CHICAGO — Here's what we're reading on this sunny and seasonaly appropriate Wednesday.
Teachers Getting Dirty: DNAinfo's Jen Sabella has heard dirty school horror stories from CPS teacher and parent friends throughout the district in the last year. The culprit, many say, is Mayor Rahm Emanuel's privatization of janitorial services, which led to janitor staff cuts (and teachers doing much of the cleaning). The Chicago Reader reports that teachers at one Northwest Side school will file a union grievance hoping to force CPS to hire back janitors. As evidence, they've apparently been keeping the grossest journal ever, the Reader reports:
"In preparation for filing a grievance, the teachers started keeping a diary. It's not the kind where you write about a lovely rose. It's more about having to pick up a bloody paper towel in the washroom, mop up a sick kid's vomit, or empty the garbage."
Take That, (Alledged) Crooks: Reporter Heather Cherone has a new journalism hero after reading the Washington Post's profile of Andrew Jennings, whose investigation helped bring down the leadership of FIFA, the soccer authority, by exposing rampant corruption. The key quote from Jennings: “I’m a document hound. If I’ve got your documents, I know all about you. This journalism business is easy, you know. You just find some disgraceful, disgustingly corrupt people and you work on it! You have to. That’s what we do." Swoon.
Silicon Prairie: It looks like Chicago's tech boom might be garnering the city a new nickname — Silicon Prairie. Reporter Paul Biasco is reading a Wall Street Journal story that looks at cheap rent prices in Chicago compared to tech rivals San Francisco and New York, which are drawing the eyes of investors. According to the Journal, prices in Chicago are rising faster than other major cities, but still remain lower. Data shows that Chicago office properties are going for about $258 a square foot this year compared to $651 in New York, $421 in San Francisco and $304 in Boston.
Choosing Life, Finding Meaning After Her Husband's Death: Facebook’s Chief Operating Officer and author of “Lean In,” Sheryl Sandberg utilized Facebook’s notes to share a deeply personal account of what she has felt and learned since her husband, Dave Sandberg, died in an accident.
Sandberg’s note, posted Wednesday, has received nearly 100,000 "likes" and marks the end of sheloshim, a month-long period of mourning reserved for a spouse that extends past Judiasm’s typical 7-day shiva. She might be a famous Silicon Valley entrepreneur, but Sandberg's experiences are relatable to anyone that has ever lost a loved one suddenly and tried to move on.
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