CTU calls for full-time librarian in every Chicago school

CTU calls for full-time librarians in each school

Activists gathered outside of Tilton Elementary School Tuesday morning to voice their demands. The Chicago Teachers Union said they want a full-time librarian in every school.

CHICAGO - The Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) is pushing for a librarian in every school in the district.

Activists gathered outside of Tilton Elementary School Tuesday morning to voice their demands. The CTU said they want the librarians to be full-time as well.

They claimed the district only employs about 80 librarians, down from 450 in 2013. Activists said school librarians can help boost reading scores and provide other benefits for students.

According to the union, predominantly Black schools on the South and West sides of Chicago have been hit the hardest.

Chicago Public Schools (CPS) responded to the union's demand, saying the district prioritizes resources to go toward staffing classrooms and schools to best support the students.

CTU demands librarian in every Chicago school

The Chicago Teachers Union called on CPS CEO Pedro Martinez to centrally fund a librarian for every school in the district regardless of zip code.

"The district values the important role of a school librarian as evident by the recently-revamped budget model which prioritizes and provides staff positions for every school, including providing a position that can be filled by a librarian if a school team deems it best suits their needs," the statement read.

CPS said between 2019 and 2024, it has hired more than 2,600 teachers and more than 4,000 paraprofessionals.