Miguel Del Valle Answers: As Mayor of Chicago, How Will You Fix Education?

Chicago - We asked each mayoral candidate how they would fix education in the City of Chicago if elected. Each candidate was given the same 13 questions. We've posted each candidate's response, in his or her words, in their entirety, un-edited.

Candidate: Miguel Del Valle
Website: www.delvalleformayor.com
Email address: info@delvalleformayor.com
Campaign address: 1325 W. Grand Ave. | Chicago, IL | 60642
Campaign phone: 312.733.8083

1. What criteria will you use in selecting the next CEO of the Chicago Public Schools?

The Chicago Public Schools system faces numerous challenges that will require strong leadership to implement the necessary changes to improve our schools. As mayor, I will appoint an educator as superintendent with strong executive and managerial skills to head the Chicago Public Schools. The new superintendent must be held accountable for establishing and meeting high educational standards and for transforming low performing neighborhood schools into high performing schools. The ideal candidate must have a solid track record of producing results in collaboration with school administrators, teachers, parents, and community members. The new superintendent must be a practitioner of educational best practices and capable of fostering innovative problem-solving throughout the educational system. The ability to handle fiscal matters is a high priority in these difficult economic times when resources are scarce.

2. What will you do to keep the students who are in Chicago Public Schools safe?

Chicago must be a safe place to live, learn, work, and do business. I believe in preventing crime and violence by supporting the effort to provide youth with opportunities to engage in positive activities and contribute to community life through after school programming, summer and after school jobs, and other investments. It is also vital that the issue of addressing youth violence be embedded in every school’s improvement plan. Students spend the majority of their day in schools and shouldn’t have to face violence or bullying in that environment. The role of the staff of the schools is to constantly provide inspiration, role modeling, and guidance to prevent youth violence. Each school community should decide how they will do that. The Culture of Calm program seems to be making progress in reducing violence among students in some schools. It is my understanding that the way the program is implemented varies greatly from school to school based on the discretion of the local principal. Some schools have a well-thought-out, comprehensive violence prevention program as part of their Culture of Calm effort, while others implement a more minimalistic program. One concern is that some non-profits that run the program complain that the schools are not always good partners in terms of releasing payment for the program, thus discouraging the non-profit from collaborating with the schools. Also, I believe it is important to be careful not to reinforce negative stereotypes of certain students in the way the program is implemented as certain students are targeted for intervention. Before more funds are allocated for this project there needs to be more research done on its effectiveness. Meanwhile, despite good intentions, the reality remains that many youth will get caught up in the challenges of their environment and may get in trouble in their early years. As such, it is imperative to promote and help bring to scale programs that intervene and bring corrective action to get youth back on a productive path rather than simply emphasizing punitive measures that lead down a path to nowhere. As I mentioned above, I endorse programs like the Community Renewal Society High HOPES campaign, which focuses training and action of CPS officials around restorative justice practices. For students who do act out in violent ways or otherwise get into trouble in early years, it is imperative to promote and help bring to scale programs that intervene and bring corrective action to get youth back on a productive path rather than simply emphasizing punitive measures that lead down a path to nowhere. I endorse programs like the Community Renewal Society High HOPES campaign, which focuses training and action of CPS officials around restorative justice practices. With a community organizing background myself, I am inspired by efforts where neighbors, churches, and other partners work together to ensure the safety of our children. I will encourage and support all such programs in conjunction with parents and neighbors, CPS, the Chicago Police Department, non-profit organizations, and faith-based organizations. I also support community-based violence prevention efforts such as CeaseFire, an evidence-based epidemiological method to reduce violence.

3. What significant activities/steps/policies/transformation will you implement in the Chicago Public Schools to improve teacher quality and preparation for both pre-service and experienced teachers to meet the needs of every student in their classroom? Where do you stand on recently drafted legislation that challenges districts to keep their best teachers in the classroom by using data like actual student growth and other measures, rather than solely basing those decisions on seniority?

I believe that evaluation of student and teacher performance should be focused on helping develop and support teachers and students. We need to support our teachers, as well as our principals, and provide additional training to ensure that they are as well equipped as possible to provide the most effective teaching models and classroom environments to promote the greatest success of Chicago’s school children. We need to refine our system and process for teacher evaluation. I believe that evaluation should be used to provide ongoing feedback and be used to help inform training and professional development for teachers and staff. However, I also believe that, in collaboration with the teachers’ union, there needs to be a review and necessary changes to ensure a process that will allow termination of those teachers that fail to do their job effectively. The State of Illinois is requiring all districts to change their teacher evaluation process to make it more transparent and helpful to teachers. The Chicago Public Schools recently received a $34 million Teacher Incentive Fund grant from the federal government to improve teacher evaluation practices. Such practices should help identify areas where teachers need to grow and connect these teachers to trainings. The trend in educational theory is toward the development of whole new models of teaching—to help the US catch up with other countries—and existing teachers must be empowered to participate in these new models as they flow from our teaching universities and education policy think tanks. The foundation of a good teacher evaluation system is to thoroughly evaluate teachers early in their career, before tenure is awarded, and then support teachers’ efforts to continue to improve across their entire careers. I was a chief co-sponsor of the 2004 state law creating the Grow Your Own Teacher Program. I’m glad to see that a recent evaluation of the program concluded that GYO beginning teachers far exceeded expectations on curriculum and instruction through a combination of high quality teacher education and ongoing support. Procedures for determining which teachers are laid off is a negotiated item with the Chicago Teachers Union. Teachers with less seniority should generally be laid off before those with more seniority, but other factors such as educational certifications and teacher evaluations should be considered.

4. How will you evaluate and study the outcomes of your proposed activities/policies/steps/transformation on student achievement and the learning environment? What role will student test scores play?

Education should be about developing critical thinking skills along with content knowledge, not just teaching to a test. Different learning styles and test-taking formats must also be taken into account when fostering and evaluating students’ success in the classroom. Additionally, all of the life challenges that students bring to school from home, the neighborhood, or from previous academic environments must be incorporated into expectations as to what can be accomplished in the classroom. A teacher cannot hold all the responsibility for a student’s achievement on a standardized test. While seniority alone is not an adequate measure, neither is student growth alone without considering factors that teachers do not control. In addition to ensuring internal evaluation processes across the system, I will welcome outside evaluators and partners to help CPS reshape its system and assess what is working and what is not working. Such work is currently on-going in partnership with local philanthropic efforts to convene and fund such work in collaboration with area universities that specialize in research and evaluation as it relates to the education arena.

5. How will you create an effective partnership between students, parents, teachers, administrators, CPS staff, community organizations, the Chicago Teachers Union and the Board of Education to create an excellent learning environment in our schools for all students? Specifically, what do you think of the proposal to severely restrict the ability of teachers unions to strike? And how would you rewrite rules for teacher tenure?

I know it will only be possible to foster positive results in our public schools if students, parents, teachers, principals, unions, and the school board work together as partners. We all need to do more, and not everyone will always agree or like what needs to be done. But, as mayor I will make sure that all voices are heard and will keep a focus on what is best for students and their families. I would appoint to the school board a range of stakeholders that represent the various voices and perspectives that need to be present to ensure balanced consideration of needs and strategies to improve our schools. Also, I will ensure parent and community involvement through active, well-trained, functioning Local School Councils. As a state senator, I was the co-sponsor of the 1988 School Reform law that created Local School Councils. When I spoke at the 20th Anniversary Celebration of Parents United for Responsible Education (PURE), I said, “Show me a school that’s progressing, I will show you a school with a Local School Council that is strong, that is involved, that is connected, that is fully engaged. Also, I will promote collaboration with and buy-in from the private sector through encouraging corporate partners to fund the creation of more Community Learning Centers as articulated above, increasing their number by 50% during my first term as mayor. I am thoroughly convinced that attacking teachers does not help to create an environment of effective partnerships. European models of success in improving schools is very closely tied to supporting and developing teachers through enhanced and on-going training; we need to understand the fundamental importance of our teachers and consider them our most valued partners. Trying to take away teachers’ right to strike is a distraction from what really needs to happen to fundamentally reshape public schooling. While we certainly need to have mechanism in place which allow for the dismissal of those teachers who are a detriment to student learning, we need to stop trying to punish the Chicago Teachers Union by threatening to take away their right to strike when they haven’t had a strike in over 23 years.

6. Would your administration support the expansion of quality charter schools in the district and how would you address the concerns some have about transparency and parental oversight? What role do vouchers have in improving the education opportunities for Chicago students?

As a parent, I understand the need for academic options for one’s children. But we cannot fund parallel school systems. I do not believe that charter schools and vouchers represent viable solutions for ensuring a healthy public school system for all. They promote avoidance of the current situation for CPS and will serve as a hindrance to a needed focus on improving local public schools. All our schools must be good schools, so every child in Chicago can receive a quality education in their own neighborhood. We need to invest public resources in a way that ensures that every neighborhood school is a quality school.

7. How would your administration target chronically low-performing schools beyond increased funding supports? And how would you address the rightful concerns regarding increasing the community's engagement in how to address their neighborhood's lowest performing schools?

...accountability, student performance, parent involvement, and equalized funding as the Renaissance 2010 campaign. We must review and monitor schools that continue to perform at unacceptable levels. We must also review reconstitution plans very carefully to include the schools’ learning communities. Everyone must be heard during the process of evaluation. The teachers, the parents, the students, and the community at large must work collaboratively before any decisions are made to close a school. It is crucial that neighborhood issues are also taken into consideration. The board needs to adopt procedures that are clear and fair for determining reconstitution. In addition to my commitment to parent and community engagement through Local School Councils and to parent and community organizing to promote school safety, as mentioned above, I propose an expansion of the “Community Schools” model to address a number of issues, including community engagement and improving schools. I have called for an expanded program called “Community Learning Centers” to create extended day learning opportunities that may include technology clubs, the arts, sports, tutoring, and specialized programs for students. This would be done by creating partnerships among the private sector, nonprofit organizations, and schools. Crucial to this model is a parent component in which parents can also take classes such as GED or ESL, in addition to being involved in programming for the benefit of the children According to a study conducted by the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC), Chicago Public School students participating in Community Learning Centers improve academically. Of those students, 70% improved their completion of homework, 72% improved their participation in class, 66% improved their classroom behavior, and 73% improved their overall academic performance. In addition, eight graders proved better prepared for high school.

8. As mayor, would you support extending the school day and school year? How will you make it a priority for change in the 2012 Chicago Teachers Union contract and in communications with state policymakers? And how would you pay for it?

Identifying the public and private resources needed to lengthen the school day and school year will be one of my highest priorities as mayor. However, I realize the length of the school day is a negotiated issue with the Chicago Teachers Union. I will engage in a collaborative effort with the union and others about how to lengthen the school day. However, in the end, as mayor my main responsibility will be to do what is best for students and their families. Additionally, my proposed Community Learning Centers program, as described above, will serve to provide extended-day learning opportunities at school sites. I propose a partnership with the private sector to fund the creation of more Community Learning Centers, increasing their number by 50% during my first term as Mayor. Just as we have a responsibility to be engaged in our children’s learning, Chicago’s business community must continue to support community learning as well. This is a natural partnership. I believe in these partnerships because they work. These and any other innovations to improve public education in Chicago require both realignment of existing resources and new revenues. Administrative reductions must be made, except school personnel that work with students directly. But there must be a search for additional public and private funding. We must become more competitive for federal funding for our schools and school-based programs, and we must recapture funds from Tax Increment Financing district (TIF) funds that are currently diverted from CPS’ revenue stream. We must also work toward comprehensive reform of state school funding. I have a long track record of supporting comprehensive school funding reform to reduce the reliance on property taxes to fund public schools and reduce the spending disparity between rich and poor districts. During my tenure as a state senator, in 2005 I took the lead on this issue, introducing a bill that called for a restructuring of the state income tax structure in a way that raised income tax on wealthy households but did not increase the burden on low-income families. It also called for an expansion of the sales tax base.

9. What innovative ideas are you planning to lead to improve learning experiences for our city's youngest citizens?

The Community Learning Centers that I will support as Mayor, described above, will provide needed enhancements to school programming. I will call upon our community at large to engage at a high level as volunteers and corporate funders to make these programs possible. I am especially inspired by a program in the Los Angeles public schools, run by an orchestra conductor from a poor community in his native country, who received music training and experience performing in symphonies at young age as part of an effort there to inspire creativity and higher levels of engagement among school children. He is now piloting a similar program for high need youth in Los Angeles utilizing donated instruments and volunteers to expose these youth to music and to develop discipline and commitment. Additionally, I have announced my New Pathways to Affordable Higher Education pilot proposal to make higher education more affordable and accessible to students and their families. The initiative is a three-point plan that includes measures to: 1. Expand the Dual Credit/Dual Enrollment Program: The New Pathways initiative will expand the dual credit and dual enrollment program between the Chicago Public Schools and the City Colleges of Chicago to allow high school students to get ahead academically, saving costs later in college. Dual credit provides many advantages: (1) it allows academically qualified high school students to earn credits that count toward a high school diploma and a college degree; (2) it can help students make the transition from high school to college; (3) it saves students and families money; and (4) it has the potential to shorten the time to a college degree or certificate. Students can save approximately $2,610 (one years’ tuition at a City College of Chicago). 2. Adopt the State’s 2+2 MAP Plan Proposed by the State’s Monetary Award Program: The New Pathways 2+2 Initiative would establish the partnership between the City Colleges and Chicago’s public universities through a 2+2 Plan. Through 2+2, students can complete two years in a City College before finishing a degree at a four-year university. Students who attend two years at a City College of Chicago and finish their final two years at UIC can save approximately $18,300.

10. If you had a child with special needs, what would your expectations be at the school he or she attends?

When I first began attending Chicago Public Schools I didn’t speak English. Having recently arrived from Puerto Rico, I barely spoke the language. I failed a grade when I was 6 because I wasn’t given the proper attention. Although that was years ago, our ELL students face the same challenges today, as a participant in the Mikva Challenge forum I attended on January 17 pointed out when she spoke of her sister ending the eighth grade without enough English for high school. As such, I have always been a strong supporter of bilingual education as demonstrated by my record in the State Senate. I don’t want another student in the Chicago Public School system to be denied a quality education because of special needs that are not appropriately accommodated. That being said, I will ensure that our schools and our teachers are adequately prepared to provide a quality education to all students and appropriate transition planning to students with disabilities.

11. What role will programs for gifted, high-performing students play in schools under your administration? How will the programs be enhanced or cutback?

Both our gifted students and those at-risk of drop out will benefit from a more robust curriculum and set of extra-curricular offerings to challenge, engage, and positively occupy students. We must have high expectations of all of our students and motivate and support them to achieve the high standards that I know they are capable of. For all students, we must provide both traditional college preparatory courses as well as technical courses that can lead to greater participation in the high-tech manufacturing sector that holds so much promise for career opportunities for the next generation and growth of our economy. Also, as Mayor I will promote dual enrollment and dual credit opportunities between the Chicago Public Schools and the City Colleges of Chicago to allow high school students to get ahead academically, accessing courses that may not be available on their high school campus. I believe that this is a practical partnership that will provide a challenging, yet productive experience for our high-performing students.

12. With intensifying external pressures to "achieve", schools can be tempted to focus exclusively on subjects that are explicitly tested on state and national tests, resulting in significant scaling back on arts programming. In addition, the current fiscal climate makes funding arts teachers -- and the materials associated with the arts -- an "extra". Should schools be forced to scale back on this programming, due to their testing focus or budget challenges?

No, schools should not be forced to scale back on arts programming. My education agenda includes promoting the arts in schools, ensuring that all Chicago Public School children receive arts education as a regular part of their curriculum. It is key to their academic success and to self-expression that is also crucial to their development, as I have witnessed in my own children.

13. Should the mayor send his or her children to public school? Why?

Some of my children and grandchildren have attended or are attending Chicago Public Schools. I believe that the mayor will be much more committed to ensuring that CPS provides excellent educational experiences to all of Chicago’s children if her or his children attend those schools. And she/he will understand the system in a much more personal way if one is involved with it not only through oversight but as a parent.
 

The survey questions were contributed by the United Way of Metropolitan Chicago in partnership with the following organizations:

• Illinois Network of Charter Schools
• Teach for America
• Advance Illinois
• The Urban Education Institute, University of Chicago
• Nettlehorst School
• Illinois PTA
• Golden Apple Foundation
• Joyce Foundation
• Stand for Children Chicago
• Park Community Church
• Microsoft
• Renaissance School Fund
• United Neighborhood Organization
• First Five Years Fund