Janice Jackson joins Dick Durbin advocating for more federal funds for CPS amid pandemic

Chicago Public Schools CEO Janice Jackson joined Sen. Dick Durbin Friday to support a Democrat-led bill that could provide billions of dollars in funding to school districts across the country, including CPS.

“Responding to this pandemic can’t be left to local and state government officials, which is why we appreciate Sen. Durbin’s efforts to ensure we have the resources we need to open schools safely and educate our children,” Jackson said at a news conference outside Little Village Academy on the West Side.

The Coronavirus Child Care and Education Relief Act was introduced in late June, but has not yet progressed out of the Senate.

The proposal calls for $430 billion for education, including $175 billion for K-12 schools.

It isn’t clear how much would be allocated for Chicago schools. But Durbin said, “We are going to take what we can get where we can get it. I want to get that number up as high as possible.”

Jackson said she would like CPS to get at least $205 million — the amount it received from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES) — or more.

“In order to balance our budget, we do need additional support from the federal government,” Jackson said. “Those additional resources are going to be the difference between what kind of supports we can put in place to ensure that students are safe when they return in the fall.”

CPS has not finalized its budget, although budgets have been distributed to individuals schools, said Jackson.

Jackson Friday also spoke about reopening plans and how CPS officials have been reviewing the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s latest guidelines for schools.

“Our plan will be guided by science,” the schools CEO said.

The current plan calls for most students to return to school for two days a week. The plan originally called for 11th and 12th graders to do online classes only, but Jackson earlier this week said the district was rethinking that portion of the plan.

Elvia Malagón’s reporting on social justice and income inequality is made possible by a grant from the Chicago Community Trust.