Chicago Public Schools says the school year began Tuesday with record attendance. That’s despite a boycott to protest funding inequities between Illinois districts.

State Senator James Meeks says the attendance record is surprising since he led more than a thousand Chicago children to try to enroll in a suburban district that day. Meeks says the report doesn’t jibe with Chicago’s dropout rate or test scores either.

MEEKS: With all of this dismal failure, obviously, then, someone at CPS doesn’t know what they’re doing.

The district responds that its graduation rates and test scores have been improving.

Senator Meeks ended the boycott Tuesday night after hearing that Governor Rod Blagojevich would be willing to address the funding disparities. Meeks wants a meeting on the issue next week to include the governor, State Senate President Emil Jones and House Speaker Michael Madigan.

MEEKS: It’s going to take all three to pass something.

On Thursday, the governor’s office invited Jones. Madigan’s office said it hadn’t heard anything.