Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Alderman's daughter recieves state tuition waiver...

This was brought to my attention on Monday so I figure this is something (hat-tip Capitol Fax) worth posting today.
In state Rep. Robert Rita’s legislative district — which covers a swath of Chicago’s south suburbs and part of the city’s far South Side — just one out of 10 people has a college degree. The daughter of Ald. Anthony Beale (9th) — a friend and political ally of Rita — is being given the chance to buck those odds and earn a degree from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign tuition-free courtesy of a coveted “legislative scholarship” handed to her by Rita.

That four-year freebie to the state’s flagship state university is valued at nearly $37,000.

It’s the latest in a string of cases in which the children of political insiders have been given one of the two four-year scholarships to a state university that each Illinois legislator gets to award every year to students who live in their district. Legislators also can split the scholarships, giving a partial tuition break to as many as eight students a year.

Beale and Rita (D-Blue Island) have close ties. Beale has endorsed Rita for re-election in the past, calling him a “strong” ally. Beale’s wife works for Rita. Dana Beale is a part-time, $400-a-month legislative aide at Rita’s district office who, until recently, was also making $76,684 a year working for Illinois Secretary of State Jesse White. And Rita has contributed more than $20,000 to the alderman’s election campaigns over the years.

Beale, who makes $110,556 a year as a Chicago alderman, says none of that put his daughter, Taylor Beale, at the head of the line when Rita was deciding which students would get four years of free college tuition.

“She filled out the application, submitted it to the state rep and received the scholarship,” says Beale.

He describes his 21-year-old daughter as a good student who earned the tuition waiver on merit.
There have been attempts within the last year to eliminate these perks which it has been contended by many was abused by state legislators. For example these waivers - or scholarships - have often been given to the children of other politicos around the state.

Worlee over at Concerned Citizens of Chatham tore both Ald. Beale and Ald. Michelle Harris to shreds recently:
To the demise of some of my neighbors, the one they will have to deal with is a genius. Alderman Anthony Beale, a smart gentleman who is only in office as the result of riding the coat tails of Jesse Jackson Jr. and Rev. James Meeks. Mr Beale is a friend of education and economic development. Mr. Beale has supported the academically failing high school Corliss and he also supported the academically and financially failing elementary school of his mentor James Meeks. He fought tooth and nail against the opening of Kwame Nkrumah academy, the best performing elementary school in his ward and was indifferent about Gwendolyn Brooks College Prep, a selective enrollment high school.

His position on economic development is just as stellar. He let his mentor Meeks close down stores in Roseland they deemed "problems" but have yet reopened anything leaving vacant storefronts. Also, he stalled developers on a project to redevelop 115th Michigan after they tore down the mini mall standing there. He stalled to allow his mentor to attempt to bully his way into the development. Now years later you have several acres of weeded lots. So what will he do with strong community organizations such as Chesterfield Community Council, West Chesterfield Community Association and Roseland Heights Community Associations who have all vowed to make his life miserable. What will he do with top performing elementary schools Mcdade Classical, Burnside Scholastic, and Harlan High Schools. What will he do to support up and coming Chicago State University? On economic development will he hinder the Imani Village project like he did Kwame Nkrumah because his mentor is not involved?

Now on to Alderman Michelle Harris, who got elected because the residents of the 8th ward believed she would lead like her late aunt Lorraine Dixon. Boy were they mislead. No economic development to speak of. A major area of land that has been vacant for years and prime for redevelopment has and continues to stay vacant. All of the schools in her ward are under performers. So why would she elect to pick up several residential blocks in Chatham? She and her cohorts have always made negative comments toward Chatham residents and now she has to represent some. So this is the payback that residents of the 6th ward have to deal with because we would not bend down and praise the new Messiah Walmart and their sponsor and calling out African American Alderman who took gambling lobbyist money.
There is a lot to be written about the remap and the other Alderman who will eventually preside over the various parts of the remapped 6th Ward. Of course that's assuming a court challenge to the recently concluded remap doesn't pan out.

No comments:

Post a Comment

PLEASE READ FIRST!!!! Comment Moderating and Anonymous Comment Policy

While anonymous comments are not prohibited we do encourage you to help readers identify you so that other commenters may respond to you. Either read the moderating policy for how or leave an identifier (which could be a nickname for example) at the end of the comment.

Also note that this blog is NOT associated with any public or political officials including Alderman Roderick T. Sawyer!