[BrinChi]

I have all those same questions.

The answer i've heard with regards to the a shrinking city population with school enrollment down, the most logical answer I've heard centers around school closings, which result in school consolidation. If they do this aggressively, class sizes could go up even while enrollment goes down. I'm not sure what the true facts are or how to verify that. The other issue is consolidating schools across neighborhoods, which can have huge safety implications when you make kids go to schools outside of their own neighborhood. I'm not sure what the answer is there. I probably would advocate for more smaller schools rather than fewer large schools.

I think they were striking on pay because that's the only legal way they can strike right now. Ironic because I'd be more ok with increased funding for everything else if they weren't also getting pay hikes.

Lastly, sounds like some union members think money will come from more TIF dollars; others want the mayor to reinstate the employee head tax or find another way to raise revenue.