Full Text of HR0172 096th General Assembly
HR0172 96TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
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| HOUSE RESOLUTION
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| WHEREAS, Every hour, every school day, 16 students become | 3 |
| dropouts in Chicago, and the majority of these students are | 4 |
| African-American and Latino; and
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| WHEREAS, Youth Connection Charter School is a | 6 |
| not-for-profit charter school association that caters to | 7 |
| drop-out students, allowing them a second chance to earn a | 8 |
| degree and providing them with professional skills to achieve | 9 |
| rewarding careers; and
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| WHEREAS, The average dropout rate for Chicago Public | 11 |
| Schools for the past five years was 41%; alarmingly, the | 12 |
| average age of a student who drops out is 18 or 19, and the | 13 |
| average reading comprehension is at the 7th grade level; forty | 14 |
| percent of these dropouts read below a sixth grade level; and
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| WHEREAS, 75 percent of America's state prison inmates are | 16 |
| high school dropouts; additionally, young adults who become | 17 |
| dropouts are more than three times more likely than high school | 18 |
| graduates to be arrested in their lifetime; and
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| WHEREAS, It is tragically clear that a high number of high | 20 |
| school dropouts do not achieve at the same level that people | 21 |
| with high school degrees, more frequently are incarcerated, and |
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| are predominately African-American or Latino; and
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| WHEREAS, The Chicago Public Schools has been battling the | 3 |
| problem of high drop-out rates, but sadly the number has not | 4 |
| been able to drop below 40%; and
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| WHEREAS, Youth Connection Charter School re-enrolls high | 6 |
| school dropouts, and achieves a higher graduation rate than | 7 |
| Chicago Public Schools with this already marginalized | 8 |
| population; and
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| WHEREAS, Youth Connection Charter School has a current | 10 |
| waiting list of 1,200 students; sadly, these students who are | 11 |
| unable to enroll face the same challenges and negative | 12 |
| consequences that other drop-outs face, despite the fact that | 13 |
| they are trying to obtain a degree; and
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| WHEREAS, It is our obligation as a society to ensure that | 15 |
| all students regardless of race or socioeconomic status have | 16 |
| the right to achieve a high quality secondary education, and | 17 |
| Youth Connection Charter School has the ability and the | 18 |
| capacity to help more young adults reach the achievement of | 19 |
| obtaining a high school diploma; therefore, be it
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| RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE | 21 |
| NINETY-SIXTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we |
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| request that Chicago Public Schools allocate 2,100 seats to | 2 |
| Youth Connection Charter School over a seven-year period to | 3 |
| address the immediate and urgent need to help as many young | 4 |
| adults as possible achieve an education; and be it further
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| RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 6 |
| presented to Chicago Public Schools CEO Ron Huberman.
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