CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- The Illinois House is set to vote on a 21-member elected board to run Chicago Public Schools this week and Mayor Lightfoot said she's not giving up the fight.
Mayor Lightfoot made what could be her final argument against the legislation that she calls "deeply flawed."
"It's not just that it's 21. It's 21 people who get to set their own compensation, build a whole new set of bureaucracy. That money should be poured back into the school system..." Lightfoot said.
A 21-member school board would be "unwieldy", the mayor said, and would lead to costly elections, noting that without campaign finance caps, a race for one seat in Los Angeles cost more than a million dollars.
"It's 21 with no guardrails around campaign finance. If we've got million dollar races for a single seat, how does that help enhance parent engagement?" Lightfoot added.
“Our children are hurting. Learning loss is real. Achievement gaps are real. We need to focus like a laser beam on providing our children with the safest, most robust education environment that can be. If we’re not talking about that, we’re talking about the wrong things.”
While it is expected the bill would be approved in its current form, Lightfoot said she is continuing her fight for change.
"Yes we are continuing to work to slow down the process, to actually have real negotiations, because that opportunity was promised, but it did not manifest itself in the Senate. It would be really unfortunate if this is what happened in the House. I am aware of the practical realities, but as General Macarthur said, I've only just begun to fight," Lightfoot said.
The mayor argued that the elected school board would prevent undocumented parents from sitting on the board or even voting, although another bill would change that.
"It feels like we are in another world, another part of the country," Lightfoot said.
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