School board candidates answer questions regarding hot topics involving money and the CPS CEO
CHICAGO (CBS) - The 31 candidates vying for the first 10 elected Chicago Board of Education seats have raised more than $7.3 million dollars in direct or in-kind contributions, including indirect support from Political Action Committees.
More than $1.6 million of that from Chicago Teachers Union PACs or PACs primarily funded by CTU. More than $3 million comes from charter school PACs - mostly in support or opposition of particular candidates.
More than half a million dollars has poured in during the week leading up to Election Day on Nov. 5.
CBS News Chicago asked candidates to share their views on four key issues facing the next board when all members are sworn in in January 2025.Ten will be elected by voters, while 10 will be appointed by Mayor Brandon Johnson. Johnson will also appoint the board president.
Eight of the candidates responded directly to our questions. Six others referred us to their websites, which did not answer the specific questions we asked.
We wanted to know about four issues facing CPS next year:
- How would the candidate handle the $500 million deficit?
- What would the candidate do in regards to the Chicago Teachers Union contract negotiations?
- What does the candidate think about the job CPS CEO Pedro Martinez is doing and would you keep him or fire him?
- What would the candidate do to improve educational outcomes for CPS students?
District 1:
"Here are some thoughts on the following questions:
Closing the deficit is going to take some creative thinking and tough decision-making. I have proposed temporarily raising the tax levy until longer-term solutions can be found. Those include offloading the pension burden from the district. The state pays the pensions of every other school district in the state, and the relief of that burden would make million-dollar changes in the budget. I would also propose the over $500 million dollar TIF surplus be given back to the CPS district. This money could help to repair this deficit at no further burden to taxpayers or the community.
Negotiating a contract is experience I have had with a school board before. It is an incredibly taxing and long process and both sides need honesty and transparency in order to make it work. Much of the conversation happens behind closed doors, but I believe I already have the experience about this process to jump in and continue it right away as a board member.
I would keep Pedro Martinez. I believe that he has been a champion for the CPS District, being brave enough to talk about the incredible positive growth and outcomes we have seen in the last two years. Negative rhetoric about school districts and problems within them is easy to do, but pointing out the things that are working well and making a difference isn't always the easiest to make heard. He has done that well. I would like to see more involvement of the CPS upper leadership in future board meetings-presenting on a number of topics from transportation to student progress. Mr. Martinez and his team should be held accountable each month to share information with the public on finances, student performance, transportation, diverse learners, and many other important topics so family and community members know the work they do month to month for the students of CPS.
For improvement in student performance, I would like to see a deeper dive into curriculum and alignment with the standards. I think students deserve the most robust and rigorous curriculum we can give them, that meets their needs and is differentiated to their diverse abilities."
What option(s) do you upport to close the Chicago Public Schools deficit?
To address the CPS deficit, I support a combination of cost-saving measures, resource reallocation, and advocacy for increased state and federal funding. We must prioritize an audit of central office expenses to identify inefficiencies, particularly in non-instructional areas, without impacting essential services like special education and mental health. Public-private partnerships could help fund extracurricular programs and school infrastructure needs. Additionally, advocating for equitable funding under the state's Evidence-Based Funding model will provide a more sustainable, long-term solution for CPS's financial health. I do believe with my previous experience and my certificate in School Finance from Georgetown University, we can do these things and not raise property taxes.
What Chicago Teachers Union contract demands are you in/not in support of as the city renegotiates the teachers' contract?
I support CTU's demands for improved wages, better working conditions, and increased mental health and social-emotional support staff, as these directly impact the well-being of students and staff. However, in light of the current deficit, I would not support any demands that could significantly worsen CPS's financial situation, such as high-cost non-instructional benefits. Balancing financial responsibility with fair compensation and a supportive work environment for teachers is essential to sustaining both CPS and student success.
What is your position on the performance of CPS CEO Pedro Martinez?
Pedro Martinez has demonstrated effective leadership by focusing on student achievement, financial stability, and building trust within CPS. His background in finance and education has been valuable in guiding CPS through complex budgetary challenges, including avoiding high-interest loans that would have increased the district's debt. He has worked to improve transparency and accountability within CPS, which are critical for long-term progress. Martinez's focus on equity aligns with my goals, making his leadership valuable to CPS's success.
Which of his policies do you support/oppose?
I support Martinez's policies prioritizing student achievement, transparency, and equitable resource distribution. His initiatives on early literacy and equity funding reflect a commitment to improving outcomes for all students, particularly in underserved communities. However, I am concerned with any policies that may unintentionally limit school choice, such as the shift toward bolstering neighborhood schools at the expense of magnet and selective enrollment schools. Students and families deserve a range of high-quality educational options, and I believe this choice is vital.
What is your position on him keeping/losing his job?
I support Pedro Martinez staying in his role as CPS CEO. Stability in leadership is essential for CPS to navigate current challenges, and Martinez has proven to be both a capable and focused leader who prioritizes student outcomes. Replacing him at this stage would risk further destabilization and disrupt the positive initiatives already underway. His balanced approach to educational improvement and fiscal responsibility is what CPS needs to progress and tackle ongoing challenges effectively. This is why I have spoken out against Mayor Brandon Johnson and him wanting to fire CEO Martinez.
District 2:
What option(s) do you support to close the Chicago Public Schools deficit?
I have proposed numerous, detailed options for closing the budget gap including both addressing a pension funding discrepancy that would generate $640 million annually as well as taking steps to significantly increase both earned and contributed revenue for CPS going forward. You can find more details at maggieforchicago.com/issues
What Chicago Teachers Union contract demands are you in/not in support of as the city renegotiates the teachers contract?
I believe our educators should be highly paid and I support the proposed salary increases for educators. I look forward to working with CTU to create a long-term strategic approach that can move the district closer to providing the full scope of resources our students deserve.
What is your position on the performance of CPS CEO Pedro Martinez?
I do not believe that the general public has enough information about the overall performance of the CEO and the terms of his contract to reasonably assess his performance.
Which of his policies do you support/oppose?
I share the CEO's opposition to using a short-term, high-interest loan to ill budget gaps as well as his support of the shift from student-based-budgeting to the evidence-based-funding model the district moved to this year. I do not support the continued lack of transparency, absence of meaningful community engagement, and secretive budget process that have continued or worsened under the current CPS leadership.
What is your position on him keeping/losing his job?
I do not believe the CEO should be removed from his position in the middle of contract negotiations with the teachers' union. Beyond that, again, I believe we would need significantly more information to make that determination.
How would you improve the performance of CPS for its students?
I believe that student outcomes are driven by every element of their educational experience. I would prioritize advocating to improve the resources available in the classroom, advocating to repair the flaws in our special education funding model, and advocating for safe and inclusive schools where every child feels celebrated - advocating for these issues IS advocating for better student outcomes. When we are hyper-focused on producing a specific result and a standardized means to measure that outcome, we become over-invested in achievement through a narrow and rigid lens. We have seen this approach continue to fail our children for over two decades. It is crucial that we widen our lens and look through a broader, systems-wide perspective.
What option(s) do you support to close the Chicago Public Schools deficit?
We need to work closely with Springfield to accelerate evidence-based funding and address the unique pension burden CPS carries, which most Illinois districts do not. By advocating for fair state support alongside Chicago representatives, we can better secure funding equity.
Additionally, a comprehensive audit of CPS programs is essential to ensure resources are efficiently directed toward improving student outcomes.
What Chicago Teachers Union contract demands are you in/not in support of as the city renegotiates the teachers' contract?
I believe teachers deserve fair wages and strong benefits as they are essential workers in our community caring for our children. I do not believe that the CTU should be incorporating, into a labor contract, items like the Sustainable Community School model (which has many benefits but will be contractually very difficult to uphold). I worry about the loss of in-person professional development days which are already rare, principals need time to bring their staff together. I am also concerned about the proposed move away from institutional leadership at a school level, while teachers should be allowed autonomy, it's important that we can implement high-quality curricula and that instructional leadership teams not just individuals are guiding those decisions.
What is your position on the performance of CPS CEO Pedro Martinez?
Yes, I would vote to keep him. I think overall he has been an effective CEO helping guide our pandemic recovery. He has been working alongside his staff to center equity in decision-making. I also appreciate that he is working to be fiscally responsible and did not take out the high-interest loan.
Which of his policies do you support/oppose?
- I support the goals in the five-year plan to ensure every student has access to a well-rounded education—including art, music, and sports—at their neighborhood school.
- I am committed to fully funding selective enrollment and magnet schools.
- I endorse expanding dual language programs and increasing multilingual opportunities for students.
- I back initiatives to increase the percentage of high school graduates earning advanced course credits and career credentials.
I believe in empowering principals to make decisions that best support their school communities. I will be vigilant in ensuring district policies do not undermine their autonomy.
I oppose the high-interest loan.
What is your position on him keeping/losing his job?
I would vote to keep him.
How would you improve the performance of CPS for its students?
My top investment priority is ensuring we are directing resources to create the conditions for all students to achieve grade-level mastery in reading and math. In 2023, only 31% of CPS elementary students met grade-level expectations in reading, and just 19% did so in math. I would prioritize expanding high-quality, evidence-based literacy and numeracy programs and support research-backed interventions tailored to meet the specific needs of each student, including ELLs and students with disabilities.
This approach could also include reducing class sizes in early grades, increasing specialized instructional support, and enhancing professional development for educators.
Success will be measured by a significant increase in the percentage of students meeting grade-level benchmarks, aiming for at least 75% proficiency by third grade, with regular progress monitoring to ensure that every student, regardless of their needs, is on track.
District 4:
What option(s) do you support to close the Chicago Public Schools deficit?
To address CPS's budget challenges, I would start by advocating for an independent audit of the district's $10 billion budget. Transparency is key to ensuring that every dollar is being used wisely. Beyond that, I'd look toward innovative solutions, like forming strategic partnerships with major corporations based right here in Chicago. Imagine the potential if companies like Google, Microsoft, and the more than 30 other Fortune 500 companies headquartered in our city joined forces with CPS. These companies could offer not just financial support but also invaluable resources and real-world opportunities for our students. I've seen this kind of collaboration in action when Lettuce Entertain You partnered with my 3rd-grade class at Hartigan Elementary—sponsoring holiday gifts, a downtown trip, and a special Christmas lunch. Partnerships like these could help bridge funding gaps while enriching the educational experience. Let's build bridges between the business world and our schools to create a brighter future for Chicago's students.
What Chicago Teachers Union contract demands are you in/not in support of as the city renegotiates the teachers' contract?
I support any policies that focus on student outcomes, whether that is smaller class sizes, more support for different types of learners, or supporting migrant families. I want to move towards a more stable and transparent system for CTU negotiations.
What is your position on the performance of CPS CEO Pedro Martinez?
I support CEO Pedro Martinez. He has always prioritized students and families, and his efforts to implement a new 5 year strategic plan ensures that student success is a top priority. Forcing out CEO Martinez in the middle of budget season and contract negotiations raises serious concerns. Our schools need stability and clear-eyed leadership, not chaos.
Which of his policies do you support/oppose?
I support Pedro Martinez's efforts to reject the high-interest short-term loan that Mayor Johnson and the Chicago Teachers Union are pushing. It is reckless and has no direct benefit to students' success and student outcomes.
What is your position on him keeping/losing his job?
Forcing out CEO Martinez in the middle of budget season and contract negotiations raises serious concerns. Our schools need stability and clear-eyed leadership, not chaos—and certainly not a short-term, high-interest loan. It does a disservice to CPS students and citizens to take such action without cause, and could be costly.
How would you improve the performance of CPS for its students?
As an elected board member, my first step will be a thorough review of how the district's funds are currently being allocated and their impact on student outcomes. We must evaluate which investments are driving student success and where improvements can be made. I will focus on identifying alternative funding sources to address budget challenges, aiming to reduce our reliance on property taxes. This approach will help to balance funding inequities without taking away resources from schools that are already using them effectively. This is key to improving the performance of CPS.
Additionally, prioritizing students' mental health is essential. I will advocate for schools to set up peer support groups and ensure that behavioral specialists, social workers, restorative practices coordinators, and other professionals are readily available to support students' well-being and mediate conflicts.
With eight years of experience as a Family and Community Engagement Specialist at CPS, I understand the importance of meaningful engagement with parents and the community. I will actively listen to stakeholders, including Local School Council (LSC) members, and invite them to board meetings before policies are crafted. By involving student and parent voices, I will ensure that our policies reflect the needs and priorities of the entire CPS community, which will improve student experience in Chicago schools.
What option(s) do you support to close the Chicago Public Schools deficit?
CPS (and by extension, the City of Chicago) can only solve the current crises through consolidating empty schools and pension reform. That's a mathematical fact. Solutions that are often discussed – an audit, raiding TIF funds, asking Springfield lawmakers to give the City and CPS more funding – only delay an inevitable reckoning. We need to understand that the current budget crises that CPS and the City of Chicago both confront are the result of political dysfunction and a complete inability or unwillingness to have grown-up conversations about our budgets.
CPS maintains 18 schools, including 12 high schools, that were less than 20 percent utilized in the previous academic year. 161 CPS schools were less than 50 percent utilized. The most empty schools are deeply segregated; of the 12 most disenrolled high schools, only one school last year served a white student. Test scores at these 12 high schools are horrific. One percent of students at these 12 schools tested at grade level in math last academic year, according to public data. The average age of the main building of the 12 most disenrolled high schools is 88 years old.
Of course, we need to move forward with school consolidation. It is deeply irresponsible to maintain segregated, underperforming, and empty schools. As representative of the 4th District, I'll advocate for a standing committee, composed of community leaders, education scholars, CPS teachers, and CPS families to provide the CPS Board with recommendations for a process for consolidating disenrolled schools -- the recommendations would include a plan to repurpose buildings -- which the Board would then vote up or down without the ability to remove a school from the closure list. (This is a process similar to the process that the U.S. Congress uses to determine which U.S. military installations should close.) I am not for repeating the "rip the band-aid off" process that governed the 2013 round of school closings. Any school closure must happen over several years so as to minimize disruption for families. We can do what we did with Englewood STEM High School: Involve the community in consolidating schools into new buildings that better serve kids.
But to balance our budgets, we cannot simply consolidate schools.
After the Illinois Supreme Court struck down the 2013 pension reform bill, we had a real opportunity to reset our politics, find compromise, and do what they have done in Rhode Island and Arizona -- that is, make modest reforms to public sector
pensions that would allow us to take care of our retirees and make needed investments in our people. We could have, and still could, introduce a constitutional amendment to allow for pension reform paired with a progressive income tax. It would be outside of my formal role as a member of the CPS Board, but I will use my voice to stand up for this "grand bargain."
What Chicago Teachers Union contract demands are you in/not in support of as the city renegotiates the teachers' contract?
o Chicago teachers are, rightly, among the very most well-compensated public-school educators in the United States, adjusting for the cost of living. If elected to serve on the CPS Board, I will fight to keep it that way. But we cannot afford a 9 percent pay increase. We cannot afford a pay increase that extends well beyond inflation. As is well understood, CPS already confronts a $505 million structural deficit. CPS bonds are junk-rated, with about $800 million spent last fiscal year to service long-term debt. Clearly, this is no time for a 9 percent pay increase or anything remotely close.
The Chicago Teachers Union has fought for mental health support for their members. That is a reasonable demand that I would support as elected member of the CPS Board. However, we do need to have some straight talk about chronic absenteeism among teachers, which reached 43 percent last academic year. I believe the teachers' contract should include a provision triggering a CPS review if a teacher misses more than 10 days of school in an academic year, with potential financial penalties if absences are found to be without sufficient justification.
What is your position on the performance of CPS CEO Pedro Martinez?
Mr. Martinez has served our city honorably and competently.
Which of his policies do you support/oppose?
I commend Mr. Martinez for opposing the mayor's massive payday loan scheme, even at the risk of losing his job.
Yet I am concerned Mr. Martinez does not understand the scale of the budget challenges he confronts. Mr. Martinez has said that "not on my watch" will any school close, and freely signed off on a moratorium delaying any school closures for the next two years. This suggests that, under his leadership, we will continue to support and pay for deeply segregated, underperforming schools that are more than 80 percent empty.
What is your position on him keeping/losing his job?
Despite disagreements, I would gladly vote to extend his term if elected to represent District 4.
How would you improve the performance of CPS for its students?
I fundamentally believe that we best support student achievement through building environments that merge our many communities together in modern, fully enrolled classrooms. After we deal with the long-term drivers of our structural deficit, I have proposed that CPS issue a $1 billion bond to build 20 new schools that merge as many as 60 old and disenrolled schools, built at the borders of racially identifiable neighborhoods to maximize racial integration in new school buildings.
I believe we need to make short-term investments in tutoring to get students back on track from the COVID-19 learning losses they suffered. The University of Chicago's Education Lab has supported a program that provides tutoring for as little as $500 a student – we can look to expand and even scale that kind of support.
I believe that we need to make certain every school has at least one teacher trained in phonics-based instruction for kids learning to read, and CPS should be providing additional remedial instruction for kids who have not demonstrated an ability to read before passing the third grade.
Finally, I believe that CPS should follow the lead of peers, including the entire State of California, in banning cell phones during school hours. Like many parents, I've grown increasingly alarmed by a clear trend, dating back to 2007, that kids are having increasing trouble maintaining focus. The iPhone was introduced to the commercial market in 2007, and social media began rising in popularity around that time as well. We need our kids to focus on school, and removing cell phones from their hands will help.
What option(s) do you support to close the Chicago Public Schools deficit?
1) Merge the Chicago Teachers Pension Fund with the States TRS. If The State of Illinois took responsibility for this obligation in Chicago, as they do for every other district in the state, the deficit would be eliminated.
What Chicago Teachers Union contract demands are you in/not in support of as the city renegotiates the teachers' contract?
2) Some Cost of living raise is necessary. The rest is politics & policy masquerading as labor negotiations.
What is your position on the performance of CPS CEO Pedro Martinez?
3) Pedro Martinez is doing a good job under very difficult circumstances.
Which of his policies do you support/oppose?
4) His efforts to increase student academic performance is commendable.
What is your position on him keeping/losing his job?
5) Keep him.
How would you improve the performance of CPS for its students?
6) Create a city wide program to focus on ensuring that every third grader is a reader.
District 10:
What option(s) do you support to close the Chicago Public Schools deficit?
We need to address both revenue and expense strategies to address our deficit. We need to reallocate TIF funds and partner with other districts for the state funding owed. We also need to reduce expenditures in central office and consulting contracts. We need a forensic audit to determine what programs and expenditures beyond the 5.5 billion we spend on teachers, school leaders, and school-based staff are not producing learning outcomes for students.
What Chicago Teachers Union contract demands are you in/not in support of as the city renegotiates the teachers' contract?
This is not a helpful framing of the issue. Effective contract negotiation is about focusing on interests and values. Specific demands are nuanced and evolve over the course of a negotiation.
I look forward to working with the CTU to develop a contract that treats our educators fairly, provides them the resources and support they need to do their jobs collaboratively, and ensures we advance equity and excellence for each child and each neighborhood. I know we can do this in a way that does not bankrupt our city or kick the responsibility to future generations.
What is your position on the performance of CPS CEO Pedro Martinez?
CEO Martinez has met the terms of his contract. It is the board's responsibility to provide clearer performance metrics and to follow up on progress. We cannot evaluate CEO Martinez's performance because the board has not done its job.
Which of his policies do you support/oppose?
CEO Martinez does not have policies. His job is to implement and advise on the policy directives of the Board. I agree with his pushback on the mayor's effort to take on high interest payday loans. What I most appreciate about CEO Martinez is that his leadership team is full of talented, long-term CPS educators who have the knowledge and skills to deliver on our promises to our children.
What is your position on him keeping/losing his job?
CEO Martinez has met the terms of his contract. Unless he does something illegal or that harms children, he should not be removed mid-school year as that is highly disruptive to learning across the district. At the next contract cycle the board must consider the skills and values needed to implement our new strategic plan and determine if CEO Martinez's skills match what we need for that next level of work.
How would you improve the performance of CPS for its students?
The board needs to become more transparent. We need to invest in our school leaders, teachers, and local school councils. We need to build the structures and systems of humane performance management so that we can learn and improve as an organization while working from the same set of data.