We asked each candidate to answer questions on topics important to the Senn High School community. Below are their answers.
Edward Hitchcock
(pronouns: he / him / his)
Running for: Parent Representative
About the Candidate
In just a few sentences, please tell us about yourself.
I am an occupational therapist at a large rehabilitation hospital in Chicago. I am a parent and a community member. In October 2025 I cofounded SennPatrol, to keep watch for any ICE activity near Senn.
What is your relationship to Senn?
I am a parent of a junior in the arts program and a freshman at Senn.
Why do you want to be on the Senn LSC?
I intend to protect Senn from possible influence of ICE activity on or near campus. I will bring community partnership into the Senn environment. We will enhance the learning environment at Senn by protecting it from ICE as well as incorporating more participation by the community in the life and academic community at Senn.
Do you have any previous experience on a Local School Council? If so, tell us about it.
No
Where Your Candidate Stands
We asked each candidate a series of questions that important to the Senn High School community. Their answers are below.
Q1. What do you believe are the responsibilities of a Local School Council?
Candidate Answer:
Local School Council has authority over governance of the school and its budget. It holds the Principal of the school accountable to spending in alignment with the Continuous Improvement Work Plan (CIWP). It evaluates performance of the principal on these issues on an annual basis. Finally it also determines if the principal will be offered a new contract (every 4 years).
Q2. What core values do you hope to uphold as a member of the LSC?
Candidate Answer:
Accountability, transparency and a learning environment that supports all students.
Q3. All Parent and Community LSC members are required to complete 9 mandatory training sessions within six months of taking office.
- If you are a current or former LSC member, have you completed all your training sessions?
- If you have not served on an LSC before, do you commit to competing all 9 training sessions within six months of taking office?
(Candidates were given a matrix of preselected answers. Below are the answers they selected)
Candidate Answer:
- I have never been an LSC member.
- I commit to completing all required trainings within six months of taking office.
Q4. What does effective communication for a principal entail, in your eyes? In what moments does principal communication matter most?
Candidate Answer:
The principal needs to provide communication that enlightens the school body about issues, while avoiding anything that may lead to more confusion or panic.
It is important to give the community some sense of how the issues will be communicated, and under what circumstances, so they can look to the school as a source, vs rumors. It is better to over communicate, vs under, to allow the Principal to be regarded as a valid source of news affecting Senn.
Q5. What is your understanding of CPS's policies regarding ICE and federal agents in school buildings?
Candidate Answer:
They would require a valid judicial warrant to be allowed on school grounds. ICE does not consistently respect this, and it is important for schools to have a plan for them being on campus with or without permission.
Q6. What kind of leadership would you expect to see from the principal when federal agents target our neighborhood and families?
Candidate Answer:
The principal needs to be aware of what has happened with other schools in the area when ICE has been present. This has been a unique and unprecedented challenge that requires new ways of reacting and planning. I expect a firm reaction by Senn in the interest of protecting students and families in our community. Both emergency reactions (e.g. ICE presence on campus) as well as long term issues (e.g. care for students with abducted family members) need attention.
Q7. LSC members are responsible for developing and monitoring the school's improvement plan (CIWP), which includes goals around academic success. Describe your understanding of Senn's academic programs. What academic priorities will you emphasize in your role on the LSC?
Candidate Answer:
I would emphasize maintaining a safe learning environment. Senn has amazing teachers who can do great work, and the IB program provides some great supports for this. The arts program is a jewel in the crown at Senn and can use additional attention by the LSC.
Q8. One of the key responsibilities of the LSC is aligning the school's budget to the CIWP.
- If you are or have been a Senn LSC representative, provide an example or two of what you have done to ensure both ongoing and annual budgetary transparency?
- For candidates who have not served on Senn's LSC: Describe your approach to budget accountability, transparency, and oversight.
Candidate Answer:
I have never been on the LSC at Senn. I am not a budget person. For budgets I am accountable for, I get help from people who are good at it, while being mindful that I am accountable. Multiple people need to be able to see/read the budget, and it needs to be boiled down such that most can understand it easily. Good accountants and budget “owners” should be able to explain their spending and income, even to a non budget person.
Q9. What should the role of the LSC be if the principal attempts to quietly make changes without transparency or community input?
Candidate Answer:
The LSC needs to address this. If I suspect this is happening I would contact the principal. I would also contact a fellow LSC member to consult. If I continue with concerns I would escalate to the full LSC prior to the next meeting. I fully expect the LSC to address the issue.
Q10. When families consistently learn important information from outside sources rather than school leadership, what should the LSC do?
Candidate Answer:
A professional practice of the principal is to engage in appropriate communication. The LSC would need to hold this to account along with any other performance issues.
Q11. The 5Essentials Survey (link), developed by the University of Chicago in collaboration with CPS, identifies strengths and weaknesses across five areas:
- Effective Leaders (Score: 28, Weak)
- Collaborative Teachers (Score: 47, Neutral)
- Involved Families (Score: 40, Neutral)
- Supportive Environment (Score: 50, Neutral)
- Ambitions Instruction (Not scored due to data error)
What stands out to you and what action steps would you take as an LSC representative to address the challenge areas?
Candidate Answer:
The low score on effective leadership needs to be addressed. The other neutral scores would be pulled up if an effective leader was attending to them. I would ask LSC to look at the scores and feedback that led to this, and we can determine a response.
Q12. Describe your approach to equity. How would you ensure that decisions made by the LSC support and do not proportionally harm Black, Latino, Indigenous, immigrant, or low-income students? What systems and practices would you support to make sure marginalized voices are not just heard, but actually shape outcomes?
Candidate Answer:
I intend to listen, and then listen, and then listen some more. When possible, I would amplify the voices of marginalized people. When it is not possible to amplify, I hope to represent these voices and I will hold myself accountable to them.
Q13. One of the key responsibilities of LSC members is to evaluate the school's principal. This LSC term will coincide with the contract renewal timeframe for Senn's principal. Describe how you will approach this responsibility.
What key performance indicators should be the primary focus factors when deciding whether to renew a principal's contract.
Candidate Answer:
Rubrics such as 5 Essentials and success of the CIWP will be important. The required LSC trainings mentioned above include sessions on principal evaluation, retention and selection of a new one (when needed). Using this information, I would work with the LSC to determine other factors to help us determine if we would renew.
Additional Candidate Materials
Candidates were offered the opportunity to provide the public with additional materials to be displayed on their profile page. Those materials are provided here.