Current Issue

School closings

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

CPS administration

May 06, 2011

Jean-Claude Brizard is not yet sitting at the helm of central office, but already the administration is getting ready to deal with the budget crisis he will encounter.  On Friday, an undisclosed number of central office employees were told their positions will be closed at the end of this fiscal year.

May 05, 2011

Under former CEO Ron Huberman, the mantra was:  Move as much work as possible “closer to the schools.” The result was that the district’s 30 area offices ballooned while central offices and schools had their staffs slashed.

April 27, 2011

Chicago Public Schools officials unveiled at Wednesday's school board meeting expansive plans to get more students doing something productive over the summer.

April 18, 2011

In announcing his new education team, Mayor-elect Rahm Emanuel emphasized that his choice for chief executive officer, Jean-Claude Brizard, started out as a math teacher and worked his way up to principal of a New York City high school before becoming superintendent of Rochester schools. But the fact that Brizard worked in the trenches—a trait many community activists longed for in a CEO—did little to allay concerns that he was picked specifically because he wouldn’t be afraid to get into a battle with the teachers’ union.

April 18, 2011

Mayor-elect Rahm Emanuel announced this morning that Rochester schools chief and Broad  alum Jean-Claude Brizard will be the next CEO of Chicago Public Schools. He also announced new senior leadership for CPS, as well as an entirely new school board. Here's the list and bio information from Emanuel's press office. We'll post our analysis later today.

April 11, 2011
Chicago Public Schools officials announced Monday night that Beidler Elementary in West Garfield Park would not be consolidated with Cather Elementary, at least not this year.  
April 04, 2011

For the past few weeks, Catalyst Chicago has profiled candidates whom readers said they would like to see as the next schools CEO. It’s still a mystery who will get the nod, as Mayor-elect Rahm Emanuel’s press office is tight-lipped on the matter and, with a month to go until Inauguration Day, there’s plenty of time for someone who is not on the radar of Chicago’s education world to emerge from the blue as Emanuel’s pick.

April 01, 2011

More than 100 people marched Friday outside the Chicago Public School's central office building, located on Adams and Clark streets, to protest proposals to consolidate several neighborhood schools.

March 30, 2011

Catalyst Chicago asked readers to submit names of candidates they believe would be a good pick to run the Chicago Public Schools. We're posting short profiles of these candidates and are inviting other readers to share their views in our “Comments” section.

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