2024 Chicago School Board Candidates Elected: Andrew A. Davis

To inform voters about who is running for Chicago’s elected school board, the Chicago Tribune education team asked a series of questions to the candidates in each district. These questions ranged from basic information about their background and campaign platform to their stance on various issues facing Chicago Public Schools.

See answers from Andrew A. Davis, candidate for elected school board in the 4th arrondissementbelow.

About the candidate

Name: Andrew A Davis

Age: 68

Neighbourhood: Lincoln Park

School District: 4

Education: University of Chicago Laboratory School; Bachelor of Arts in Economics, Beloit College

Current job: Non-profit director

Previous political experience: No.

Questions and answers

In the interest of transparency, candidate responses shown here are published as written and not edited by the Tribune.

Have you attended Chicago Public Schools or is anyone in your immediate family a CPS student? Yes, an immediate family member.

Have you worked in Chicago Public Schools or another school? What is your background in education?

I served as Executive Director of the Illinois Student Assistance Commission for five years and guided the $6 billion balance sheet entity safely through the Great Recession. I then moved to the private sector and led a start-up Income Sharing finance company. Now I am the chairman of the Education Equity Fund, NFP, which I founded five years ago. We help Chicago teachers pay for Principal training with UIC’s EdD program. My educational governance experience includes seventeen years on the Beloit College Board of Trustees, the last five as board chair. I was a member of the LSC at Newberry School.

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

I am a lifelong Chicagoan and believe the city’s future depends on reversing a system that currently fails two out of three students.

How would you describe your school district?

Mostly very happy.

How would you describe your campaign platform?

I propose that the board charge CPS staff with dramatically increasing student achievement while simultaneously acting as prudent stewards of taxpayer dollars.

What is the most important issue CPS students face?

Two out of three third graders do not read at grade level. This can lead to nothing good.

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

my focus is on student performance, parental choice, budget transparency and financial solvency.

Given this year’s budget issues and the disagreements over how to resolve them, what do you propose for the district’s funding in the coming years? Would you support the district in taking out loans in future years to finance the annual budget?

I am against any form of borrowing to finance ongoing activities. I will work on the merger of Chicago Teacher Pensions with the State TRS. The state pays the pensions of every other county in Illinois. Chicago should be subject to that obligation. This will free up hundreds of millions of dollars for classroom spending to achieve student achievement goals.

The Chicago Board of Education recently adopted a new five-year strategic plan. Which aspects do you support and which ones would you possibly change?

Overall, I support the objectives, but am skeptical of the methods.

As thousands of immigrant families settle in Chicago, how should the district handle the influx of English students? What more needs to be done to ensure that bilingual education is consistently provided and funded?

If we want Chicago to become one of the great cities of the world, we must view students who bring new languages ​​and multilingual skills as a resource. I support the expansion of bi- and multilingual education in the many different languages ​​that our immigrants bring with them.

Do you believe the district has historically underinvested in schools on the South and West Sides? Yes.

If so, what solutions would you propose to address inequality and opportunity gaps in the school system?

A citywide program aimed at teaching all our third graders to read. In different neighborhoods and schools, the resources needed to achieve this goal will vary. We must meet that need.

Since his election, Mayor Johnson has indicated that he wants to move away from school choice and strengthen neighborhood schools. This was recently reinforced by the district’s five-year Strategic Plan. Do you share this view? Why or why not?

I support efforts to improve neighborhood schools. I also support the right of parents and students to choose from a selection of neighborhood, magnet, selective enrollment, and charter schools.

What solutions do you propose to provide bus transportation to students at selective enrollment and magnet schools?

The role of the board is to make policy. The role of the staff is to figure out the logistics. I support a policy of sensible transportation solutions for every student in every school.

Please share your thoughts on how the District and the Chicago Teachers Union can reach a new four-year contract.

Teachers are of course the foundation and infrastructure of a school system. I am in favor of robust compensation for them. I believe that the scope of CTU’s proposed negotiations is too broad.

In 2024, Chicago Public Schools’ average literacy rate will be 31%, an increase from pre-pandemic years. However, these numbers were lower for students from low-income families, English learners, and students with Individualized Education Plans (IEPs). How should the district attempt to improve literacy rates in the future?

Similar to the question about transportation. The board should challenge staff to create a plan that will double reading proficiency in the next five years. The role of the Council will then be to evaluate the progress and performance of staff in achieving that goal and also to ensure that the reading program is the highest priority in the allocation of scarce resources.

What is your position on expanded funding and renewal terms for charter schools?

Last week I had a long conversation with a Charter Executive Director. Renewal terms that last only two years divert staff time into an ever-ending hamster wheel of renewal preparation instead of running their schools. The deadlines should be extended. Funding for Charters should be allocated on an equal basis with other public schools. Charters need to be included, just as other public schools are concerned with Safe Passage, capital plans, and all the dollars that flow from CPS.

Please share your thoughts on how to keep Chicago Public Schools a safe haven for students to learn and thrive in fear of violence. How do you propose the district handle this?

Within schools and on the ground, principals and LSCs must be given wide latitude in how they decide to ensure the safety of children.