About Us

Welcome to the Raise Your Hand Coalition.

Raise Your Hand is a growing coalition of Chicago and Illinois public school parents, teachers and concerned citizens advocating for equitable and sustainable education funding, quality programs and instruction for all students and an increased parent voice in policy-making around education.

The coalition provides shared tools and methods to enable schools and organizations, in Chicago and throughout Illinois, to effectively mobilize their own stakeholders using their own member distribution lists and communication avenues.

Our steering committee sets priorities based on feedback and data collected from our members through surveys, all-school meetings, collaboration with other community organizations and various other communications.

Heather Hootman is a parent of three sons attending three CPS schools, including two high schools. Her training in architecture focused on the need for educational buildings to support broad and progressive curricula in an ecologically sustainable manner. Heather is a CPS graduate.

Wendy Katten is a parent of a third grader in CPS. She has worked in social services for eleven years in the area of aging and has a BA in English and an MFA in Creative Writing. She has published short-stories, volunteered at many organizations around Chicago from Cabrini Green Tutoring to Little Brothers, Friends of the Elderly, and has served on the board of the Friends of group at her son’s school for four years, and as Vice-President for one year. Wendy is a co-director of Raise Your Hand.

Sonia Kwon, a graduate of CPS, is a parent of two children who attend their neighborhood CPS school. She is actively involved in her community and local school and served on the school’s “Friends of’ board. Sonia recently served as the head of the Education transition committee for Ameya Pawar, 47th ward alderman. She is president and owner of Cipo, Inc., a consulting firm specializing in Microsoft ERP and CRM systems. Sonia is a co-director of Raise Your Hand.

Linda Lesondak is a parent of a Kindergarten and second grade student in CPS. She has served on the Local School Council and is a co-founder of the “Friends of” group at her neighborhood and now her children’s school. Linda has a PhD in Community Psychology and over 20 years of experience in public health and community planning at both the local and national level. Her current work focuses on health and education research and survey implementation.

Clifford Meece is an IT professional with two children in the Chicago Public School system, and is a former Local School Council representative at Inter American Magnet School. Clifford is responsible for the technology supporting Raise Your Hand, including the website, live webcasts, and electronic outreach to constituents. He and his family are currently on a year-long sabbatical in Oaxaca, Mexico.

Patricia O’Keefe is a parent of three children in three different CPS schools. She has over 20 years experience orchestrating business solutions with an emphasis on project management, process re-engineering and system integration. Patricia served several leadership roles on the "Friends of" organization at her children's school, including one year as president, and helped raise over $400,000 for the school and achieve record levels of parent involvement. She has met with over 100 CPS principals, co-founded a friends of parent symposium, re-engineered room parent programs and has worked extensively with internal CPS departments to drive progress.

Amy Smolensky is a parent of a second and third grader in CPS. She served for four years on the “Friends of” organization at her children’s school, including one year as vice president, and helped to raise over $500,000 for the school during that time. Amy is a seasoned communications professional who has directed public relations and helped to elevate the Raise Your Hand name and its initiatives in the media.

Claire Wapole is a lifelong Chicagoan and parent of three children in CPS. She graduated with a BS in Broadcast Production Management and spent her pre-motherhood life working in the television industry. She served for two years as vice-president of her school's Friends Of group and is currently a parent representative on her school's LSC.

Jill Wohl has been involved in school reform and Local School Council governance since her daughter entered a CPS dual language program in 2004. She has public policy experience in early care and education, multilingual and multicultural education and special needs advocacy. Jill is currently Director of Development and Communications at Health & Disability Advocates, a national nonprofit that leverages public-private partnerships to improve equitable access to jobs, education and health care.