http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chicago/chi-0406130451jun13,1,4425340.story

Kids' fight for school is praised by Nader

By Hal Dardick
Tribune staff writer

June 13, 2004

In what he said was not a campaign event, independent presidential candidate Ralph Nader on Saturday told 5th-grade pupils at a Near West Side school that their class project was an example of how learning should take place across the nation.

"You are engaged in a very important experiment, which is succeeding, which will become known all over the country," Nader said at Byrd Community Academy. "You are going to turn some theories upside down."

Pupils in 5th-grade teacher Brian Schultz's class in December set out to persuade the Chicago Board of Education to replace their dilapidated 44-year-old school.

The pupils, who were initially asked to take on a simple project as part of Project Citizen, listed 89 neighborhood problems, from litter to teenage pregnancy. It became clear one issue resulted in the most items on the list.

"Most of the problems were about our school," said pupil Shaquice Davis. "The issue of our building being messed up is a serious problem."

A couple of weeks ago, Schultz saw Nader at a Chicago campaign event and gave him information on the project. Nader, long a critic of standardized tests and rote learning, was impressed.

"For years, I have always thought the best way to learn reading, writing and arithmetic was indirectly, not directly," he said. "I am going to talk about this all over the country and what can be done when you have a supportive process in the school and the students are willing to try something new."

The school has no cafeteria, auditorium or gym. Most of the windows are made of plastic that has become opaque. Temperatures fluctuate greatly and bathrooms had roaches but often no soap.

Chicago Public Schools six years ago planned to build a new school, but nearby Jenner Academy of the Arts was built first. Then enrollment began to decline, hitting 377 this year. The school board last month put the school on a list of 10 that might be eliminated.

Pupils have lobbied public officials from Chicago to Washington, done an in-school survey, circulated petitions, drawn media coverage, established a Web site and created a digital slide and video presentation highlighting how Byrd was unequal to other Chicago schools.

Efforts to save the school have reached the last-ditch stage and a school board decision is expected this month. But Nader told the pupils to persevere.

"You should never give up, for a lot of reasons," Nader said. "The minute the other side sees you give up, they are going to put the pressure on you."