Before the program began, five years ago, 78 percent of the students at its two charter elementary schools attended neighborhood high schools in the Pilsen and Brighton Park areas, according to UNO. This year, 95 percent of the nearly 400 graduates from UNO’s seven elementary schools will attend high schools the organization has endorsed. With the organization’s help, students have netted more than $300,000 in financial aid from the schools they will attend, UNO officials said.
A report last summer by Catalyst Chicago, an independent publication that reports on school issues, raised questions about UNO’s ability to finance all its school-related programs. Catalyst’s analysis of state and federal financial-disclosure forms found UNO had absorbed substantial deficits for several years.
The organization, which has deep roots in the Hispanic community, is a growing force in Chicago politics. Its chief executive, Juan Rangel, was a leading Hispanic backer of Rahm Emanuel’s mayoral campaign and was appointed by Mayor Emanuel to the city’s Public Buildings Commission.
