While Chicago students are graduating high school and enrolling into colleges at higher rates, more needs to be done to ensure they complete college.

Chicago Public Schools data from 2023-24 found that third through eighth grade students are making progress on state tests. SAT scores and high school graduation rates remain steady.

Chicago alderpeople questioned Martinez over the school system’s budget as Mayor Brandon Johnson continues to spar with CPS over financial troubles at both city hall and the school district.

Even as enrollment remains relatively stable, it is still far lower than a decade ago and could mean tough decisions ahead for Chicago Public Schools leadership.

CPS CEO Pedro Martinez said he has been asking for the city to contribute more Tax Increment Financing funds to CPS in order to stabilize its budget.

The resignations will come after weeks of pressure from Mayor Brandon Johnson’s administration to oust CPS CEO Pedro Martinez and take out a high-interest loan to cover costs — which the mayor’s appointed board has so far declined to do.

The district is seeing increases in most student groups, including big bumps in the number of children learning English as a new language.

Neither the board nor Pedro Martinez directly addressed Mayor Brandon Johnson’s request for the schools chief to quit.

Kimberly Brown, Andrew A. Davis, Thomas Day, Carmen Gioiosa, Ellen Rosenfeld, and Karen Zaccor come from different backgrounds, ranging from teaching and community organizing to marketing and the military.

Chicago School Board District 5 stretches from the West Loop to Austin. There is one candidate on the ballot — Aaron ‘Jitu’ Brown — and two people running as write-ins: Jousef Shkoukani and Kernetha Jones.