No More Status Quo on Schools

The Tribune highlights the success of charter schools, according to a new study by Stanford's Caroline Hoxby--they competed well with suburban kids in a lighthouse district. She's tracking Chicago students now. And a special needs student finally gets proper attention after TWO YEARS of pressure:

At 11:03 a.m. Friday, the Tribune sent an e-mail to the district seeking comment about Cruz's case. Why hadn't Christopher been placed?

Within four hours, Deborah Duskey, head of the district's special education program, was on the phone with Cruz, telling her that Christopher would be able to start at the private Acacia Academy in the west suburbs this week. Tuesday was his first day. All it took was two years of parental pressure, an attorney, a court order and an e-mail from a newspaper.

The case of Christopher Cruz provides another glimpse into a special education system that many parents and disability advocates say is broken. They describe educational plans that fail to provide proper services to students with disabilities, poor monitoring of how special education students are progressing and parents' struggles to secure services even when they prevail over the district in court.

The mother is a Chicago Public Schools teacher. They dissed even her, they deprived a child. No more status quo on schools--let the education dollars go with the child--free them to be the best they can be. Lift the cap on charter schools here. Lift these kids up.

Parents demanded and got charters in Los Angeles. Come on, Chicago--compete! Break the cartel. Stand up for freedom for these kids.

More. NY Times Nicholas Kristoff bestirs himself to speak up for kids and call out the Dems. Well. The teachers union is the Democrat party. That and the trial lawyers and the SEIU. Thugs rule:

A Los Angeles Times article this year recounted how a teacher rebuked an eighth grader who had been hospitalized for slashing his wrists in a suicide attempt. “Carve deeper next time,” the teacher allegedly advised. He was even said to have added: “You can’t even kill yourself.” A review board blocked the termination of that teacher.

...Oh, and yes, the MSM is part of it too. Holding out false hope for years.

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