A Chicago Public School Community Shines Bright In New Doc

WDCB’s Gary Zidek catches up with filmmaker Kevin Shaw to talk about his new documentary, LET THE LITTLE LIGHT SHINE.

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WDCB 90.9 FM · The Arts Section: Light Shines In New Chicago-set Documentary

“They are a shining light to this city, and should be held up as a model to what public education, especially at the elementary school level, can be. I think it’s more than just them being a great school, and the students getting great grades, they are a community, they are family.” - LET THE LITTLE LIGHT SHINE director Kevin Shaw talking about what makes National Teachers Academy Elementary School so unique.

LET THE LITTLE LIGHT SHINE director Kevin Shaw

A new documentary offers an inspiring look at a local community’s efforts to save its grade school. LET THE LITTLE LIGHT SHINE documents the efforts to save the National Teachers Academy Elementary School on the southside of Chicago.

The school, which serves 80-percent African-American students, is among the highest ranking K-through-8th grade public schools in Chicago. In the winter of 2018, the Chicago Board of Education approved a CPS plan to transition National Teachers Academy (NTA) into a public high school.  Not wanting to lose what they viewed as a beacon of light for their community, a group of parents and students began a fight to save the school.

LET THE LITTLE LIGHT SHINE provides an overview of the various moving parts of the story, giving special attention to the reasons why NTA is such an important part of the community and examining where this effort to transition the school started.

LET THE LITTLE LIGHT SHINE is wrapping up a run at the Siskel Film Center. It will head to other cities for screenings, and then be broadcast in December as part of PBS’ acclaimed documentary series, POV. You can learn more about the documentary at lightshinefilm.com