$619M for renovations at 300 schools shows new priority on neighborhood schools, CPS says

Chicago Public Schools says it plans to invest hundreds of millions of dollars in neighborhood schools and make the largest investments ever in pre-K classrooms and “high quality academic programs,” including STEM, International Baccalaureate, and fine and performing arts.

The budget released Thursday invests $619 million in “critical building improvements” at more than 300 schools, the district said. The schools are attended by 161,000 students citywide.

“It’s time for every child in Chicago to receive a quality education, no matter who they are or where they live,” Mayor Lori Lightfoot said at a press conference at Morgan Park High School. “It’s time that we prove to our children, through our schools, that we believe in them, that we support them. And that’s exactly what we’re doing with this announcement today.”

“This budget, which invests in hundreds of neighborhood schools throughout the city, is grounded in the belief that every student in every school deserves access to high-quality academic programs and learning facilities,” said CPS CEO Janice Jackson in a written statement.

The district said it is focusing on renovating neighborhood schools, including fixing roofs and making needed mechanical repairs. The statement said it was making these improvements a priority over constructing new buildings or additions to schools, in contrast to previous years when the “district invested in significant new construction projects that benefited a smaller number of families.”

Among the largest investments in school infrastructure are:

• $25 million to replace the roof and make improvements to the building at Sullivan High School
• $13.5 million for improvements at Reilly Elementary School
• $12 million for roof replacement and other renovations at Morgan Park High School, plus another $10 million for a new turf athletic field at Morgan Park
• $7 million to Earle Elementary School for roof replacement and structural improvements, and $10 million for mechanical system renovations at Earle

The district is also earmarking $120 million for pre-K facilities, including $20 million for classroom conversions at 106 schools for the academic year beginning next month and $100 million for classroom expansion of pre-K seats for the 2020-21 school year.

The budget says 32 schools will get $5 million to expand high-quality programs for 17,000 students.

Schools with low or declining enrollments — which have been hurt by per-pupil funding formulas — will get more money, the district said, via $31 million in “equity grant funding” to 219 schools.

Elementary schools with fewer than 450 students enrolled and high schools with fewer than 600 students will receive $750 and $1,200, respectively, for each student below that threshold. Schools with drastic enrollment loss will receive additional funds, capped at $400,000 total.

All but 57 of those 219 schools will get at least $100,000 — with 11 high schools receiving $400,000. Among the schools getting the most in equity grant funding are Bronzeville High School, which has an enrollment of 113 students, and Dunbar High School, with 327 students.

“These funds will allow schools with low or declining enrollment to provide the instructional programming and supplemental resources and supports that students need to reach their potential,” CPS said.

Sun-Times staff photo

Fact-finder rules on CTU negotiations

Meanwhile, Chicago Teachers Union President Jesse Sharkey said he wants to see promises to reduce class sizes and fill positions in writing.

“What the city is doing, which is to say, ‘Oh, we’re going to do the right thing, we just won’t put it in writing’ — well, we’ve heard that before,” Sharkey said of the need to have the language codified in a contract with the teachers union.

Sharkey, who’d only seen preliminary budget information, held a news conference at CTU headquarters, 1901 W. Carroll Ave., to discuss the budget just hours before Lightfoot shared details at a South Side school. He indicated the budget had a shortfall in Tax Increment Financing funds going toward school funding.

Mitch Dudek / Sun-Times

“The voters elected someone who said they were going to deliver better schools, and the people who are really in the position that have power and influence and the ability to get a legally binding document out of all of those promises, that’s us.

“And we’re going to do what it takes, hopefully we can return a contract ... that gives us everything we need, and if we can’t, we’re going to take a strike authorization vote and we’re going to up the pressure on this city,” he said.

The CTU is in the midst of trying to get those terms written into a multi-year teachers contract in negotiations that are ongoing.

The union and city attorneys met with an independent fact-finder last month to make their cases for their stances in bargaining.

The fact-finder’s report was set to be made public later this month. But a copy of the report obtained by the Sun-Times shows no recommendation was made on the vast majority of issues in contention, including class sizes, sanctuary schools, special education, counselors and staffing.

On contract length, the fact-finder sided with CPS in recommending a five-year deal. The report’s suggestion on wages and employee health contributions was a compromise between the two sides’ proposals, with the fact-finder recommending a 16% raise over five years instead of CPS’ proposed 14% raise over that term. The teachers union had asked for a 15% raise over three years.

Employee contributions to health care, meanwhile, should go up by 1% over the last three years of a five-year deal, the fact-finder’s report said. CPS had proposed raising employee contributions to health care by 1.5% over that time, while the CTU asked to maintain current contributions.

The two sides have until Aug. 26 to reject the findings, at which point the CTU could vote to authorize a strike. Illinois law requires the union wait 30 days after that point before enacting a possible work stoppage, so the earliest the union could strike is Sept. 26.