D'Amico Votes to Create Elected Board for City Colleges of Chicago

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – With continued calls from elected officials and community leaders for greater transparency of Chicago’s, state Rep. John D’Amico, D-Chicago, voted Wednesday to create an elected, representative school board for the City Colleges of Chicago.

“Back in March we took a great step forward by voting to create an elected school board for the Chicago Public Schools, and today we continued our mission for increased transparency by passing a bill to form a representative board for our city’s community colleges,” D’Amico said. “The writing is on the wall, and it’s time we give our students, parents and residents the voice they deserve when it comes to the direction of the City Colleges.”

Currently, the community colleges in Chicago are governed by an appointed board of trustees, and serve as the only community college board in the state that is not elected. Similar to the proposal to create an elected, representative school board for the Chicago Public Schools, members will first be elected during the 2018 general primary election, and after serving their first term, the following elections would take place during the regularly scheduled municipal elections. The board would consist of 21 elected members. Twenty of the trustees would be elected by their local districts while one member would run city-wide and serve as the president of the board. D’Amico joins local labor unions, community organizations and elected officials in supporting this measure to provide a greater voice to local communities.

“As I attend community events and listen to local taxpayers, it’s obvious that they are frustrated by the inability to hold this board of trustees accountable for their decisions,” D’Amico said. “We need to hold our decision-makers accountable and ensure that our hard-earned tax dollars are being spent wisely. Creating an elected, representative school board for the City Colleges of Chicago will provide our community with the voice they deserve.”

The bill, House Bill 4312, passed out of the Illinois House of Representatives on a 112-2 vote and now heads to the Illinois Senate for consideration.

For more information, please contact D’Amico’s full-time constituent service office at 773-736-0218.