At a Senate committee hearing, lawmakers hear conflicting views on when they should approve district boundaries.
Message to parents: ‘You don’t have to come back and keep asking.’
The district said it will begin to mail out checks of up to $500 this week. Parents can pick up checks from their child’s school.
Officials said about 40% of kindergarten through second grade students were at or above grade level by May, up from 9% in September. They declined to share school-level data or any information about how students fared on early math assessments
Officials are considering opening more so-called specialty schools meant to help students with more challenging disabilities transition into the real world.
People interested in running for a seat at their local public school can apply between Oct. 16 and Feb. 8, 2024. Elections will take place on April 10, 2024 for elementary schools and April 11, 2024 for high schools.
Preliminary data analyzed by Chalkbeat shows just over 322,000 students were enrolled as of the 20th day of school, when the district takes an official count. The stable number comes after a decade of dramatic annual declines.
School-level data from the 2023 Illinois Assessment for Readiness shows many schools have not returned to pre-pandemic levels of students meeting standards in reading and math.
Some principals say the program is paying off and want to find funding to keep it going.
Chicago’s office that manages special education hasn’t had a chief since June. Now the board of education is searching for the next department head and asking the public for its input on who the next chief should be.
Shipments of the new COVID vaccine are expected to arrive in the coming weeks and should be “plentiful” by early October, public health officials said this week.
Families use the application for entry to a variety of schools, including selective test-in schools and neighborhood schools outside of their attendance boundaries.
Illinois Action for Children’s report on child care in Cook County found that federal emergency relief funds allowed many providers to keep their doors open. However, families still face barriers to get affordable care.
The shift raises questions about who schools are serving, how they should be resourced, and what the district — and the city — can do as it continues to lose students.
The inspector general found they fraudulently got federal loans during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.
The Parent Mentor Program started in Chicago in 1995. After 28 years, the program has expanded to over 2,000 parents at almost 230 schools around the state. On Friday, the program kicked off the new school year welcoming parent mentors back to the classroom at a celebration at Harry S. Truman Community College.
Illinois lawmakers and school officials want the state to increase funding for school meals to provide meals for all students regardless of income.
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Officials say the change was an attempt to address pay inequities.
Jianan Shi describes himself as “an immigrant that’s fallen in love with Chicago.” Here’s why he feels “the urgency of this work,” and what he plans to do about it.
Blaming a driver shortage, the district decided this year to limit bus transportation to students with disabilities and those experiencing homelessness.
Families of transgender youth are moving to Illinois, where state law protects gender-affirming medical care and encourages inclusive school policies.
As new members join Chicago mayor’s youth commission, Chalkbeat Chicago spoke to two teens who have served on the group, advising city leadership on education.
District officials said 47 students with disabilities have bus rides longer than an hour. It’s a steep decline from last year when more than 3,000 had hour-plus commutes.
Teachers, parents and union organizers said they are managing the tough conditions, but it’s time for the district to commit to long-term upgrades instead of “quick fixes and bandaids.”
Ahora que se acerca el primer día de clases, esto es lo que sabemos sobre los recursos bilingües y los estudiantes de inglés en las Escuelas Públicas de Chicago.
It took a few days, but the girls who are staying at a local police station with their families are now officially enrolled in Chicago Public Schools.
An email to parents outlined Chicago Public Schools plan for Wednesday and Thursday when temperatures are forecast to be close to 100 degrees.
Navarro completed a year of training through Chicago Public Schools’ Teacher Residency program. Now he teaches as a special education teacher at Finkl Academy, where he previously worked as a paraprofessional.
The Illinois State Board of Education has issued several warnings to Chicago Public Schools to comply with state law governing restraint and timeout. Chicago said that it is in compliance as of Monday.
As roughly 320,000 students went back to class across Chicago, the district faces a number of challenges for the new school year.
The Illinois Early Childhood Access Consortium for Equity report found that about an additional 500 students who already work in early childhood education enrolled in college.
The issues include the city’s precarious funding situation, enrollment shifts, and what support will look like for migrant students.
A new study lays bare the realities of gun violence in Chicago.
While COVID-19 testing and vaccinations are widely available, contracting the virus is still a concern for students — especially for those who are medically fragile
More than 5,000 new English learners enrolled in Chicago schools last year. With the first day of school rapidly approaching, a Chalkbeat analysis found a complicated picture of bilingual staffing resources at the district.
Block Club’s guide will help you donate or receive free school supplies and backpacks before CPS kids head to class Aug. 21.
Due to a drop in low-income student enrollment and an increase in local property values, the district could continue to get a smaller share of new state dollars.
Teachers discuss their first day-of-school memories, favorite supplies, and what they are looking forward to this school year.
Dolton-Riverdale, a high-poverty elementary district, is installing touch screens, cameras, and other technology to make hybrid learning easier.
The findings suggest that schools can benefit from more empowered principals, who are “closer to the ground” and may have a better sense than district leaders of what their students need.
The district’s preliminary scores on the Illinois Assessment of Readiness show improvement after COVID-era dips.
With only half of the 1,300 drivers needed to transport students who require bus service, Chicago said it will instead prioritize transportation for students with disabilities and those experiencing homelessness.
Mayor Brandon Johnson and his team want to grow the Sustainable Community Schools program, a partnership with the Chicago Teachers Union.
Pell Grants return to incarcerated people after nearly 30 years. Here’s what that means in Illinois.
This month, for the first time in nearly three decades, the federal government restored Pell Grants to incarcerated people. But availability of program spots and systemic educational issues could keep many people in prison from actually enrolling this fall.
The findings suggest that white and more affluent parents are more likely to have access to accurate LSC information and fully seated LSCs.
Illinois schools are set to welcome back schools to classrooms as summer comes to a close. Chalkbeat Chicago wants to cover topics that are important to parents, students, and educators throughout the year. Let us know what we should cover this year.
About 350 teens and young adults gathered at Harold Washington Library to discuss mental health, affordable housing, the environment, and more.