HJ0065 97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HJ0065 LRB097 19551 NHT 66086 r

HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, City of Chicago School District 299 is one of the only school districts in this State with an appointed, not an elected, school board; and

WHEREAS, For 15 years, City of Chicago School District 299 has implemented a staggering number of reforms, including probation, student retention, school closings, charters, turnarounds, and the wholesale firing of 1,300 educators in the summer of 2011; and

WHEREAS, Many of these reforms are controversial and require a robust democratic discussion and decision-making process; and

WHEREAS, For the past 15 years, citizens have had little to no voice in school policy; and

WHEREAS, All children must be able to walk across the street to receive a world class education; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-SEVENTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, THE SENATE CONCURRING HEREIN, that the Chicago Educational Governance Task Force is created for the purpose of recommending the best structure and procedure for the governance of City of Chicago School District 299 in order to protect the welfare of the students of the City of Chicago; and be it further

RESOLVED, That The Task Force shall be composed of the following members:

(1) two members each appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the Minority Leader of the House of Representatives, at least one of whom must either be a member of the Elementary & Secondary Education Committee or a member whose representative district includes a portion of City of Chicago School District 299;

(2) two members each appointed by the President of the Senate and the Minority Leader of the Senate, at least one of whom must either be a member of the Education Committee or a member whose legislative district includes a portion of City of Chicago School District 299;

(3) two representatives of Chicago school community organizations with past involvement in school governance issues, appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives;

(4) two representatives of Chicago school community organizations with past involvement in school governance issues, appointed by the President of the Senate;

(5) the Chief Executive Officer of City of Chicago School District 299 or her or his designee;

(6) the President of the Chicago Board of Education or her or his designee;

(7) the President of the Chicago Teachers Union or his or her designee;

(8) the president of the association representing principals in the schools of the district or his or her designee; and

(9) the student representative from the Chicago Board of Education or his or her designee; and be it further

RESOLVED, That the Speaker of the House of Representatives shall appoint one of the appointed House members as a co-chairperson of the Chicago Educational Governance Task Force, and the President of the Senate shall appoint one of the appointed Senate members as a co-chairperson of the Chicago Educational Governance Task Force; and be it further

RESOLVED, That members appointed by the legislative leaders shall be appointed for the duration of the Chicago Educational Governance Task Force; and be it further

RESOLVED, That in the event of a vacancy, the appointment to fill the vacancy shall be made by the legislative leader of the same chamber and party as the leader who made the original appointment; and be it further

RESOLVED, That the members of the Task Force shall serve on a pro bono basis; and be it further

RESOLVED, That the members of the Task Force shall aid in the gathering of pertinent information on the impact of various school governance structures, including without limitation an elected representative school board and mayoral control, as well as gathering and analyzing data about the district's current governance structure; and be it further

RESOLVED, That the Task Force shall report its recommendation as to which governance structure is best designed to serve the students of the City of Chicago to the General Assembly on or before May 30, 2012; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be delivered to the Chief Executive Officer of City of Chicago School District 299, the Chicago Board of Education, and the President of the Chicago Teachers Union.