Tag: Karen Lewis

Fighting for Justice Still Kills Black People; White Allies, Do Your Share

I woke up this morning to two stories dominating my news feed. First, the sudden death of the beloved Black congressman and justice fighter from Baltimore, Elijah Cummings. Second, enthusiastic support for the Chicago Teachers Union strike. I saw the face of their campaign, Stacy Davis Gates, fiercely handling the media and countering Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot. To many of…

How an Award-Winning Teacher Turned Principal Transformed Bennett Elementary

Today Principal Teresa Huggins takes pride in her successful turnaround of Roseland’s Bennett Elementary. Since she took the helm in 2013, Bennett has transformed from a school on probation to a school at the top of the district’s accountability ratings.  It’s one of 22 neighborhood elementary schools on the South and West sides of Chicago where students are showing high…

Reason #3 on Why CPS Teachers Shouldn’t Go on Strike: We Need to Work Together to Save the District

You don’t cut off your nose to spite your face. That’s what my grandmother told me when I skipped an entire week of my freshman year of high school because I was upset with my mom and dad.  Sometimes anger can cause people to lash out in ways that are ultimately far more harmful to them than to the object…

Reason #2 on Why CPS Teachers Shouldn’t Go on Strike: It’s ALL About Money! (5-part Series)

Regardless of what you might hear in the news, understand this one thing: If the Chicago Teachers Union goes on strike, it will be about money…period. Now, if you have been listening to the TV news or consuming a ton of social media, you might think that the pending strike is a referendum on all things Chicago Public Schools.  You…

Back to School in Chicago Got a Big Ole BUT

It’s back to school for the largest majority of Chicago’s school children, the near 400,000 who will attend Chicago Public Schools.  Never in my lifetime has the beginning of a school year been marked with so much uncertainty.  One can almost not mention the dawning school year without a great big BUT showing up. I have been talking to a…

Parents = The Primary Teacher

Parenting is a pretty tough job. It demands all of you- then even a little more. Their child seems to be their world and they do everything necessary to help them survive. However, once the child enters school, there seems to be a dramatic shift. As a former public school teacher, I often wonder why was it that so many…