Chicago Board of Education meets amid speculation over CPS CEO Pedro Martinez's future

CHICAGO - The Chicago Board of Education convened Thursday night to discuss local school councils and current developments within the district. 

The meeting began at 5 p.m. at Clemente Academy High School.

This gathering followed ongoing speculation regarding the future of Chicago Public Schools CEO Pedro Martinez, who recently received a request for his resignation from the mayor but has chosen to stay in his role. 

Martinez has garnered support from local aldermen and other government officials, who argue that he is well-qualified for the position. 

The CPS CEO will keep his job for now, as the seven-member Chicago Board of Education did not vote on terminating his employment during the meeting.

Martinez was defiant this week, rejecting Mayor Brandon Johnson's request to resign amid contract negotiations with the politically powerful Chicago Teachers Union.

He began the evening by offering a resolution to the board, proposing a moratorium on any school closures until 2027.

Martinez claimed there is a misinformation campaign from the CTU, which suggested he wanted to close schools.

One hundred speakers signed up to address the board, but the list was reduced to about 40, including parents, elected officials, and union members.

Looking ahead, there are no more scheduled school board meetings.

The campaign to support Martinez included a letter signed by the majority of city council members and former CPS CEOs, as well as strong editorials in the Chicago Tribune and Chicago Sun-Times, criticizing the mayor for appearing to side with the union.

Chicago Public Schools issued this statement Thursday afternoon about Martinez prior to the meeting: 

"CEO Pedro Martinez declined to resign, not as a rebuke of Mayor Brandon Johnson, but rather because of his strong desire to build on the District’s academic progress to date and pursue the District’s vision for the future of Chicago Public Schools, as outlined in the new five-year-strategic plan, unanimously approved by the Chicago Board of Education last week. 

"CEO Martinez has had a good working relationship with Mayor Johnson and his team.  They have met on a regular basis to discuss District business and championed District and school-level progress and accomplishments together. The District and CEO Martinez have responded to news inquiries on the CEO’s job throughout the past month with an emphasis on ensuring that the focus remains on teaching and learning.

"CEO Martinez returned to the District in fall 2021 to become CEO of a District he had entered as an immigrant at age five. He returned as a CPS alum, a CPS parent, and a seasoned education leader who understood there was much work to do. He returned wanting to expand opportunities for all students and improve the daily student learning experience. CEO Martinez works under a five-year contract and his role and contract is ultimately overseen by the Chicago Board of Education.  Per the current contract, the CEO can only be dismissed immediately if there is cause; otherwise, the CEO must be given notice of a six-month transition period in order to ensure a smooth transition to a new CEO with minimal disruption to students and staff. This transition period is important especially as the District implements the new strategic plan, and as our students continue to show impressive gains in post-pandemic learning.

"This District has a long history of not having stable leadership; CEO Martinez is the seventh CEO in the past 13 years. The District’s long-term vision and initiatives are at a critical juncture, and leaving now would jeopardize continuity and momentum amid ongoing teacher negotiations, the pending election of school Board members, and enormous fiscal challenges. 

"Under CEO Martinez’s leadership the District has added more than 5,600 additional positions and nearly 2,000 additional teachers. The District doubled down on core instruction with results to show for it, ranking #1 in reading growth and #3 in combined reading and math growth in 2023 among large urban districts according to a national academic scorecard. That strong academic performance was largely driven by dramatic gains among Black students, who emerged from the pandemic two-thirds of a year ahead of where they were in reading than before the pandemic. This was the greatest improvement in performance among Black students in all large urban Districts. The District’s 2024 state assessment reports show continued gains and our graduation rates continue to climb. The CPS Class of 2024 graduates earned a record-breaking $2.1 billion in college scholarships.

"One major component of the new strategic plan, "Success 2029: Together We Rise," is the Black Student Success Plan. This plan has been developed through widespread community engagement over the past year through a Black Student Success Working Group, outlining the  specific supports and practices needed to ensure the success of our Black students. 

"While there is much work to do to increase equity, the Black Student Success Working Group is an example of the work happening under CEO Martinez’s leadership, and shows what the collective CPS community can accomplish by working together. The Black Student Success Plan will build on historic achievements accomplished by the District’s Class of 2024 graduates and recent academic gains of our elementary students. Seventeen percent of the District’s Black graduates earned their associate’s degree while representing 34 percent of District students who earned dual credit, meaning coursework that provides high school and college credit. These students' career pathways include colleges and universities, trade schools, the arts, the military, and entering the workforce.

"Just as they did in School Year 2023, CPS’ third through eighth graders posted the greatest gains on the state assessment in English Language Arts, resulting in a five percentage point increase from the previous school year and yielding a higher percent proficiency than before the pandemic. Importantly, Black students drove these gains, achieving a six percentage point increase over the previous school year.

"An integral part of Black student success consists of surrounding Black students with supports and educators who understand their social and cultural experiences. CPS continues to hire and retain teachers and other staff members who have strong roots in the communities our Black students represent.

"The diversity of the District’s new hires remains strong; 49 percent of new CPS teachers identify as Black or Latinx, up from 33 percent in 2017, and 60 percent of new CPS teachers identify as teachers of color, up from 38 percent in 2017. The increase reflects the District’s ongoing efforts to ensure our students see themselves in our teachers, school leaders and top District leadership."

We'll bring more updates to this story as they become available.