Thousands rally to save teaching positions in Park Ridge and Des Plaines.
District 207, the high school district where my students go after they leave 8th grade, has three high schools. In a state which ranks at the bottom when it comes to school funding, local property taxes are extremely high. So it came as quite a shock to parents, students, teachers and the community when the 207 board announced they were millions in debt.
But are they?
That was one question on the minds of over 3,000 people who attended a meeting in the north west Chicago suburb last night.
137 district employees, including 75 teachers have been pink-slipped.
The message was loud and clear that students, parents and teachers wanted the district to use its reserves – expected to be $86 million at the end of the current academic year – to plug a projected $19 million deficit in the 2010-11 school year.
Students were first to address the board since it was a school night and finals were scheduled for today.
Amid screams, whistles and thunderous claps akin to what one might hear at a pep rally, students spoke in support of keeping their favorite teachers and staff members targeted to be laid off from the three high schools at year’s end.
There were tears, too, as they shared the emotional impact of losing teachers who had served as “role models, mentors and friends.”
“I am going to lose a wonderful teacher who is my ESL teacher,” said Shivani Bhatia, a student at Maine West High School in Des Plaines. “We can pay extra for our lunch and facilities, but we need our teachers. Who is going to take their place?”
The board admits that they are running an $86 million surplus but they refuse to spend it, calling it a “rainy day fund.”
Sandra Deines, a former District 207 teacher and current Park Ridge resident, urged the board to tap the reserve fund, which she said was meant for a rainy day.
“The people who that money belongs to are the people in this auditorium,” she said. “It’s raining.”
To illustrate her point, Deines walked up to the stage upon which the board was sitting, opened a yellow umbrella, and placed it in front of them. It remained there until the conclusion of the meeting.
