Austerity Measures and City Schools: Parent Narratives of Organizing Against Massive School Closings and Budget Cuts

• In Event: Roundtable Session 15
  In Roundtable Session: A Tale of Three Cities: Parent Activism and School Reform in Chicago, Los Angeles, and Philadelphia

Abstract

Public school parents in urban centers such as Chicago and Philadelphia are facing an unprecedented number of school closures. At the heart of this issue is the number of school closures taking place in low-income and working class communities of color. To some parents and community members, the school closures represent a punitive education policy that calls into question the quality of the educational options they have access to in their communities. At the same time, some also feel the closures are symbolic and serve as another tacit mechanism for destabilizing their community that involves the continual removal of public infrastructure. To district officials and policy makers, the school actions are based on sound and efficient bottom-line rationales that are unfortunate, yet necessary during meager economic times, especially in communities that are experiencing population decline. In the midst of these divergent opinions about school closures, there is an emergent resistance movement among parents in Chicago and Philadelphia that challenges district budget cuts and massive school closures.

This presentation from parent activists will highlight the similarities in two public education systems that are no longer under democratic control. Through personal narratives of their organizing efforts during the 2012-13 school year, parents from Chicago’s Kenwood Oakland Community Organization and Parents United for Public Education in Philadelphia will share organizing experiences as well as their vision for education equity and justice.

Authors

• Helen Gym, Parents United for Public Education

• Jeanette Taylor-Smith