Reviving Local High Schools: From Last Resort To First Choice
“In most Chicago neighborhoods, the local high school is seen as a last resort. Students are scattering across the city to more than 120 schools – with most bypassing the school down the block in favor of test-based schools, specialty programs or even a neighborhood school in a different community. Nearly 76 percent last year opted against their assigned neighborhood schools, according to data from Chicago Public Schools. An effort is underway to revive these neighborhood institutions, with the goal of giving students more options close to home and reducing the pressure many middle schoolers face to earn top marks in order to win coveted high school seats. It’s been a challenge across the city but in a few schools – mostly on the North Side – there are glimmers of reinvestment in the local public high school.”