if you want it to have a chance to succeed, you might want to involve other stakeholders. Yes, Democrats and Republicans can do what they want in terms of offering any legislation but bringing others into the fold will have a better chance of survival rather than a punch in the face.

Dick