Little Village schools fighting school crowding hold the line

Community activists gather outside Saucedo/Telpochcalli to demand that CPS postpone its co-location plan. 

I'm told that CPS has pulled its plan to move Spry Community Links High School into Saucedo/Telpochcalli, off the agenda of the February board meeting and agreed to protesters' demand to review the plan with community input. While there's nothing in writing yet, community activists who staged last week's sit-in against the consolidation plan, are calling it a victory.

This from Progress Illinois:

The district faced community pushback, including a sit-in staged by parents, students and community stakeholders last week, over its plan to co-locate the high school grades of John Spry Community School in the building that houses Maria Saucedo Elementary Scholastic Academy and Telpochcalli Elementary School, at 2850 W. 24th Blvd. 

"CPS has postponed the proposed Saucedo/Spry co-location at the request of the community," CPS spokesman Michael Passman confirmed in a statement Wednesday. "We will hold regular meetings with stakeholders to seek more input."

Writes Telpochcalli teacher Maria Cosme:

Thanks to all the groups for all we have done and accomplished. We have yet to get something in writing from CPS regarding postponing this proposal, but we had agreed that we want it completely off their agenda so we may come together as a community (parents, students, teachers, administration, and community agencies) to develop what is best for our students. So, them postponing is a victory but the hard work of developing this plan begins today. United we will have more successes.

This from Saucedo teacher Sarah Chambers:

This is definitely a victory for the Spry Community Links High School, Saucedo Academy, Telpochcalli, Spry and the community at large. The parents, community members, teachers and students made their voices loud and clear against this top-down proposal. Christina Lopez, mother of a student at Saucedo School, says “we will not accept anything less than a positive and safe school for our students. Our school is named after Maria Saucedo, an activist, educator, and mother who believed in education, equality and justice. We will continue to stay vigilant and engaged until there is a community created plan.

And from Jennifer Rocque, a teacher at Spry Community Links High School

"We commend CPS's decision to postpone the proposal. We look forward to working with key stakeholders to create a well suited proposal that provides [Spry] Community Links High School the opportunity to continue serving our families."