Reema Amin

Reema Amin

Reporter, Chalkbeat Chicago

Reema Amin covers Chicago public schools. She previously covered New York City public schools for Chalkbeat New York from 2018 to 2023. Before Chalkbeat, she covered city and state government for the Daily Press in Virginia’s Hampton Roads region and was a breaking news reporter at the Chicago Sun-Times. Reema received a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and a master’s degree in public affairs journalism from Columbia College Chicago.

After a rash of ICE appearances and arrests, labor leaders and elected officials sharply criticized the federal government’s immigration actions.

More than 24,000 kids transferred schools within CPS last school year. Chalkbeat Chicago is interested in hearing more about why students transfer.

Many students and union officials asked the school board for help to prevent a possible midyear closure of the South Side high school.

Enrollment declined among most student groups, including Black and Hispanic students, as well as those learning English as a new language and those who live in temporary housing.

The search firm leading the hunt for Chicago’s next schools chief said more than 85 candidates applied. About 20 will soon interview with school board members and a source says interim CEO Macquline King is applying.

The overhaul is aimed at saving money and directing more money directly to schools. Some sources told Chalkbeat a new structure that aligns with Chicago’s school board electoral districts would replace the current network structure.

A new 21-member, partly-elected school board has navigated most of its core functions: picking a leader, approving contracts, and balancing a budget. Interviews with more than a dozen elected and appointed members provide a window into how this experiment in Chicago democracy is going so far.

The move comes two months after the school’s contract was renewed by the Chicago Board of Education and two years after it unveiled plans for a $22 million renovation.

The district is proposing changes that would require employees to give more notice before taking religious holidays and would include explicit language allowing the district to fire employees who are found abusing sick days.