Ames continues fight against invasion from the Marine Military Academy with petition drive on Saturday, January 25 and organizing for a referendum vote on March 18
After what most parents, students and teachers at Ames Middle school have decided is a temporary setback in their fight to keep the school as a middle school for the community, the "Save Ames Committee" has resumed its battle. After examining the various reasons given by the Board of Education's members for their December 18, 2013 vote to convert the school, the Ames people have decided to continue to petition and prove that the conversion has little or no community support -- and therefore that those who spoke in favor of the conversion were not telling the truth despite the fact that CPS officials gave them nearly 20 minutes to speak from their point of view at the Board's December meeting. (Speakers are usually pulled away from the podium after only two minutes).
Chicago Board of Education’s Todd Connor describes plans to move Marine Military Academy High School into Ames Middle School. He took questions during a staff meeting at Ames on Friday, January 24, 2014. The neighborhood school might lose the name “Ames,” and is set to expand from grades 7-8 (middle school only) this year to grades 7-12 (middle school plus high school) next year, with a military theme for all grades. Recruiting has already begun for students to attend a military school at Ames starting in the 2014-15 school year. Connor, whose title is executive director of service leadership programs [i.e., military academies and junior ROTC programs] is two steps below Chief Executive Officer Barbara Byrd-Bennett on the Board of Education’s organizational chart. Substance photo by David R. StoneA referendum will be on the ballot in eight precincts surrounding Ames Middle School in the March 18 voting. The campaign is designed to bring out voters in support of Ames and against the planned conversion.
PRESS RELEASE FROM THE SAVE AMES COMMITTEE:
January 24, 2014. Contact: Joanna Brown, Save Ames Commttee, 773-744-1655
Press release: Referendum campaign starts Satuday at Ames.
Come and find out why Ames should stay a neighborhood school and why we haven't given up.
The Save Ames Commttee will start its door-to-door campaign to -show voter support for a community -based Ames School Saturday, January 25, 2014 at 10:00 am, starting from Ames School, 1920 N. Hamlin, Room 105. The campaign will continue through the March 18 election.
Supporters from Ames school, Logan Square Neighborhood Association and other allies will begin voter education and registration door-to-door to let neighbors know that the Save Ames referendum will be on the ballot March 18 in the 8 precincts surrounding Ames School.
The committee believes that the Chicago Board of Education members who voted to close Ames Middle School and use it for a 7-12 grade Marine Military Academy did not understand the depth of community anger against the military coup. In November Ames parents presented to the CPS Board a two-foot high stack of signatures as proof of enormous community support for Ames community school : including 2400 original petition signatures, a 95% pro-Ames vote by 800 parents; and a door-to-door survey around Ames where 87% of residents did not want the military academy. But CEO Barbara Byrd Bennett told the board December 18 that signatures needed to be verified, thus implying that they should not be considered. Board members who voted to give Ames to the Marines stated they couldn't tell which side the community was on!
For more information on the SAVE AMES campaign contact Maria Trejo, 773-534-4970 (room 105) and Leticia Barrera 773-727-9941.
