Chicago mayor defends policies on crime and public schools | Illinois

(The Center Square) – Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson insists crime is improving in the city despite police data.

At the Economic Club of Chicago recently, Johnson discussed how he is addressing rising crime and the city’s failing schools. 

Johnson has been in office since May and has dealt with issues regarding crime, such as rising car thefts, robberies and shootings. The city’s schools have also been criticized for poor outcomes of students. 

The situation around crime is getting better, Johnson claimed. 

“It is something that I think about every day, I really do. Violence is literally outside my front door, but now it is better,” Johnson said. “What makes a city safe is creating opportunities and investment, and we’ve done that already.” 

Motor vehicle thefts are up 94% and burglaries are up 29% year to date. Robberies are up 24% year to date, according to Chicago Police Statistics. Shootings are down 12% year to date. 

Johnson also spoke about the city’s schools, which have been under fire for poor performance. Chicago Public Schools costs taxpayers around $28,000 per student. The state average is about $16,000, according to the Illinois State Board of Education. Several schools in the city have yet to have a single student who can read or do math at grade level. ISBE data shows 15.7% of CPS students are proficient at math, more than 10 percentage points below the state average. 

“I personally don’t give a lot of attention to grades,” Johnson said. “When you have the type of variables that exists within our Chicago Public Schools system, we have to establish a rubric that speaks to the needs as well as the unique dynamics that exist.”

Johnson said his number one focus is schooling and nothing can get done without planning his “rubric.” 

“How do you grade a system when the system has not fulfilled its basic obligation of providing an equitable system that speaks to the needs,” Johnson said.  

For fiscal year 2022, CPS cost taxpayers $3.7 billion for operations. Of all the schools in CPS, the lowest cost per-student was $5,302 at Art in Motion Charter school with 381 student. The most expensive per-student cost was $114,000 at Camelot Safe Academy School with 13 students enrolled. 

ISBE data shows 33% of the district’s students are proficient in science compared to 50% statewide. For English language learners, around 20% of CPS students were proficient compared to around 30% for the statewide average.