Roberto Clemente Community Academy: A Counter-Narrative on Chicago School Reform, 1988--1998

Abstract

Case study methodology revealed the reform's origins and trajectory. Through analyzing school documents, newspaper articles, and conducting in-depth interviews with nine reform advocates and architects, I uncover a context for understanding that is absent in the "official story." From this analysis, a counter-narrative emerged that features the reformer's accounts and perceptions situated it in a broader discussion of global cities, neoliberalism, globalization, and colonialism. Citing Chicago's shifting political economy and imbalanced urban development since the 1970s, the discussion explores how and why the aforementioned sociopolitical dynamics inhibit democratic participation of marginalized communities who seek to reform schools.