CPS board members resigning; mayor’s office calls it 'transition plan'
CHICAGO - In a stunning new twist to the tensions between Mayor Brandon Johnson and Chicago Public Schools (CPS), the mayor’s office confirmed on Friday widely speculated rumors that all seven Board of Education members would be stepping down.
The resignations come a mere three months before a new 21 member hybrid elected/appointed school board gets seated.
"None of the members leaving the current Board planned to continue onto the hybrid Board, and none are running for election," reads a joint statement from the Mayor’s office and the Board of Education issued Friday afternoon. "With the unprecedented increase in Board membership, transitioning new members now will allow them time to orient and gain critical experience prior to welcoming additional elected and appointed members in 2025."
But multiple sources who have spoken to individual board members said the departures are due to a "relentless pressure campaign" from the mayor’s office to find cause to fire CPS CEO Pedro Martinez. The board declined to do so at its last board meeting one week ago.
The growing tensions between the mayor and CPS also revolved around Martinez and the board’s refusal to consider a short-term, high interest loan to help plug a budget gap and pay for a new contract with the Chicago Teachers Union (CTU).
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CTU members have openly advocated for the loan, and complained that Martinez did not do enough to lobby Springfield for $1 billion more in state money for CPS.
The mayor appointed all seven members of the board, including outgoing President Jianin Shi. Shi has not returned multiple messages seeking comment.
The board members will leave at the end of the month. The mayor has not publicly stated who will replace them in the interim, before the new board comes in January.
CPS released the following statement in response to the board members' resignation:
CPS CEO Pedro Martinez, on behalf of his leadership team, staff and students, extends his sincere gratitude to the members of the Chicago Board of Education for their service. School Board members are dedicated, civic-minded public servants who are not paid for their work. They each have spent countless hours volunteering their time, lending their considerable expertise and experience to support our system and our more than 325,000 students. School Board members review thousands of documents each year and spend additional time researching, asking questions, and offering input before voting on major decisions, including the District’s annual budget, and just last month, the District’s five-year strategic plan, ‘Success 2029: Together We Rise.’ These Board members in particular advocated for equity, emphasizing our collective responsibility to better serve all students but especially students with disabilities and those in neighborhoods that have been historically under-resourced and who remain furthest from opportunity. We extend special thanks to Board President Jianan Shi and Vice President Elizabeth Todd-Breland for their leadership. Vice President Todd-Breland is the only remaining Board member who has served through the COVID-19 pandemic and in the aftermath as the District worked to restore services and successfully lead academic recovery efforts.
We understand news that the seven-member Chicago Board of Education plans to resign later this month may concern our families and staff. CEO Martinez and his leadership team, principals and staff, remain focused on teaching and learning, continuing the great momentum we’ve seen in students’ academic gains and performance over the past two years.