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Uptown CPS Schools Brace For $1.09 Million in Budget Cuts

By Mina Bloom | July 14, 2015 3:07pm
 John McCutcheon School, 4865 N. Sheridan Rd.
John McCutcheon School, 4865 N. Sheridan Rd.
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Chicago Public Building Commission

UPTOWN — Schools in Uptown will collectively lose $1,097,202 million in funding for the coming school year, according to data released this week.

Late Monday afternoon, Chicago Public Schools released preliminary budgets amid a $106 state budget crisis, slashing the budgets of 416 schools in Chicago. 

Of six affected Uptown schools, John T. McCutcheon Elementary School, 4865 N. Sheridan Rd., and William C. Goudy Elementary School, 5120 N. Winthrop Ave., were hit the hardest. The schools will collectively lose $865,924 due to a decrease in enrollment as per the district's student-based budgeting system, according to the data.

Only one Uptown school, Joseph Brennemann Elementary School, 4251 N. Clarendon Ave., will see a boost in funding. It will gain $11,553, an increase of .38 percent compared to last year, according to the data. The school is expected is gain two students next year.

A breakdown of the cuts:

John T. McCutcheon Elementary School: Of all the Uptown schools, McCutcheon, which expects a 27-pupil drop, is facing the most significant cuts. The school will lose a total of $611,150 for the coming school year, a 20.6 percent decrease in its budget from the previous year, which is among the highest percentages in the city, according to the data.

William C. Goudy Elementary School: Goudy saw the second largest cut, losing $254,774, a 5.43 percent decrease from the previous year, data shows. The school expects a 33-pupil drop.

Uplift Community High School: Uplift, expecting a 32-pupil drop, saw $91,348 cut. That's a 4.25 decrease from last year for the Network 2 school, which is located at 900 W. Wilson Ave.

Mary E. Courtenay Language Arts Center: While Courtenay, 4420 N. Beacon St., expects to gain four students, the Network 2 school will lose a total of $73,699, a 2.51 decrease from last year. Activities outside the classroom, which includes clubs and sports, got hit the hardest, losing a total of $131,365. Courtenay merged with Joseph Stockton Elementary School in 2013 as part of CPS' effort to close 50 schools.

Walt Disney Magnet School: The arts-focused magnet school at 4140 N. Marine Dr. will lose a total of $66,231, a .70 decrease from last year. It expects to gain five students, but it, too, is facing cuts to activities outside the classroom: a total of $92,816.

Chicago Public Schools announced Monday that neighborhood schools will see almost $60 million in cuts district wide, while charter schools and other charter programs for at-risk students would see a combined $30 million in gains.

CPS Chief Financial Officer Ginger Ostro said 238 schools would see increased funding, at a total of $68.5 million, while 416 see budgets cut, at a total of $99.5 million.

"Money follows the students," Ostro said, adding that projected CPS enrollment for the coming school year is 372,275, down about 1 percent from last year.

According to the district, so-called neighborhood schools are expected to enroll about 4,000 fewer students in the fall, while charters increase enrollment by about 3,000 students.

Basic student-based budgeting would remain level at $4,390 a student for grades 4-8, with $4,697 for students in kindergarten through third grade and $5,444 a pupil in high schools.

“No one would argue that these are the budgets that we would like to be presenting, but they reflect the reality of where we are today; a budget deficit of more than $1 billion; the demands of a broken pension system; and a state education funding that is near last in the country,” said Interim CPS CEO Jesse Ruiz. “We have tried to limit the impact on our classrooms, but we sympathize with teachers, parents and principals whose schools will be seeing fewer resources than last year.”

Since 2010, Illinois has taken a 13 percent cut from the state's budget, according to CPS. 

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