Will the Chicago Board of Education fire CEO Pedro Martinez?
CHICAGO - All eyes are on the seven members of the Chicago Board of Education, appointed by the mayor. Whose side are they on?
In one corner - Mayor Brandon Johnson - who has asked Chicago Public Schools (CPS) CEO Pedro Martinez to resign amid contentious contract talks with the powerful Chicago Teachers Union.
The other, Martinez, who has refused to step down. Several city council members say they'll be at Thursday's highly anticipated school board meeting.
25th Ward Alderman Byron Sigcho Lopez says he will call on the board to fire Martinez.
"I do think we have grounds for his termination so we can find a new Latino or Latina educator that actually takes this job seriously," Sigcho Lopez said.
36th Ward Alderman Gilbert Villegas will call on the school board to defy the mayor and keep Martinez around, saying he believes the mayor is simply trying to do the bidding of CTU.
"Now that CTU doesn't get everything they want, they want to remove the CPS CEO? It doesn't make sense," Villegas said. "This is all politics and we can't afford this."
Mayor Johnson asked Martinez to resign as contract negotiations with the union drag on.
CTU President Stacy Davis-Gates says Martinez is standing in the way of the mayor's plans for progress.
"He says we're going to have sustainable community schools because the district is going to be sustainable community school, and you have clown show CEO standing in the way of that," Davis-Gates said.
CPS has offered teachers raises between 4-5 percent per year. Davis-Gates says it's about more staffing and promises not to lay off or furlough any teachers.
Also at issue: CTU and the mayor's desire for high-interest, short-term borrowing to pay for a large new contract, because CPS doesn't have the money. Martinez has refused, calling it "exorbitant."
On Wednesday, Governor Pritzker echoed those concerns.
"Borrowing to pay for business expenses in a business, in a government, is not a great idea unless you know how to pay for that, because it's going to come due," Pritzker said.
CTU’s strategy appears to be to spend the money now and back the governor and Illinois lawmakers into a corner so they bail the system out later. But the governor says he's maxed out the funding to CPS when there are hundreds of other school districts in need too.
"I would like to put more money into our education system. We have all acknowledged we're not funding education properly in the State of Illinois. And the question is where do you find the dollars to do that?"
The board cannot fire Martinez without cause – they must give him six months' notice and offer five months' severance.