Charter Schools To Lobby State Lawmakers To Pass A Budget
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Students, parents, teachers, and administrators from charter schools in Chicago rallied Wednesday morning on the South Side before heading to Springfield to lobby state lawmakers to get moving on the state budget.
Hundreds held a pep rally in a cold rain in the parking lot outside U.S. Cellular Field before boarding buses to the Illinois State Capitol for their annual lobbying day at the statehouse.
"This is a time of turmoil in our state. School funding and our state budget have not been passed," said Jelani McEwen, director of external affairs for the Illinois Network of Charter Schools (INCS).
Nearly all Chicago aldermen have backed a resolution calling for a statewide moratorium on charter schools, but teacher Demetrius Davis said more charter schools are needed.
"We demand the resources and tools to ensure that Jamal from the South Side has the tools and the resources to become the next corporate executive," he said.
INCS president Andrew Broy said state lawmakers should respect the 66,000 families in the state who have chosen a charter school for their child.
"We need more leadership, not more division," he said.