Chalkbeat Chicago
Neighborhoods
- Austin, Garfield Park, North Lawndale
- Downtown
- Englewood, Chatham
- Hyde Park, Woodlawn, South Shore
- Lakeview, Boystown, Wrigleyville
- Lincoln Park, Old Town
- Lincoln Square, North Center, Irving Park
- Logan Square, Humboldt Park, Avondale
- Pilsen, Little Village, West Loop
- Uptown, Edgewater, Rogers Park
- Wicker Park, Bucktown, West Town
Under Pressure From Pandemic, Chicago Lays Out Changes To Competitive High School Admissions Process
CPS will replace a spring test and its selective-enrollment exam with one high school assessment for choice programs that all students will take during the school day.
Teachers Union And CPS Reach Tentative Agreement To Reopen Chicago High Schools After Weeks Of Tense Negotiations
Teachers upped the pressure on the district to reach an agreement by refusing to report to classrooms Wednesday and Thursday.
Hybrid Or Elected School Board? Lightfoot Proposal Stirs Debate In Springfield
Sen. Kimberly Lightford said she will sponsor the mayor’s bill for a partly elected and partly appointed “hybrid” board. But Wednesday, Lightford criticized a bill to create a fully elected board, then voted for it.
In Chicago, Parent Fundraising Eases Reopening At Some Schools — And Leaves Others Out
The dynamic in a city deeply segregated by race and wealth has long contributed to the inequalities among schools.
As 21-Person Elected School Board Bill Gains Momentum, Calls Grow In Chicago For Another Option
A key state House committee passed the bill this week, but opponents want to reduce the size of the board or seek a hybrid model with some members appointed and others elected.
Chicago Schools’ No. 2 To Lead Virginia’s Second Largest School District
LaTanya McDade, the second-in-command at Chicago Public Schools, will be the next chief of Prince William County Public Schools in Virginia.
Chicago Asks Its High Schools To Come Up With Alternatives To Campus Police
The district has asked each high school to form a campus safety committee to make recommendations.
Chicago Says Most Of Its Teachers And Staff Should Return To Campus For 4th Quarter
Officials are calling back most teachers this spring and have reported an uptick in the number of families signing up for in-person learning.
Chicago Public Schools To Invest $24 Million In Student Trauma And Mental Health Programs
CPS plans to spend the money across three years to expand the number of behavioral support teams from 200 schools to closer to 500 and enlist more help from community groups through grants.
Chicago Sets April 19 Return Date For High School Students
The district said Tuesday that April 19 is a “target” date and negotiations with the teachers union, which have been productive, are ongoing.
Chicago Schools Will Begin Testing Students For COVID-19 Next Week
The goal will be to test symptomatic students or those who had close contact with a person who tested positive for the virus, and to use surveillance testing to catch students who may be asymptomatic.
Disrupted Routines And New Rules: They’re In Fourth Grade And On The Front Lines Of School Reopening
Chalkbeat Chicago caught up with four fourth graders who, like millions of students, have seen their school system roiled by change.
In Class But Onscreen: Chicago’s Return To School Buildings Brings New Tradeoffs
With roughly a third of Chicago teachers currently working from home, the scenario of in-person students learning with a virtual teacher has been one of the inevitable compromises families and educators have faced.
Chicago Expects 55,000 More Students In Its Biggest Reopening Test Yet
Almost 61,000 students in prekindergarten through eighth grade as well as some high school special education students are expected in school buildings by the end of next week, when the district will bring back the middle grades.
1 in 3 Chicago Teachers Working From Home As Classrooms Reopen
Of the more than 10,800 teachers expected to report for in-person learning so far, the district granted 3,750 accommodations.
How Are Chicago’s Students? What Families Said About Learning In A Tumultuous Year
Chalkbeat Chicago received more than 350 responses from families and students citywide.
Monday’s Reopening Will Bring Fewer Chicago Students Than Expected
CPS expects about 60,700 students in the elementary grades and in intensive special education programs to learn in school buildings by mid-March — slightly fewer than 30 percent of the eligible students.
Five Things To Know About Chicago’s COVID-19 Alert System In Schools
CPS budgeted more than $1 million for its COVID-19 notification and contact tracing system, which includes a new district-level team and several online reporting programs.
Chicago Wants Leeway To Require COVID Vaccines For School Employees — But Has No Plans To Do So
The district also wants employees to disclose whether they have been vaccinated.
How One Chicago School Is Confronting The Thorny ‘Learning Loss’ Question
Schools chief Janice Jackson stressed the importance of moving away from remediation in addressing learning loss. The focus should be on providing students below grade level more resources to accelerate learning, she said.