‘Mayor Rahm Emanuel has made Chicago Public Schools the first big-city system to require a job, a college acceptance letter, gap-year program enrollment or enlistment in the military as a condition of graduating from high school. Aside from the obvious issues with the school system potentially withholding a diploma even if a student earned it, detractors say Chicago doesn’t have the resources to pull it off, mostly because of the mayor.
The Washington Post spoke with school administrators about the plan, which was approved by the Board of Education in late May, and will be begin to affect incoming sophomores planning to graduate in 2020. Graduation rates have improved in Chicago since 2012, with nearly 74 percent of students finishing high school in four years, but they are still below the national average of 83%. Last year, the district laid off 1,000 teachers and staff members.’
Read more: Chicago Will Withhold High School Diplomas Unless Students Have a Job, College, or Military Plans

‘Mayor Rahm Emanuel has made Chicago Public Schools the first big-city system to require a job, a college acceptance letter, gap-year program enrollment or enlistment in the military as a condition of graduating from high school. Aside from the obvious issues with the school system potentially withholding a diploma even if a student earned it, detractors say Chicago doesn’t have the resources to pull it off, mostly because of the mayor.
The Washington Post spoke with school administrators about the plan, which was approved by the Board of Education in late May, and will be begin to affect incoming sophomores planning to graduate in 2020. Graduation rates have improved in Chicago since 2012, with nearly 74 percent of students finishing high school in four years, but they are still below the national average of 83%. Last year, the district laid off 1,000 teachers and staff members.’
Read more: Chicago Will Withhold High School Diplomas Unless Students Have a Job, College, or Military Plans