Events
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Left-wing political coalitions have typically supported elected school boards. Yet as districts face new existential threats, progressive mayors are testing that and other assumptions.
The state board’s current proposal would drop the 9th Grade On-Track metric from the calculation used to label schools based on performance. The changes have raised concerns for board members and local advocates.
As the federal government ratched up immigration enforcement in Chicago, local organizations and legal groups have pushed families to create documents that give temporary custody of their children to someone they trust.
Illinois education officials summarized public input gathered at budget hearings in September and October. Transportation and increasing the state’s evidence-based funding formula by at least $350 million were the most frequent budget requests made by the public.
The LEARN charter school network is appealing to the state a decision by North Chicago District 187 to close two schools it operates in the suburban community in 2027. That district is in the process of transitioning out of state oversight.
Left-wing political coalitions have typically supported elected school boards. Yet as districts face new existential threats, progressive mayors are testing that and other assumptions.
The state board’s current proposal would drop the 9th Grade On-Track metric from the calculation used to label schools based on performance. The changes have raised concerns for board members and local advocates.
As the federal government ratched up immigration enforcement in Chicago, local organizations and legal groups have pushed families to create documents that give temporary custody of their children to someone they trust.
Illinois education officials summarized public input gathered at budget hearings in September and October. Transportation and increasing the state’s evidence-based funding formula by at least $350 million were the most frequent budget requests made by the public.
The LEARN charter school network is appealing to the state a decision by North Chicago District 187 to close two schools it operates in the suburban community in 2027. That district is in the process of transitioning out of state oversight.
District officials are considering a request from Cisneros’ principal and advisory council to move the charter that CPS is absorbing onto a district campus.
A group of seven mothers who serve as parent mentors in Chicago Public Schools are trying to help families in their communities amid the Trump administration’s increased immigration enforcement in Chicago.
Student privacy and mental health advocates are concerned about a no-cost contract between the school district and for-profit Hazel Health, which is set to renew in December.
The district’s inspector general issued a special report flagging lax travel spending oversight and excessive professional development trips.
Meisha Ross Porter is one of two finalists for the Chicago job. Porter led New York City public schools during the COVID pandemic.
The incident happened in front of parents and children at Rayito de Sol in North Center, a parent said. They believe the employee, who cares for infants, is legally allowed to work in the United States.
What makes an Illinois school ‘Exemplary’? State officials are proposing changes to the calculation.
The new accountability system used to measure school quality and improvement would include five labels: Exemplary, Commendable, Approaching, Developing, and Comprehensive.
The two independently-run public schools announced earlier this year that they could no longer operate the high school campuses.
A Chalkbeat analysis of school attendance data found steeper attendance declines this year compared to previous years at schools in communities targeted by Operation Midway Blitz.
The agreement makes the payment contingent on receiving $552.4 million in surplus tax funds proposed by Mayor Brandon Johnson.
Last fall, State Superintendent Tony Sanders flagged the disconnect between steady standardized test declines at high school level and the rise in graduation rates as a concern . But this week, he said he's not worried.
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With new standardized testing cut scores in place, Illinois reports higher proficiency rates among students in English and math. But comparisons to past years are now difficult.
Union members who spoke outside the capitol Wednesday advocated for taxing the ultra-wealthy to dedicate more funding to K-12 schools through the evidence-based formula and support a more equitable system for funding public universities in the state.
The payment to a city pension fund would be contingent on the district receiving the record tax dollars boost that Mayor Brandon Johnson has proposed.
Chicago Public Schools CEO Macquline King said the district cannot provide virtual learning without an emergency declaration from the state’s governor.
The student was arrested during a protest and was later released, according to elected officials.
District officials told board members that enrollment is down across grades, all school types, and in neighborhoods across the city.
The High School Admissions Test platform had problems providing more time to students who are approved to receive testing accommodations, such as those with disabilities and English learners.
Under a proposed contract listed on the school board’s October agenda, the district would pay CDW, one of its top device suppliers, $15 million a year over four years to inventory all the district’s computers and other devices.
The district launched three new dual language programs and three other world language programs at schools across the city.
Mayor Brandon Johnson’s $16.6 billion city budget plan would declare a $1 billion surplus from special taxing districts known as TIFs. Chicago Public Schools would get more than half.
Math scores dropped during the COVID pandemic and haven’t fully recovered. Illinois’ draft numeracy plan aims to provide districts with resources for improving math instruction.
Revuluri, a former teacher and instructional specialist who previously served as school board vice president under Mayor Lori Lightfoot, said he wants to run to help improve student achievement and “stand up to special interests.”
The new Governor’s Blue Ribbon Schools Program honors 28 schools across the state and locally revives a long-standing national honor that was abruptly canceled by the Trump administration in August.
Illinois state law requires Chicago’s school board to have a noncitizen advisory board. But Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson hasn’t yet created one.
District officials urged the school board to make ChiArts, a West Side contract high school, a district-run school, and winding down EPIC Academy, a South Side charter high school.
What is it like serving on a board of education? Here are 16 quotes from Chicago Public Schools’ 21-member partially-elected board that sum up the unpaid job.
The board at the Chicago High School for the Arts, a 550-student campus on the West Side, decided not to seek renewal after this school year.
After a rash of ICE appearances and arrests, labor leaders and elected officials sharply criticized the federal government’s immigration actions.
Illinois moves from 47th to 18th in the nation for state spending on public schools, new report says
The rise from 47th in the nation 15 years ago is “unprecedented” according to the advocacy organization Advance Illinois, which pushed for changes to the formula for years before it happened in 2017.
Chicago Teachers Union President Stacy Davis Gates said Tuesday the district should take legal action against the U.S. Department of Education for halting millions in previously awarded magnet school grants to the city’s schools.