Chicago Public Schools board still in grip of union and mayor after election

The Chicago Teachers Union’s grip on the city’s school board may have eased slightly, but the district’s financial troubles continue after the election.

Six of 10 seats chosen by voters last week went to independent candidates and those backed by the Illinois Network of Charter Schools, WBEZ reported, with union-backed candidates landing the remaining four seats. But CTU should keep solid control of the board because Mayor Brandon Johnson, a former classroom teacher and union organizer, appoints its remaining 11 members. 

“When combined with the mayor’s 11 appointed board members, we now have 15 of 21 members of the board of education primed to transform Chicago Public Schools,” reads the CTU’s online newsletter. “The right wing came to Chicago to buy our school board, but even with the $3 million plus they spent, they only secured three seats.” 

Spending by the union and related political action committees totaled about $1.75 million, WBEZ reported, compared to $3.17 million by “pro-charter school, anti-CTU groups.” 

Independent candidates, who were backed by neither side and had much less funding, won through grassroots efforts and organizing.  

The election follows the departure of seven school board members who resigned in October under pressure from Johnson amid disagreements over the district’s budget, which projects a $500 million shortfall. Johnson appointed a new school board head who promptly resigned after antisemitic messages he posted online surfaced. 

Johnson will appoint 11 members by mid-December; in two years, all 21 seats will be chosen by municipal election, ending 30 years of direct mayoral control. 

The new board faces trying to close the budget gap, ongoing negotiations with the CTU over new contract demands and pressure to take out a short-term, high-interest loan to cover pensions for non-district faculty. 

The district has “roughly $9.3 billion in outstanding debt as of June 1,” Chalkbeat Chicago reported, which draws “hundreds of millions of dollars away from classrooms every year.” 

COVID-19 money propped up the district the last four years but is now expiring.  

Johnson has said he’s against cutting the district and campaigned on “fully funded” schools. 

While CPS has seen a slight increase in graduation rates, many Chicago students are still struggling: only 26% of the city’s 3rd-8th graders were reading at grade level in tests taken last year. 

The district also faces declining enrollment of more than 20% over the last two decades, even as taxpayer funding has increased more than 50% since 2010. Despite many half-empty buildings, the union opposes shuttering schools.