A disturbing pattern is occurring in Chicago. Top-performing schools are being closed. The latest is Bronzeville Academy Charter School, located at 4930 S. Cottage Grove. It is a charter elementary school licensed to serve up to 465 students. The school initially opened in 2006 and was authorized by Chicago Public Schools in November 2015. In 2015, the CPS Board voted to non-renew Bronzeville’s charter contract and closed the school from 2015 to 2016.
Superintendent’s Recommendation…
I recommend that the following motion be adopted:
The State Board of Education hereby rescinds its Feb. 15, 2024, conditional renewal of the charter for Bronzeville Academy Charter School due to the school’s failure to meet the preterm conditions by the deadlines set forth in the renewal decision. The State Board of Education further votes to non-renew its charter agreement with Bronzeville for the reasons outlined herein, with such non-renewal effective at the end of the 2023-24 school year. The State Board of Education further authorizes the state superintendent to commence negotiations with Bronzeville to wind down operations to ensure a smooth transition for all students and staff.
Why Are Our Schools Being Closed?
This is the same pattern that occurred with Urban Prep, an all-black male high school. All of the students went to colleges and universities throughout the United States. A college education, with ceremony, was guaranteed for Urban Prep young men. Timothy King was the headmaster, and Urban Prep was his brainchild. He, too, was challenged with closure and resigned to keep the school open. Another top-performing Black school is threatening closure.
Why? I think both school closures are racist behavior. How do you close top-performing schools? Some think it’s about both the institutions being charter schools and a threat to Chicago Public Schools. My thoughts are it’s about education, and with Black students, any top-performing school we need to applaud and support.
This is a matter that requires the full attention of the Black community. Write letters, protest, and make phone calls. We need to understand that educational institutions, the best ones, are being shut down, and Black people are in charge. Where is Mayor Brandon Johnson on this matter? He was silent during the attempted closing of Urban Prep. The Black mayor, the Black educator, the Black male, the Black educator.
Mr. Yusef Jackson, the Chief Executive Officer of RAINBOW PUSH has vowed to fight to the end to keep Bronzeville Academy existing. He has appealed to Dr. Tony Sanders, the State Superintendent of Education for the Illinois State Board of Education. This is mostly a whiteboard. There are two Black board members. Jackson’s point is their decision is made with no knowledge of the community, students, teachers, and parents. He asks, have you ever visited this school to see the setting, the teaching, the facility or the students? The students are stellar, he proudly informs. The answer is a resounding no. Then how do you make such decisions with an absence of first-hand knowledge? Jackson vows a full-pressed outcry to maintain Bronzeville Academy. The school is scheduled to close the 2023-24 school year.
Below is a full account of the background information and history of Bronzeville Academy. The decision was written and decided before the board met to make the decision on May 15, 2024.
Background and History…
Public Act 101-0543, effective Aug. 23, 2019, abolished the Illinois State Charter School Commission effective July 1, 2020. On that date, ISBE became the authorizer of 11 charter schools (12 campuses total) that the Commission had previously authorized. Bronzeville, based in Chicago, is one of the schools that transferred to ISBE by operation of statute on July 1, 2020.
Bronzeville opened in 2006 as a charter school authorized by Chicago Public Schools (CPS). In November 2015, the CPS Board voted to non-renew Bronzeville’s charter contract and to close the school at the end of the 2015-16 school year due to performance issues. The school successfully appealed the closure decision to the Commission, which enabled the school to remain open as a Commission-authorized charter school beginning with the 2016-17 school year. On July 1, 2020, Bronzeville transferred to ISBE when PA 101-0543 was implemented; it subsequently applied for renewal of its contract, which was set to expire on June 30, 2021. ISBE’s Board voted to renew Bronzeville for an additional three-year term with conditions at its January 2021 meeting.2 The shortened term was justified by Bronzeville’s failure to meet standards in all three domains of the Commission’s Accountability System.
The current charter contract for Bronzeville expires on June 30, 2024, which made it eligible to apply to ISBE for renewal of its contract last year. ISBE received Bronzeville’s charter renewal application on Aug. 11, 2023. The application consists of the school’s formal renewal request; an executive summary detailing the school’s record of performance, best practices, and plans or modifications to the existing program for the next charter term; and attachments to support the application, such as an overview of the school’s special education and English learner services, five-year enrollment and budget projections, evidence supporting fiscal health, descriptions of the governance and leadership structure, the school’s student discipline policy, and any applicable management organization contracts.
Bronzeville requested a five-year renewal term funded at 100% of the applicable Per Capita Tuition Charge amount. It sought to maintain its current enrollment cap of 465 students. The renewal application also discussed a potential move. Still, it framed it as exploratory in nature and “prudent financial management” in response to rising rent and utilities costs in the building where it operates. The school’s renewal application included none of the information required for a planned relocation. Financial projections included no costs associated with a move; organizational plans failed to provide any specific information, such as an address and general description of the property, facility capacity, transportation needs timeline for the move, and the circumstances of the move were concealed.
Bronzeville was denied a charter renewal. The school closes in June 2024. The school was housed at Hales Franciscan, which attempted to purchase the facility but was outbid. Hales had an emergency with a construction problem. Hales flooded, and the school needed to move.
Bronzeville deliberately moved to Rainbow Push‘s headquarters with 300 elementary students. They did not misstep or lose a day. The students are performing beyond grade level, which says the school is doing something right.
The school is reorganizing its structure, and top educator Joyce Kenner will assume the leadership role at Bronzeville Academy. Mrs. Kenner is the retired principal of Whitney Young High School, one of the top-performing high schools in the nation.
At this time, all factors need to come together. We cannot sit by and watch our schools close. Mayor Rahm Emanuel closed 50 mostly Black schools. Under Mayor Brandon Johnson, we are watching the best educational schools close. It’s time for the politicos to get involved.
SIMPLY, the closing of our schools is not acceptable.
