From DNA Info- Chicago:



He did not get it. The crowd started chanting, "Save our schools! Save our schools!"

The meeting got so heated that the principal at Brenneman Elementary School, 4251 N. Clarendon Ave., decided to leave along with the dozens of children who had come with her.

After the first part of the meeting, Uptown activist Ryan Polker, 22, whose dad and grandparents were teachers, grabbed a microphone at the front of the gym and screamed, "The voice of teachers, students, neighborhoods, are not being heard. ... The community feedback is simple, just one sentence: zero school closings."

Some, including teachers from Stockton Elementary School, 4420 N. Beacon St., refused to attend the breakout sessions designed to gain input from the community later in the meeting. The meetings were run by independent facilitators who don't work for the district, which was criticized by some at the meeting.

Education activist Tim Furman was furious the district planned to bar members of the media from the sessions.

"Reporters ask questions to find the truth," he said.