Chicago Business Leaders Applaud Renaissance 2010; Pledge Financial and Technical Support.

CHICAGO -- The Civic Committee of The Commercial Club of Chicago, an organization comprised of the leaders of 75 of the Chicago region's largest corporations, professional firms and universities, responded to Mayor Daley's Renaissance 2010 announcement today with enthusiastic support. The Renaissance 2010 initiative calls for the creation of 100 new public schools over the next six years.

Two-thirds of the 100 new elementary and high schools will be independent charter and contract schools, many of which will replace failing schools located in inner-city areas where education needs are the greatest. Charter and contract schools have public financial support, but are managed by a third party and are free of many of the rules and regulations that limit innovation within the district. All of the new schools will have performance contracts holding them strictly accountable for student educational outcomes.

"Creating 100 new schools presents the opportunity to transform a major urban school system, improving educational opportunities for children and bringing hope to some of our most distressed communities," said Andrew J. McKenna, Chairman of the Civic Committee of The Commercial Club of Chicago. "Chicago is taking the lead across the nation in remaking urban education. No other major city has launched such an ambitious public school choice agenda," said McKenna.

In his announcement, Mayor Daley said that the city and CPS alone can not make this initiative a success. He asked the private sector to raise substantial funds to support the effort.

In response, the Civic Committee, in partnership with national and local foundations, the Chicago Public Education Fund and others, are establishing an organization called New Schools For Chicago, which will provide financial and technical support to the new schools. As part of this effort, these organizations plan to raise $50 million or more in private support to attract and support new school leaders and to partially subsidize the expensive start-up years of new independent public schools.

The Civic Committee has been asked to raise between $15 to $25 million from the local business community - a target it is well on its way to achieving. The Searle Family Funds at The Chicago Community Trust catalyzed the effort with a $2.5 million challenge grant.

"New Schools For Chicago is probably the most important long-term project the Civic Committee has ever undertaken. Its strength lies in the partnership between Mayor Daley, the Chicago Public Schools, and the business and philanthropic communities," said Harrison I. Steans, Chairman, Education Committee of the Civic Committee and Chairman, Financial Investments Corp. "Together, we can provide an unprecedented opportunity to improve academic and economic opportunities for hundreds of thousands of children," said Steans.

"We believe that New Schools For Chicago will provide families with educational options and create a more competitive environment - which will lead to higher academic standards and greater accountability in all public schools," said R. Eden Martin, President of the Civic Committee. "For over ten years we have been working together with our affiliate Leadership for Quality Education to introduce and then support independent public schools in Chicago. This is a major step forward, and one day soon we will be able to provide all parents with the ability to choose a Chicago public school that they believe best serves the needs of their children," said Martin.

Financial contributions should be made payable to New Schools For Chicago, c/o Civic Committee of The Commercial Club of Chicago, 21 S. Clark Street, Suite 3120, Chicago, IL 60603. Contact Dea Meyer at 312-853-1200 for more information. Businesses or individuals interested in starting or partnering with a new school should contact John Ayers, Executive Director, Leadership for Quality Education at 312-853-1210.

The Civic Committee of The Commercial Club of Chicago is a non-profit organization comprised of senior executives from the Chicago region's leading corporations, professional firms and universities. The mission of the Civic Committee is to improve the economic and social well being of the Chicago region. Our website is www.civiccommittee.org.

Leadership for Quality Education (LQE) brings business ideas and resources to support innovation in public education. LQE recruits and empowers new leaders to rethink and start schools, runs a charter school resource center to assist new school start-ups, and provides human resource and leadership development support to charter and contract schools. Our website is www.lqe.org.