Chicago school board votes to bail out Acero charter schools, take control of 5 schools in 2026
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Chicago Public Schools CEO Pedro Martinez's job wasn't the only thing on the line at Friday night's Chicago Board of Education meeting. Before deciding whether or not to fire Martinez, the school board unanimously voted to provide the funding needed to keep seven Acero charter schools open next year, before transforming five of them into CPS-run schools starting in the 2026-27 school year.
In October, Acero announced seven of its 15 schools would close at the end of this school year in June, citing a budget deficit, declining enrollment, and increasing costs for personnel and maintenance.
The schools Acero plans to close include Bartolomé de las Casas, 1641 W. 16th St.; Sandra Cisneros, 2744 W. Pershing Rd.; Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz K-12, 7416 N. Ridge Blvd.; Carlos Fuentes, 2345 W. Barry Ave.; Octavio Paz, 2651 W. 23rd St.; Esmeralda Santiago, 2510 W. Cortez St.; and Rufino Tamayo, 5135 S. California Ave.
Approximately 2,000 students and a few hundred staff members would be affected if the campuses were to close.
The planned closings left parents stunned, and Acero parents and teachers have been rallying to try to stop that from happening.
Charter schools such as those run by Acero are privately managed, but publicly funded. While the Chicago Public Schools cannot force the schools to stay open, the Chicago Board of Education unanimously passed a resolution on Friday to cover Acero's budget shortfalls next year and keep all seven schools open for the 2025-26 school year.
Five of those schools – Cisneros, Casas, Fuentes, Tamayo, and Santiago – would be transformed into district-run schools for the 2026-27 school year, while CPS would be tasked with evaluating the viability of also keeping Paz and Cruz open as district-run schools in 2026-27.
CPS has estimated it will cost CPS $3.2 million to keep all seven schools open next year. A presentation from the school district estimated it would then cost $21 million to $28 million to convert all seven schools into district-run schools.
The district's presentation to the school board said keeping the seven Acero schools open also would establish the precedent "that CPS can and will fund charter schools … and bail out charters on the brink of closure."
With the school board's vote to keep the Acero schools open, it will now be up to Martinez – or his successor, if he should be fired – to create a detailed plan to keep the schools open for next school year and turn them into district-run schools the following year.
"Such plans should involve District support for parents and staff to maximize retention of teachers, staff, and students as these schools transition," the approved resolution states.
The resolution also suggests that Acero could risk losing its charter agreement with CPS if it does not cooperate.
"Acero's cooperation in these matters may be considered in whether to renew Acero's Charter Agreement for another term," the resolution states.
The Chicago Teachers Union, which represents Acero teachers, and had called on Martinez and the school board to stop the planned school closings, celebrated the board's vote to bail out Acero.
"The Board of Education's decision to not allow a company flush with cash to put its bondholders above its students is a win for education, stability, and equity in the district," CTU President Stacy Davis Gates said in a statement. "After months of being ignored by Acero and CPS executives, the Board of Education members heard the voices of parents, students, and educators at these schools. It should not have required the outpouring of protest from families and educators or interventions by the Mayor and aldermen for a school district to hold a charter company accountable for its commitment to educating our students."
