Amidst a lot of dreary education news, a quietly released study from last fall revealed a surprising bright spot: From 2009 to 2014, Chicago public school students, on average, learned more between third and eighth grade than did their peers across the United States.
Both The New York Times and Mother Jones have noted the rapid progress underway in Chicago, but reporters have yet to uncover what has propelled this breakthrough. While research has not definitively identified the cause for this success, the Chicago experience is unique in a few important ways. Over the past three decades, the district has invested heavily in principals, has built strong systems to enable data-driven decisionmaking, and has maintained strong public oversight as well as robust civic engagement with respect to public education.
Join the Center for American Progress and the Education Trust as we explore what happened in Chicago with some of the women who are leading groundbreaking partnerships across the city’s institutions.
Inntroductory remarks:
Neera Tanden, CEO and President, Center For American Progress
In conversation:
Janice K. Jackson, Chief Executive Officer, Chicago Public Schools
Featured panelists:
Sara Ray Stoelinga, Sara Liston Spurlark Director, University of Chicago Urban Education Institute
Heather Anichini, President and CEO, Chicago Public Education Fund
Rodolfo Rojas, Principal, Everett Elementary School, Chicago, Illinois
Moderated by:
Beth Swanson, former Deputy for Education to Mayor Rahm Emanuel; Vice President of Strategy and Programs, The Joyce Foundation
Closing remarks:
Rep. Danny K. Davis (D-IL)