Ready to Serve Chicago's Future

I had the opportunity to appear on a panel for WTTW’s Chicago Tonight on Wednesday, September 8, 2009. I was joined by Julie Woestehoff, executive director of Parents United for Responsible Education, and Lorraine Forte, editor-in-chief of Catalyst Chicago. We discussed back-to-school issues and the current state of Chicago education.

As a panelist, I shared some unique qualities that charter public schools encompass, how they serve as frontiers for education innovation. While addressing topics such as government education funding, dropout rates, violence and testing scores, I highlighted Youth Connection Charter Schools (YCCS). YCCS is an excellent example of how charter schools address and improve these current educational issues. This Chicago charter public school has worked hard to increase student attendance and dropout recovery. The panel experience also gave me the platform to clear the air of certain charter school assumptions such as selective student enrollment.

The most important message of the evening was to remember that the name of the school is not important, but the process and value of education we are instilling in our children. Charter public schools are a part of the public school system and there is a state of urgency to come together and find the best solution for our future Chicagoans. For that reason, I found the conversation very beneficial for all parties.

Last night’s experience was educational and productive. In order to ensure a stronger tomorrow for our children, we need to concentrate on the current problems and take action to improve. Chicago Tonight’s panel gave me the podium to demonstrate how charter public schools are a great avenue for this change and how they can harmonize with the public school system. Working together to help our future should be all of our priorities and I know Chicago is up for the challenge.

Sylvia Ewing,
INCS Interim Executive DIrector

Tribune highlights YCCS student's triumphs

Youth Connection Charter School, who was featured as our first case study recently, has an inspiring article on their website right now about Nasia Smith, a student who just graduated:

Youth Connection Charter School 2009 graduate Nasia Smith was featured in a Chicago Tribune article on August 7, 2009. The article entitled, “In The Fight of Their Lives”, recent graduates of CPS schools discuss overcoming a growing problem in Chicago, homelessness. Nasia was one of the 236 homeless youth population enrolled in YCCS campuses this past school year. Her situation is classified as an “unaccompanied youth” - those who are homeless and not in the physical custody of a parent or guardian. The article written by Lauren B. Harrison, focused on the many struggles Nasia went through to graduate from high school. Despite having a baby and meeting his needs, being homeless and working several jobs to make ends meet, Nasia still persevered to graduation as salutatorian of her class this past June...

Read the rest on YCCS's website!

Youth Connection Charter School: A Drop-Out Case-Study

"Each year in Illinois, close to 30,000 students drop out of school. At any one time, there are over 100,000 Illinoisans between the ages of 17 and 20 who are out of school. The consequences for these youth and for the state are dire: the unemployment rate for high school dropouts under age 20 is close to 70% and those dropouts who do work earn far less than high school and college graduates."

That is from Sarah Lieberman Weisz, author of Success with Drop-Outs, a new tool commissioned by INCS, that provides case studies on Illinois charter schools by independent authors. The first case study is on recent Charter Up! honoree Youth Connection Charter School (YCCS).

One of the first schools to open, YCCS was chartered in 1997, and has been a pioneer for supporting students aged 17-21 who have dropped out of school. They serve as an excellent model that has inspired similar charters statewide with their community-based programs and innovative educational services.

Learn more about the successes of YCCS and drop-out recovery by reading the case study.