Chicago Public Schools unveiled a budget for the looming school year that closes a $734 million budget gap, though it relies on city tax dollars it hasn’t received yet.
Officials said the spending plan for the 2025-26 school year that’s expected to be unveiled Wednesday will not include a $175 million
Principals are receiving a 4% cost-of-living increase for this past school year under the new contract.
Mayor Brandon Johnson, as well as CPS and Chicago Teachers Union officials, hailed the initiative’s expansion even as they acknowledged the fiscal pressures that could endanger it.
In a note to families, a school district official detailed how the district’s belt-tightening could be felt day-to-day at schools.
The district is changing how it assigns staff serving students with disabilities as labor unions voice concerns.
The $734 million funding gap assumes the district will reimburse the city for a pension payment that covers school district and city workers.
With a new interim CEO, the school district must close a $529 million deficit
Outgoing CPS CEO Pedro Martinez said he underestimated how hard it would be to convince Mayor Brandon Johnson to release money collected in tax-increment-financing districts.
Declining school enrollment has left 30% of Chicago public schools at least half-empty. The city’s failure to address this problem has come at a high cost to the district — and its students.