Subscript: Are charter school teachers and administrators allowed to violate Chicago's residency rule?
…Given all the recent fuss about “residency” in Chicago, we’re puzzled as to the rule for the mayor’s favorites part of “Renaissance 2010” — the charter schools.
Everyone knows that CPS teachers are required, with some exceptions (“critical needs” areas), to be residents of the City of Chicago. Teachers and other staff who are caught living beyond the city limits can be fined and fired (and have been, sometimes with tragic results). Everyone knows that the Inspector General investigates families whose children attend CPS schools, but who live outside the city. (We won’t go into how hypocritical the whole IG things is, but there is a kind of Moscow tilt to most of its works). When those families are “caught”, they are required to pay hefty tuition for what amounts to their theft of services (viz. a CPS education while they were living and paying taxes in the suburbs).
One of those residency cases was on the agenda of the March 28 Board of Education meeting.
Here are two questions: (1) Are Chicago charter schools allowed to hire teachers (and other workers) who live outside the city? If so, on whose authority? (2) Are Chicago charter schools allowed to teach, give credit, and award diplomas to students who live outside the city?
If so, on what authority? A quick look through the Board Reports going back the past two years on the charters, reveals nothing about charters being allowed to violate residency requirements for teachers and students. Do any Substance readers know where and when these things were authorized and by whom? Rule of law and all that…
