Chris Barrett is a Logan Square parent. His kids go to Drummond Motenssori in Bucktown.
Chicago Public Schools.
Those three words separately mean great things, yet as of late they mean quite the opposite when put together. As I write this, I think of my 2 sons that attend a great Montessori Magnet Chicago Public School. The school is great, not because of it being a Chicago Public School. It is great in spite of it. It is great because of the staff, the Principal , the parents, the custodial staff and the working together through our differences. These differences are sometimes great, yet we work through them, we challenge them and we even fall. We fall in our talks and our discussions, yet in the end we all can come together to help foster a learning environment that is the absolute best we can do with what we have been given.
Many say Montessori is a waste of money in such a cash strapped environment. Well, Drummond Montessori Magnet school is a Level 1 school. Achieving great success. But more importantly to those of us who are parents and the teachers, the students can think for themselves. They are not droned into oblivion history, science and math. They ask questions. they respect each other and their teachers. They feel a sense of pride in their work. Yet know they can always do better. They have learned responsibility and care for the environment for which they learn.
It takes a very involved community of parents and teachers to make a school succeed. This past year it has been extremely difficult for all the teachers as the longer school day has meant the same for teachers. The teachers have a longer day but less time to instruct. The teachers have less one on one time with the students even at the preschool level, and that makes me sad and near angry because such a critical time for our kids and the Mayor chooses not to listen to teachers.
Approximately 2 or so years ago I was at a budget meeting for our LSC. I was stunned when they passed around the sheets stating the various amounts. Not the salaries or operating costs but the supplies budget. They had a little over $8,000 for nearly 400 students for supplies ranging from soap, to yes toilet paper. How could a business of 400 employees plus the various other staff (teachers) operate with just $8,000 for supplies for 1 year? They couldn’t, so why should our school operate on that?
To Mayor Emmanuel:
Please release ALL TIF money to CPS and stop stifling our students and giving your friends a nice loaf of bread.
Thank you.
PS: Its time for an elected school board, otherwise you will NOT be re-elected.
Fred Klonsky 
Even if we manage to get an elected school board, this mayor should still NEVER be reelected. Why that would even be presented as an option at this point is beyond me.
On another note, a Drummond parent, musician Jeff Tweedy hosted fund raisers for Emanuel during the election. Yes: Fundraiser. FOR. Emanuel. Like he needed it. Not surprisingly, Tweedy has dissed unions and Billy Bragg’s socialism. Quell surprise.