What does it take to get a building permit in Chicago?
What does it take to get a building permit in Chicago?
Chicago lags behind other cities in housing affordability. The city’s permitting process could be holding it back.
The Policy Shop: The (bleak) future of voter choice in Illinois
The Policy Shop: The (bleak) future of voter choice in Illinois
This edition of The Policy Shop is by writer Patrick Andriesen The Illinois Supreme Court is being asked to quickly decide whether to allow a mid-election attempt by state leaders to prevent challengers from getting on the Nov. 5 ballot. The issue will decide whether state lawmakers and Gov. J.B. Pritzker can win by changing...
Nearly 40% of Illinois government workers reject AFSCME membership
Nearly 40% of Illinois government workers reject AFSCME membership
The union’s federal reports show the union has suffered membership loss during the past two decades. It could be because the union’s spending priorities are completely misplaced.
Chicago Teachers Union killing charter school access for many families
Chicago Teachers Union killing charter school access for many families
The Chicago Teachers Union’s current contract limits the growth of charter schools in Chicago. The union’s new contract demands seek to further deny access and limit parents’ options for their children’s educations.
Hard look at job rules can pull more Illinoisans from poverty
Hard look at job rules can pull more Illinoisans from poverty
If Illinois used data-driven reviews before imposing job rules, more people could find work and escape poverty.
Oppressive regulations leave thousands of jobs unfilled
Oppressive regulations leave thousands of jobs unfilled
The jobs are there. The people to fill them are there. The only thing standing in the way is Illinois’ overreaching state regulations and job licensing.
Vallas: Neighboring schools show why Chicago Teachers Union is so wrong
Vallas: Neighboring schools show why Chicago Teachers Union is so wrong
Students at a private school and a Chicago public school in the same neighborhood experience very different outcomes in their educations. Which one produces struggling students? The one dominated by the Chicago Teachers Union.
Chicago Teachers Union fails to turn $68K per student into even 1 academic win
Chicago Teachers Union fails to turn $68K per student into even 1 academic win
Douglass Academy High School had 35 students with nearly 900 seats unfilled. None were proficient on the SAT. The Chicago Teachers Union wants to add at least eight staffers there and at every other school in the district at a cost of $1.7 billion.
Brandon Johnson: Clown Show
Brandon Johnson: Clown Show
Chicago might boost housing affordability by allowing more granny flats
Chicago might boost housing affordability by allowing more granny flats
Chicago’s city council could boost housing affordability by expanding a program to allow more dwellings to be developed on existing home sites.
The Policy Shop: Illinois’ 3rd graders are struggling
The Policy Shop: Illinois’ 3rd graders are struggling
This episode of The Policy Shop is by policy analyst Hannah Schmid. If you are spending part of your day reading this, it’s more than a little likely you had solid teachers in first through third grades. They taught you to read, which was essential to learning all that was to come during the rest...
Poverty hits Black, Hispanic Chicagoans hardest, but education, jobs fix that
Poverty hits Black, Hispanic Chicagoans hardest, but education, jobs fix that
Black and Hispanic Chicagoans are persistently impacted by poverty more than other racial groups. What city and state leaders need to focus on is helping people down the path of education, job and then family.
Public can see Chicago Teachers Union tactics at open bargaining session
Public can see Chicago Teachers Union tactics at open bargaining session
Chicago Public Schools and the Chicago Teachers Union will open their contract bargaining sessions to the public for the first time on June 14. Concerned Chicagoans can attend in-person and make their voices heard.
Chicago Teachers Union demands $1.7B for librarians, climate champions, gender support coordinators
Chicago Teachers Union demands $1.7B for librarians, climate champions, gender support coordinators
The Chicago Teachers Union demanded each of the 623 Chicago schools hire multiple new positions, including librarians, climate champions and gender support coordinators. Even nearly empty schools would be required to hire these extra staffers.