False Flag

Aspira Ain't Going Anywhere, CPS Thunders!

By Jim Vail

Aspria Charter Middle School, the epitome of charter corruption, will
not share their grossly under-enrolled school for now.

In a rather emphatic response to what turned out to be a false flag waved by a Chicago Public School principal, the controversial Aspira Charter Middle School in Albany Park will not share its woefully under enrolled school with the North River Elementary School.

"It needs to stop with Aspira," thundered the CPS Network 1 Chief Julie McGlade at the North River Local School Council meeting, according to observers. "Aspira is no longer part of this conversation and should not have been part of this conversation."

Principal Jaime Sanchez of North River Elementary School, which rents space in the Our Lady of Mercy Catholic Church near Montrose and Kedzie, told his school community that their school was planning to move into the Aspira building at Lawndale and Leland.

It was a done deal to be blessed by the Chicago Board of Education, he told people. He even had designs to eventually kick Aspira out of their own building.

The Chicago Teachers Union organized a meeting with teachers to discuss the ramifications. Teachers at North River, Haugan Elementary School and Aspira were worried about the possible re-location and expressed their opposition to the proposed change.

But it appeared somebody spoke too soon, and this upset the top brass. The observer at the local school meeting on Wednesday, Dec. 2 told Second City Teachers that about nine department chiefs attended the virtual meeting, including the heads of the building and facilities departments.

North River currently rents space in the Church, but the school's principal has complained that the building needs major work, including upgraded plumbing, more maintenance and cosmetic work such as painting.

CPS promised to address these concerns, but in terms of a possible co-location in Aspira, or any other school, it ain't gonna happen in the near future.

At the LSC meeting, the network office chief, basically a police force wedged between the building principals and the headquarters run by Janice Jackson (who in turn works for the mayor, who works for the millionaires and billionaires who own the bonds that fund the schools) let it be known to everyone present at the meeting that Principal Sanchez was out of line. She told him to read the letter and not speak on the subject, the observer said, who wished to remain anonymous.

According to sources, Aspira is grossly under-enrolled with only 200 students in a building that could seat more than 800. Their first floor is comprised almost entirely of their corporate offices. They also do not pay rent, only a laughable one dollar that many charter schools pay to lease space in public buildings. Many believe the charter scam is built on a real estate house of cards where wealthy patrons use real estate tax credits.

North River, on the other hand, is forced to pay rent (some estimate up to $50,000 per month at the Our Lady of Mercy Church). Teachers there say they are relieved Aramark was kicked out because the building like a lot of Chicago public schools, "has been filthy for years."

Another issue one teacher raised was parking. The estimated $30 million Aspira building, which was supposed to be a public middle school to relieve the overcrowded Haugan Elementary School, has few parking spaces for staff, who say it is a nightmare. There are only 10 spaces near the building, with 2 designated for handicapped and the others for administrators. The staff have to park a block away in a small area for 20 cars. How was such a massive building built with so little parking? Corruption and Aspira Charter schools are connected like bees and honey.

North River School, like Aspira Haugan Middle School, was also created to relieve the surrounding overcrowded schools in the area. But that was then, and this is now.

Principal Sanchez, a graduate of the education reform principal training New Leaders for New Schools, has designs to make make North River into a magnet arts school, insiders say.

The question is does Aspira mean that much still to CPS big brass? Or did an overly ambitious principal jump the gun and cross his bosses?

This is a sensitive subject for CPS. They certainly are working on a plan to deal with massively unenrolled public schools across this city as a result of the privatization education reforms that were engineered to destroy the public neighborhood schools and replace them with charters or magnets as the city has become too expensive for working families. Some neighborhoods like Austin on the South Side do not have a neighborhood high school.

The ruling class threw a ton of corporate money into their current flavor of the month Lori Lightfoot, and they want to see results, such as closing lots of public schools. Not an easy task considering the huge backlash the city took when Rahm Emanuel closed 50 schools in 2013 on orders from billionaire Ken Griffen who wanted 150 schools closed.

Just recently three public schools in Lawndale on the South Side were temporarily saved after another reform plan to make a math & science academy while ditching the neighborhood schools. This upset the parents and union. The mayor backed off, for now.

Stay tuned ...