Principal and teacher turnover

Principals are the leaders of their schools and staff. But in Chicago, multiple entities have power over principals — and soon, an elected school board and a principals union could impact how school leaders work.

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.

Chalkbeat Chicago spoke with early-career educators who started their careers during the pandemic to highlight their experiences.

Nearly 700 school leaders say the Illinois teacher shortage is getting worse and makes it difficult to find qualified teachers and fill vacancies in hard-to-fill positions like special education and bilingual education.

With the pandemic taking a toll on teachers, Illinois’ lawmakers consider a bill that will allow them to use sick days for mental health.

Illinois is working with 24 colleges and universities to create best practices to recruit and hire teachers of color.

Illinois annual report card is the most detailed look at how the state’s nearly 2 million students are faring in public schools. But this year, the report is missing several critical data points, including assessments.

Warnings about the teacher shortage have reverberated around the state for years, but a new report from the policy group Advance Illinois offers insight and suggests possible remedies.