Nearly 50 ministers on Monday embraced plans to boycott at least the first day of Chicago Public Schools, a move aimed at ramping up pressure on state officials to address widespread inequities in education funding.
The church leaders from the city’s West and South Sides pledged their support as lawmakers return to Springfield on Tuesday to meet in a special session Gov. Blagojevich called to consider the funding issue that has vexed lawmakers for decades.
Gathering outside Marshall High School on Chicago’s West Side, the ministers said they would urge their congregations and communities to participate in the first-day boycott on Sept. 2 and attempt to enroll Chicago students in the north suburban New Trier Township High School District in Winnetka.
“We refuse to continue to allow the state of Illinois to orphan our educational system,” said Rev. Albert Tyson of St. Stephen AME Church.
No one expects a resolution in Springfield this week, including Blagojevich, who for the first time on Monday publicly doubted reform legislation would pass quickly.
Blagojevich said he hoped progress could be made as soon as this fall, but he made it clear he disagreed with Meeks’ call for a boycott.
“It’s counterproductive to urge kids not to attend school,” Blagojevich said at a separate event. “If a child misses a day of school, that child will miss an opportunity to learn. I think children should take advantage of every possible day they can to go to school.”
