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CIRCUIT COURT OF
COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS
IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS
CHANCERY DIVISION
COUNTY DEPARTMENT, CHANCERY DIVISION
CLERK DOROTHY BROWN
BETTER GOVERNMENT ASSOCIATION,
Plaintiff,
v.
CITY COLLEGES OF CHICAGO,
Defendant.

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COMPLAINT
NOW COMES Plaintiff, BETTER GOVERNMENT ASSOCIATION, by its undersigned
attorneys, LOEVY & LOEVY, and brings this suit to overturn Defendant CITY COLLEGES OF
CHICAGO’s refusal, in willful violation of the Illinois Freedom of Information Act, to produce
data about student graduation rates, with any personally identifying student information redacted.
In support of its Complaint, BGA states as follows:
INTRODUCTION
1.

Pursuant to the fundamental philosophy of the American constitutional form of

government, it is the public policy of the State of Illinois that all persons are entitled to full and
complete information regarding the affairs of government and the official acts and policies of
those who represent them as public officials and public employees consistent with the terms of
the Illinois Freedom of Information Act (“FOIA”). 5 ILCS 140/1.
2.

Restraints on access to information, to the extent permitted by FOIA, are limited

exceptions to the principle that the people of this state have a right to full disclosure of
information relating to the decisions, policies, procedures, rules, standards, and other aspects of

 government activity that affect the conduct of government and the lives of the people. 5 ILCS
140/1.
3.

All public records of a public body are presumed to be open to inspection or

copying. Any public body that asserts that a record is exempt from disclosure has the burden of
proving by clear and convincing evidence that it is exempt. 5 ILCS 140/3.
4.

Under FOIA Section 11(h), “except as to causes the court considers to be of

greater importance, proceedings arising under [FOIA] shall take precedence on the docket over
all other causes and be assigned for hearing and trial at the earliest practicable date and expedited
in every way.”

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PARTIES
5.

Plaintiff BETTER GOVERNMENT ASSOCIATION (“BGA”) is a non-partisan,

non-profit corporation located in Cook County, Illinois. BGA’s mission is to promote integrity,
transparency, and accountability in government by exposing waste, fraud, and corruption; to
advocate for effective public policy; and to inform and engage the community. BGA was
founded in 1923 to protect the integrity of the political process in Chicago.
6.

Defendant CITY COLLEGES OF CHICAGO (“CCC”) is a public body located

in Cook County, Illinois.
7.

CCC has frequently publicized claims that it has awarded a rising number of

degrees and certificates (also known as completions) and graduation rates in recent years.
8.

CCC has engaged in various efforts to enhance its publicized statistics on

completions and graduation rates.
9.

One practice used by CCC to enhance its statistics is to award retroactive degrees

to students who did not request them; sometimes a decade or more after the student last attended
a CCC school.
-2-

 10.

CCC has also awarded multiple degrees to individual students in a manner that

violates CCC’s own rules but results in more favorable statistics.
11.

CCC has further engaged in an effort to persuade students, through a

telemarketing-style call center, to change majors to a more easily achieved Associate in General
Studies degree. CCC has engaged in this campaign despite its claimed priority of giving students
“an education that ensures them a job” through degrees “tied to actual regional economic need”
under the Reinvention of City Colleges of Chicago program. In connection with this effort, CCC
also lowered the requirements to obtain many degrees, including the AGS degree, through
reducing the credit hours needed and eliminating certain curriculum requirements and other

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changes.
JUNE 28 REQUEST
12.

In an effort to test the validity of CCC’s claimed successes, on June 28, 2017,

BGA requested (1) all data contained in CCC’s OpenBook Student Navigator or its equivalent,
(2) all data contained in the CCC’s CS9 database or its equivalent, (3) all data and spreadsheets
involved in completion audits since 2010, and (4) any records or data necessary to understand the
definitions and coding such as file names, headers and any other unique identifiers. A true and
correct copy is attached as Exhibit A.
13.

On July 5, 2017, CCC took an extension of five business days to respond to the

request.
14.

At no time has BGA agreed in writing to any further extension of time for CCC to

respond to the requests.
15.

After a series of oral discussions about the scope of the requests, on August 1,

2017, CCC denied portions of the request, asserting that student ID numbers are exempt under

-3-

 FOIA Section 7(1)(a) pursuant to the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, as well as
exempt under FOIA Sections 7(1)(b) and 7(1)(c).

For purposes of resolving the requests

amicably, BGA agreed to production of the records with student ID numbers redacted without
conceding they are exempt.
16.

On August 16, 2017, after many further discussions between BGA and CCC

regarding narrowing the request, CCC denied most of the request as unduly burdensome
pursuant to Section 3(g), stating that it would take hundreds of hours to comply with the request.
A true and correct copy is attached as Exhibit B.
17.

CCC has made clear that a significant amount of the alleged burden was not to

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pull or produce the relevant data, but to allow CCC to “validate” it—something that BGA did not
request. To the contrary, BGA seeks the raw data it requested without any modifications by
CCC.
18.

On September 12, 2017, BGA reached out to CCC in another attempt to resolve

the matter short of litigation. BGA explained, as it had previously, why the request should only
take a few hours to complete as opposed to the amount of time claimed by CCC.
19.

Throughout the process, CCC refused to make its IT staff directly available to

BGA to discuss the alleged technical issues with BGA’s own technical expert and attempt to
work through any legitimate burden issues.
20.

As of the date of filing, CCC has failed to substantively respond to BGA’s

September 12 letter.
COUNT I –WILLFUL VIOLATION OF FOIA
21.

The above paragraphs are incorporated by reference.

22.

CCC is a public body under FOIA.

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 23.

The records sought in BGA’s FOIA request are non-exempt public records of

24.

CCC has willfully and intentionally violated FOIA by refusing to produce the

CCC.

requested records.
WHEREFORE, BGA asks that the Court:
i.

in accordance with FOIA Section 11(f), afford this case precedence on the Court’s
docket except as to causes the Court considers to be of greater importance, assign
this case for hearing and trial at the earliest practicable date, and expedite this

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case in every way;
ii.

declare that CCC has violated FOIA;

iii.

order CCC to produce the requested records;

iv.

enjoin CCC from withholding non-exempt public records under FOIA;

v.

order CCC to pay civil penalties;

vi.

award Plaintiff reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs;

vii.

award such other relief the Court considers appropriate.
RESPECTFULLY SUBMITTED,
/s/ Matthew V. Topic
____________________________
Attorneys for Plaintiff
BETTER GOVERNMENT ASSOCIATION

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Matthew Topic
Joshua Burday
LOEVY & LOEVY
311 North Aberdeen, 3rd Floor
Chicago, IL 60607
312-243-5900
foia@loevy.com
Atty. No. 41295

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Eugene Munin

General Counsel, City College of Chicago
226 w. Jackson Blvd., 14th Floor
Chicago, IL 60606

Mr. Munin:

This is a request for public records under the Freedom of Information Act. Please make available for my
inspection by noon Thursday, July 6, 2017 the following public records:

1) All data contained in the City of Colleges of Chicago OpenBook Student Navigator, or its
equivalent. This request includes, but is not necessarily limited too, all raw data in possession,
custody or control used to identify and track progress for individual students, including student
identification numbers, home college, latest home college, IPEDS college, cohort year, advisor name,
first credit term, declared program, total terms enrolled, credits, last term enrolled and any other data
included in the student navigator database or any other student database.

2) All data contained in the C59 database, or its equivalents. This request includes, but is not
necessarily limited to, all data contained in the database such as student identification numbers, dates,
degrees, results, completions, awards, credits needed, projected completion dates, projected
graduation dates, actual completion dates, actual graduation dates and any other information stored
in the database.

it; C3) All data and spreadsheets involved in completion audits since 2010. This request includes, but is not
?3 necessarily limited to, a master spreadsheet of each completion audit with data enumerating student
identification numbers, completion dates, advisors, credits needed and all other data contained

3 5' therein. 

?8 04) Any records or data necessary to understand the definitions and coding such as file names, headers

and any other unique identifiers.

Please make these public records available in their original format, complete and unredacted, except as it
pertains to student first and last names, which we understand is exempt from public scrutiny for privacy
reasons. As this request is made in my capacity as a journalist, time is of the utmost concern.

If you feel any of the requested records are exempt from public scrutiny, please provide that portion of this
request not in dispute, along with the specific explanation of the portion withheld and the specific statutory
exemption under which you are doing so.

As I discussed with Ms. Hayes earlier today, I am always available at the number below to discuss problems,
questions or concerns regarding this request. Thank you for your prompt attention to this matter.

Sincerely,

David Kidwell
Better Government Association

312 912-3938
Exhibit A

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10/30/2017 12:59 PM

From? James Reilly not can
Subject: Written FOIA Response
Liam. August 18, 2017 at 4:50 PM
To. David Kidwell skim-veil? o?g

August 16, 2017

As part of our continuing discussions to reduce your pending FOIA request to manageable
proportions, I forwarded to staff from Academic Affairs the following excerpt from an email sent
to you on August 3, 2017:

Finally, I have clarified your request regarding the Open Books Student Navigator

database. Please correct me if I am wrong. You want to provide ALL data from the

100+ data fields/headers you have identified, for every student that is in that database,

linked to the random that has been assigned by Completion and Retention staff: with N0

time limitations back as it goes.
On August 8, 2107 I arranged for a telephone conference call with you and two of your staff
members with computer/data expertise. Our Associate Vice Chancellor for Strategy Academic
Governance participated in that call and provided a rather detailed explanation for the
extraordinary amount of work it would take to comply with the request as written. She has
reduced her estimate to writing which reads as follows:

Here is an estimate of work required to fulfill the request from BGA, using the request

parameters of providing:

Every single student that is included in the Open Book Student Navigator database

All data associated with the 100+ headers or data fields identified in the July 14, 2017

email
Student IDs be removed to de-identify students

I. Process/task steps to execute

a. [1-2 days] Review request and outline data pull methodology
i. Translate request into technical data extract requirements, plan out data
file packaging and security structures/procedures, review data
quality/sensitivity of requested fields, plan out validation and
documentation procedures, identify resources to assist, and estimate time
required to fulfill request

. [2-3 days] Identify/resolve data methodology questions (internally or externally)

c. [2-3 days] extract data

i. 7 data cubes
ii. 100+ headers/data ?elds
3, 000, 000+ individual student records (number or records expands

based on the type of data cube)

d. [1?2 days] De-identify data

i. Create and assign new identifier to de-identijy student IDs across all

data files

e. [2?5 days] Validate the data extracts and make ac?ustments/re?extract as needed

[1-day] Package and secure the data pull

g. [2?3 days] Create data dictionary definitions related to the files blank fields

require investigation/definition with OpenBook team
h. [1-2 days] (Internal Process) Document and organize data pull process and
student ID crosswalk ofor future questions/inquiries)
i. I day] (Internal Process) Provide data briefing/summary for 01A o?icer
2. Staffing required (across multiple teams)
a. Decision summrt.? manager 2 .staffmemher.s .5 FTE)

Exhibit 

b. OIT: I manager; I data analyst (I TE)
3. Estimated people hours to execute
a. 13-22 days (2.6 4.4 working weeks)
i. Min: 2.5 13 days 8 hrs/day 260 
ii. Max: 2.5 FTE 22 days 8 hrs/day 440 
4. Impact on operational responsibilities
a. Decision Support: Compliance reporting, there are 17 upcoming compliance
submission deadlines in August, September and October These data submissions
have financial fine implications for missing compliance deadlines or producing
incorrect data.
b. OIT: There is only one person in the data warehouse department dedicated to
monitoring and supporting the data system and resolving issues/problems. Other
sta? is dedicated to supporting the upcoming compliance reporting period as
we .

While you have attempted to narrow your request, our of?ce is denying this part of your
request pursuant to 5 ILCS 140/3(g) as compliance with your request would be unduly
burdensome. In order to comply with your request, it would require extremely time-consuming
efforts from our staff. The requested records would number in the millions. The review, redaction,
arrangement, and deidenti?cation of student records would require the work of multiple staff
members over many, many days. It remains our position that the request as written remains
unduly burdensome, you have not narrowed your request to manageable proportions, and the
burden on this public body outweighs the public interest in the information. Heinrich v. White,
32012 IL App (2d) 110564.

City Colleges of Chicago continues to search for and compile degree audits/completion
?ranagement reports from prior years, including those you requested from SharePoint. You will be
gloti?ed once compiled and reviewed.
o? While we have not completed our response to your request please be advised you have a
right to have the denial of this request reviewed by the Public Access Counselor (PAC) at the
Of?ce of the Attorney General. 5 ILCS You can ?le your Request for Review with the
PAC by writing to:

Public Access Counselor

Of?ce of the Attorney General

500 South 2nd Street
Spring?eld, Illinois 62706
Fax: 217-782-1396
Email: publicaccessbatgstate.il.us
You also have the right to seek judicial review of your denial by ?ling a
lawsuit in the State circuit court. 5 ILCS 140/11.

If you choose to ?le a Request for Review with the PAC, you must do so
within 60 calendar days of the date of this denial letter. 5 ILCS Please note that you
must include a copy of your original FOIA request and this denial letter when ?ling a Request for
Review with the PAC.

Sincerely,
James M. Reilly
Assoc General Counsel

59 PM

2017-CH- 14457

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James Reilly

Associate General Counsel

City Colleges of Chicago

226 W. Jackson Blvd, 14th Floor
Chicago, IL 60606
312-553-2540 (Direct)
312-553-2539 (Fax)
Elli/mi .

The information contained in this message (including any attachments) is proprietary, confidential and/or privileged
attorney-work product, is intended for a specific individual and purpose and is protected by law. If you are not the
intended recipient, you are hereby notified that any use, disclosure, copying, or distribution of this message

or attachments or taking of any action based on it, is strictly prohibited. If you have received this message in error,
please re-send it to the sender and delete the original from your computer system.

2017-CH- 14457

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Summons - Alias Summons

(12/31/15) CCG N001

IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS

BETTER GOVERNMENT ASSOCIATION

No. 2017-CH-14457

v.

Defendant Address:

CITY COLLEGES OF CHICAGO

CITY COLLEGES OF CHICAGO
226 W. JACKSON
CHICAGO, IL 60606

SUMMONS

ALIAS - SUMMONS

To each defendant:
YOU ARE SUMMONED and required to file an answer to the complaint in this case, a copy of which is hereto
attached, or otherwise file your appearance, and pay the required fee, in the Office of the Clerk of this Court at the
following location:
Richard J. Daley Center, 50 W. Washington, Room 802
,Chicago, Illinois 60602
District 2 - Skokie
District 3 - Rolling Meadows
District 4 - Maywood
5600 Old Orchard Rd.
2121 Euclid 1500
Maybrook Ave.
Skokie, IL 60077
Rolling Meadows, IL 60008
Maywood, IL 60153
District 5 - Bridgeview
District 6 - Markham
Richard J. Daley Center
10220 S. 76th Ave.
16501 S. Kedzie Pkwy.
50 W. Washington, LL-01
Bridgeview, IL 60455
Markham, IL 60428
Chicago, IL 60602
You must file within 30 days after service of this Summons, not counting the day of service.
IF YOU FAIL TO DO SO, A JUDGMENT BY DEFAULT MAY BE ENTERED AGAINST YOU FOR THE
RELIEF REQUESTED IN THE COMPLAINT.
To the officer:
This Summons must be returned by the officer or other person to whom it was given for service, with endorsement
of service and fees, if any, immediately after service. If service cannot be made, this Summons shall be returned so
endorsed. This Summons may not be served later than thirty (30) days after its date.
Atty. No.: 41295
Name: LOEVY & LOEVY
Atty. for: BETTER GOVERNMENT ASSOCIATION
Address: 311 N ABERDEEN 3FL
City/State/Zip Code: CHICAGO, IL 60607
Telephone:

(312) 243-5900

Primary Email Address: matt@loevy.com
Secondary Email Address(es):

Witness:

Monday, 30 October 2017

/s DOROTHY BROWN

DOROTHY BROWN, Clerk of Court
Date of Service:
(To be inserted by officer on copy left with Defendant or other person)

**Service by Facsimile Transmission will be accepted at:

joshb@loevy.com
(Area Code)

(Facsimile Telephone Number)

DOROTHY BROWN, CLERK OF THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS
Page 1 of 1

 Chancery DIVISION
Litigant List
Printed on 10/30/2017
Case Number: 2017-CH-14457

Page 1 of 1

Plaintiffs
Plaintiffs Name

Plaintiffs Address

State Zip

Unit #

BETTER GOVERNMENT
ASSOCIATION
Total Plaintiffs: 1

Defendants
Defendant Name

Defendant Address

State

CITY COLLEGES OF
CHICAGO

226 W. JACKSON CHICAGO,

IL

Unit #
60606

Service By
Sheriff-Clerk

Total Defendants: 1