Yeah … that’s a bold vision. The Civic Committee is rolling over on the tax swap idea (HB750) I suppose, issuing a report this morning urging the state to do something about $106 billion in debt. The Civic Committee’s answer: raise taxes now because it will cost more to raise taxes later … and in the mean time pension bills could go unpaid and the state’s credit rating could go to crap (we probably deserve it).

Oh yes, and be sure to give the Chicago Public School system at least $400 million dollars in new funds because it would, how did Arne Duncan put it, “transform public education in Chicago.”

Would it? The problem is that since 2001 CPS spending has gone up by nearly $452 million. And yet there hasn’t been anything resembling a transformation in Chicago’s schools.

In 2002 66 percent of 4th graders were reading below basic requirements, in 2006 that number was down to 60 percent. Only 6 percent of kids have improved beyond “below basic” reading skills as a result of $452 million in new spending. This works out to roughly $75 million per percentage point improvement. Theoretically then getting all Chicago children out of the “Below Basic” column (at least using CPS) would cost Chicago an additional $4.5 billion (doubling the CPS budget), or approximately $1,600 PER TAXPAYER per year. This would increase per pupil funding to approx. $23,000 per student, which is enough to fund half a teacher’s salary.Sound like an efficient organization to you? One teacher for two children?

Yeah, I can’t wait to see Arne Duncan “transform” Chicago Schools with $400 million.

Maybe we should just transform Chicago’s schools (i.e. make them run efficiently) and then worry about the funding … what do you think?