Current Issue

School closings

As CPS prepares to close a record number of schools, the fate of students and communities is in question.

Sarah Karp

November 04, 2011

The Chicago Teachers Union announced Friday that CPS leaders agreed to stop asking teachers to vote for waivers to add 90 minutes to the school day.

October 28, 2011

This summer, CPS officials announced a cost-cutting move that they hoped would save $13 million: Offer high schools $25,000 in exchange for each police officer they agreed to give up. Having officers assigned to schools for 8-hour shifts cost about $75,000 a year per officer, according to CPS. But while CPS eventually upped its offer, most high school principals’ concerns over safety have led them to hold on to the two uniformed police officers that have traditionally been assigned to their schools.

October 27, 2011

Mayor Rahm Emanuel announced Thursday that most charter schools eligible for the financial incentives to lengthen the day by 90 minutes have quickly signaled that they are ready to jump on board. But the location of his announcement--a school with a longer school day and a poor academic track record--shows the complexity of the issue.

October 26, 2011

CPS’ new Chief Portfolio Officer Oliver Sicat made his first presentation before the Board of Education on Wednesday, laying the ground work for what is expected to be a slew of school closings this year.

October 20, 2011

The Illinois Educational Labor Relations Board voted unanimously to recommend that a temporary injunction be issued to stop Chicago Public Schools from expanding the number of schools with a longer school day, but it will not try to get the schools that have already implemented the schedule to revert to a standard schedule.

October 19, 2011

As state officials prepare to roll out a new teacher evaluation that is partially tied to student test scores, a leading advocate wants them to “think long and hard” to avoid adopting a process that inadvertently harms special education students.

October 18, 2011

Perspectives Charter School Network is preparing to take its signature curriculum on the road next year, making good on an oft-forgotten selling point of charter schools: to innovate and share what they’ve learned.

October 17, 2011

Imagine this: A community that is viewed as an expansive campus, home to elementary schools that specialize in all sorts of things from Montessori to math and science to language.

October 13, 2011

Marshall has long been a candidate for drastic action, with the percentage of students meeting state testing standards lingering in the single digits for years. But when CPS leaders announced that Marshall would become a turnaround, there was an additional outside push: The state had sanctioned the school because of its poorly run special education program.

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