Chicago is in crisis. For the first time, Chicago Public Schools has no governance. A bold game of politics is underway. The current school board has tendered its resignation. We await new school board members appointed by the mayor and, for the first time, a new school board elected by the citizens of Chicago. The Chicago Tribune says there is a lack of courage.
Mayor Brandon Johnson wants CEO Pedro Martinez to resign. The Mayor cannot fire Martinez; only the board can. Jianan Shi is the president of the board. He has not said anything about the situation, and the board chose NOT to fire Martinez.
Meanwhile, Martinez has gained strength with support from the business community and the Latinos in the City Council. He has played a brilliant political hand. Supposedly, Martinez refuses to take a loan to fulfill the teacher’s contract. He refuses to smartly further in debt for CPS.
This may be the Mayor’s Waterloo. He is in an awkward situation. The Chicago Teachers Union backed Brandon and is mainly responsible for his being the mayor. And now, it is time for him to support them fully. The city budget is in debt by nearly a billion dollars. What’s a guy to do? His back is up against the wall.
Here are the solution ideas:
The new school board appointed by the Mayor Johnson may hasten his call to fire Martinez. Maybe. On November 5 elected school board members come into play. So, likely, you will have a brand new school board elected and appointed. It usually takes a board member six months to become fully engaged. How the brand new board will align is to be foreseen. Will they or won’t they fire Martinez? Will they or won’t they take out a CPS loan? These are questions begging for answers.
Another solution is for Governor J.B. Pritzker to provide new dollars to CPS to act as a saving grace. Will he or won’t he? He probably won’t, given that he has just passed the largest ever state budget.
Mayor Johnson is in trouble. Another solution is to damn the politics of the situation. And to appeal to experts, proven experience educators, and businesspeople to solve the budget problem at CPS. The expert for this is Paul Vallis. He is a budget genius. Others who might lend their expertise are Bill Daley, William A. Von Hoene, Mellody Hobson, Ken Griffin, Dr. Wayne Watson, Blondean Davis, Attorney James Montgomery, Walter Massey, Tenia Davis, Toni Preckwinkle, Dr. Byron Braizer, Rufus Thomas and Tim King Jr. This is not a time to play cutesy, and I want my own people’s politics. This is when the red flag is waving, and help is needed. Do what businesses do all the time. Get the experts to solve the problem, then let them hand it over to the helm completely and on solid ground.
The people in place do not know what to do at this time. This is not a doomsday report; it is a reality check.
Meanwhile, I predict Martinez will run for Mayor in 2026. Furthermore, I predict Mayor Johnson will renege on a campaign promise. He will raise the taxes.
