CPS laying off 220 teachers, 498 support staffers

District officials say they’re “confident that the majority of teachers” will be re-hired to other full-time positions.

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Chicago Public Schools headquarters, 42 W. Madison St.

Chicago Public Schools headquarters, 42 W. Madison St.

Mitchell Armentrout/Sun-Times

Chicago Public Schools officials on Friday began notifying 220 teachers and 498 support staffers that they’ll lose their jobs at the end of the school year.

The district says it expects most of those employees to eventually be re-hired to full-time positions elsewhere in CPS after they’re laid off next month, as part of the district’s “annual staff adjustment” process.

The staffing shuffle happens each year as principals across the district eliminate positions in response to declining enrollment, shifting demographics, program changes, and other issues.

“With the district on increasingly stable financial footing, CPS is conducting the yearly staffing adjustment process earlier than ever, which will provide principals more time to fill the nearly 700 additional teaching and staff positions that will be supporting schools next year,” CPS spokeswoman Emily Bolton said in a statement.

In 2013, a whopping 2,239 teachers — nearly 10 percent of CPS educators — were laid off at the end of the school year, as CPS faced a historic $1 billion budget deficit. A new school funding formula passed by state lawmakers in 2017 has helped funnel more money to the district.

The Chicago Teachers Union slammed this year’s job cuts, which CPS noted are “among the lowest number of teacher impacts” since 2009.

“It simply makes no sense that as CPS’ budget is growing, it’s providing less funding for staffing and classrooms at schools who need these supports,” CTU President Jesse Sharkey said in a statement. ”This is a slap in the face of the people of Chicago, who voted for equity and educational justice for our schools this spring, not more cuts and austerity.”

Sharkey said the union would “fight for every member impacted by these layoffs — at the bargaining table, in Springfield and the City Council, and if necessary on the picket lines this fall.” Contract talks have been ongoing for months; the current CTU deal expires June 30.

The 220 teacher layoffs are 1.1% of the district’s 20,949 teachers. That’s up from last year’s decade-low layoffs, when 156 teachers and 382 support staffers were let go. About two-thirds of those teachers were re-hired full-time; another 15 percent returned as substitutes.

The 498 laid-off support staffers make up 4.8 percent of the district’s paraprofessionals and education support professionals.

CPS teacher and support staff layoffs since 2009

CPS teacher and support staff layoffs since 2009

Chicago Public Schools

Hardest hit was Beasley Academic Center in Washington Park, with five teachers and nine support staffers laid off.

Three schools lost nine positions each: Julian High School in Washington Heights (four teachers, five support staffers), TEAM Englewood Community Academy (three teachers, five support staffers) and Steinmetz College Prep in Belmont Cragin (nine support staffers).

See how your school was affected:

There were no teacher layoffs this year at 387 of the city’s 513 CPS-run schools — about three quarters of the district.

CPS will be hiring for 1,600 open positions for next school year, including about 700 more teaching and support positions than this year.

“The number of positions available far exceeds the number of impacted teachers and staff, and consistent with previous years, we are confident that the majority of teachers will find new full-time positions in CPS schools,” Bolton said.

The first of several citywide CPS job fairs is scheduled for June 25.

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