Chicago's elected school board races: District 5

The 5th District is located on the West and Near West Sides of Chicago. It covers the neighborhoods of Galewood, Austin, Garfield Park, North Lawndale, Ukrainian Village and United Center, as well as parts of Humboldt Park, West Town, West Loop and Little Italy.

Here’s what you need to know about the 5th District race. For a look at how the elected school board will work and more at the races in the other districts, click here.

Who’s running?

There is only one candidate still active in the 5th district: Aaron “Jitu” Brown.

How much money has been raised?

With only one name on the ballot, the race in the 5th District is not very competitive. But Brown, for his part, has managed to raise just over $48,000 for his campaign through Oct. 21.

What are the candidates’ campaign platforms?

Aaron “Jitu” Brown

What is your background in education?

I am an alum and parent of Chicago Public Schools and a proud resident of the Austin community on Chicago’s West Side. For more than 30 years, my work has focused on educational justice and equity.

For many years, I was an education organizer at the Kenwood Oakland Community Organization, one of Chicago’s longest-standing community organizations. I organized campaigns for increased investment in public education, worked to improve schools for Black students, and led youth leadership programs in schools. I was the lead organizer of the campaign to save Dyett High School from closure, which led to me and others going on a 34-day hunger strike, which led to Dyett being reopened with over $14 million in new investment. Through that campaign, I helped envision the sustainable community college model now being implemented in communities across the country. What we did for Dyett, I want to do for schools in the 5th District and the city.

From 1999 – 2013 I served on local school councils and trained hundreds of LSC members across the city. I was the Community School Coordinator at Chicago’s first community school, the South Shore School of Entrepreneurship, from 1999 to 12005 and taught Black History at St. Leonard’s High School, the only accredited high school in the nation who returned from prison. Since 2013, I have been proud to serve as national director of the Journey for Justice Alliance, an alliance of community organizations in 40 cities working to improve schools.

Why are you running for a seat on the Chicago Board of Education?

As an educator, youth mentor, and long-time community organizer in the education justice movement, I have seen how corporate and profit-driven interests have led decision makers in our city to fail our youth and our school system time and time again. . In addition to securing needed investments in neighborhood schools on the West and South Sides, ending racist school closures, and expanding the sustainable community college model, I have been part of the fight to win a democratically elected school board in Chicago for many. year. In 2015, I was one of the lead organizers who formed Communities Organized for Democracy in Education to hold a referendum on the ballot in 37 of the 50 wards, which showed that almost 90% of voters wanted an elected government. I believe we need community voices on the board that governs the Chicago Public Schools to ensure that our school district best meets the needs of our communities. As a CPS alum, CPS parent, mentor and educator to countless CPS alums across the city, and school community organizer, I am driven by a commitment to equity and to the vision that every youth in Chicago deserves a world-class education within a safe walking distance from their home. As we elect our school board representatives for the first time, I am eager to work with the community to take steps toward that vision.

How would you describe your campaign platform?

As a school board representative, my top priorities will be investing in neighborhood schools and fighting for fairer school funding. For too long, structural racism in Chicago public schools has led to segregated and unequal education across race and class. Families are left out of decisions that impact students’ lives. Standardized testing has been weaponized against black and brown children. Neighborhood schools are underfunded, neglected and completely closed. Entire communities have suffered from this kind of sabotage. The solution must be to transform CPS into an equitable neighborhood where every child and every community has access to a quality neighborhood school within walking distance of home. I will prioritize the expansion of the sustainable community school model, which includes:

Securing full and fair funding for CPS
Investing in quality schools in every neighborhood
Increasing and Retaining Black Teachers
Ensuring a more culturally relevant curriculum
Moving away from racist and punitive standardized tests
Supporting local school councils

What is the most important issue CPS students face?

Inequality and underfunding are at the heart of the problems facing Chicago Public Schools. Currently, CPS simply does not have enough funding to meet the needs of our approximately 320,000 students. The State of Illinois does not properly pay into teacher pensions for CPS as it does for other school districts, nor does it fully fund its own Evidence Base Funding model. In order to have fully funded schools with librarians, well-maintained facilities, counselors, and reasonable class sizes, we must solve the problem of revenue by turning to our state and federal governments to fully fund our school system. Instead of pitting the needs of some young people and some schools against each other, whether they are Black students in divested school buildings, ESL students, or students with disabilities, we need to unite around a plan for fully funded schools.

Include three to four key points you want voters to know about your campaign.

I knock on doors, attend community events, and visit schools in the 5th District every week to connect with parents, community members, and voters!
I am a coalition builder who leads with humility, compassion and courage. I will engage the 5th District in reimagining public education in our communities!
I base this on the core belief that “community wisdom in collaboration with academic expertise leads to school improvement.”

To read this candidate’s questionnaire in its entirety, click here.

Candidate answers shown here have been edited for length, style and clarity.