A handful of City Council members – mostly from the council’s black caucus -- voiced confusion and concern to Chicago Public Schools officials today during a hearing for proposed school closings the Chicago Board of Education is set to approve tomorrow. 

“Lack of communication has been a historic fault of CPS,” said Ald. Anthony Beale (9th).

The council does not control the CPS budget and aldermen have played a minor role in a fierce debate over whether to close or turnaround a proposed 17 CPS schools. The Education Committee hearing today was the first City Hall hearing focused on school actions since CPS announced the proposals on November 30.

Most of the aldermen present, like committee chairman Latasha Thomas (17th), represent low-income, minority wards with schools often targeted by the latest CPS improvement effort.

Ald. Jason Ervin, whose 28th Ward spans the West Side Austin and Garfield Park neighborhoods, mentioned Orr Academy, a high school in the ward.

“Orr has been in every acronymed change that has existed in CPS since my teen years,” Ervin said. “Why can’t we look at social issues or other issues that may be affecting student performance ... not dragging it all the way to the end and say, ‘You are the worst of the worst.’”

Ervin also argued that there is a disconnect between CPS implementing common core standards at all schools, while also having several different kinds of schools, like neighborhood, charter, and magnet, to name three types.

“I look at all the schools in my war, and I can’t find the same book in one of them,” Ervin said.

Noemi Donoso, chief education officer for CPS, acknowledged the point. “I couldn’t agree with you more,” Donoso said. “We have 35 different approaches to literacy alone.”

Donoso then argued common core standards – which CPS is now developing – would add to coherence.

One issue that particularly confused aldermen is how CPS decided on these 17 school closures and turnarounds. CPS identified 80 schools under state criteria that are failing and eligible for closure and turnaround.

CPS Chief Portfolio Officer Oliver Sicat tried to explain the process a few times. Sicat noted factors that he has mentioned before like whether a school is being fully utilized and if there are nearby alternatives.

None of the explanations satisfied Thomas. The chairman kept asking how CPS “went from 80 to 20” and how CPS plans to improve the dozens of low-performing schools not slated for closure and turnaround.

Chicago Teachers Union organizer Joe McDermott also testified before the committee and ripped CPS as undemocratic. McDermott noted that CPS has not withdrawn any of their proposed actions, despite three months of protests, sit-ins, and demonstrations.

“To have something called a proposal and then turn around and see each and every one of these proposals go forward after an exhaustive community process calls into question the word proposal,” McDermott said.

Aldermen did not spare CTU from their scrutiny. Beale repeatedly asked McDermott if CTU has agreed with any policy proposed by CPS, ever.

McDermott replied that CTU did like the CPS proposal of Community Action Councils, which CPS rolled out last year.