This story was reported and published in collaboration with WBEZ, the Chicago Sun-Times, and Block Club Chicago, a nonprofit newsroom covering Chicago’s diverse neighborhoods. Stay informed with Chalkbeat Chicago’s newsletter, WBEZ and the Sun-Times’ education newsletter, and Block Club Chicago’s newsletters.
The two women vying to represent Chicago’s Northwest Side are no strangers to politics — one ran for school board in 2024 and the other has run campaigns or worked for other elected officials for more than 15 years.
Michelle Pierre lost by a thin margin in 2024, which was her first time running for office after spending more than 25 years working in education as a teacher, principal, district administrator, and leadership coach. Claudia Peralta is making her debut as a candidate, but has worked with multiple politicians on the Northwest Side, including U.S. Rep. Delia Ramirez.
District 1b is home to 20 Chicago public schools, which is among the fewest of all the school board voting districts. Families here choose their neighborhood elementary schools at a higher rate than in other parts of the city.
This matchup isn’t so much about individual policies as it is about differing strategies for how to govern as a Chicago school board member.
Pierre is metrics-driven, weighing district financial decisions against their return on investment for students bettering their academic outcomes. Peralta is rooted in political savvy and using government relationships to secure the resources Chicago Public Schools needs for students to thrive. District 1b voters will ultimately choose which style they want to see prioritized.
The winner will replace Jennifer Custer, who has served the past two years and ran for school board president before dropping out of the race in August.
Peralta has seen the inner workings of Chicago Public Schools from a few vantage points, including as a CPS student.
Peralta moved from Ecuador to Chicago when she was 12. She spent her teenage years in Logan Square and graduated from Prosser Career Academy in Belmont Cragin. Amid the Trump administration’s heightened immigration enforcement, Peralta said she can contribute to the board of education her firsthand perspective as an English-learning immigrant student.
“I’m learning that the moment we’re living in requires that we step up and that we face our fears,” she said. “I’m ready to fight and ensure that our children get the resources they deserve.”
One of those fears was running for office. For almost a decade, Peralta has worked behind the scenes on campaigns and in advocacy. She currently serves as U.S. Rep. Delia Ramirez’ district director. Before that, she was state Rep. Lindsey LaPointe’s chief of staff and coordinated programs for the Illinois Coalition For Immigrant and Refugee Rights. Both Ramirez and LaPointe’s districts include parts of the Northwest Side. As a parent, Peralta served on the Carl Von Linné Elementary Local School Council.
Of the skills she’s learned from those roles, Peralta said knowing how to operate across different levels of government is a major asset, especially when it comes to funding.
Peralta remains firm that addressing CPS’ budget deficit shouldn’t come at the expense of educators’ livelihoods — a cause championed by the Chicago Teachers Union and the Service Employees International Union Illinois State Council. Both organizations have endorsed Peralta and as of mid-September, SEIU had contributed to her campaign. She’s also collected individual contributions through events such as her World Cup final campaign fundraiser in July, which had about 50 attendees.
“The amount of support — it shows that I have been a part of the community for many years,” Peralta said. “People know my worth.”
Read Peralta’s full questionnaire.
If her narrow defeat for school board in 2024 confirmed anything, Pierre said, it’s that her campaign platform resonated with a large share of voters. This time, she’s trying to capitalize on that by getting her message out quicker and securing more support from local leaders.
“I thought it was not a political race. I thought it was just the Chicago school board,” Pierre said of her first time running. “Then I learned very quickly, everything is very political.”
Pierre sees herself as a candidate outside the partisan fray. But her campaign is also supported by three special interest groups. Those are the Illinois Network of Charter Schools, which advocates on behalf of publicly funded, independently run charter schools, and The Urban Center, a centrist political organization that advocates for school choice across public and private schools. The third is the Common Ground Collective, an anti-CTU political action committee that is heavily funded by billionaire Michael Sacks and says it aims to engage voters around “effective progressive policies.” Pierre is endorsed by both The Urban Center and The Common Ground Collective.
Those goals feed into her overarching message: Chicago’s children deserve a high-quality education, whether that be in neighborhood schools, charter schools, or magnet programs.
Pierre points to her extensive background in education as evidence that she can get the job done.
She worked as a teacher and a principal for several years in New York and Washington, D.C., before becoming chief academic officer of Cleveland Metropolitan School District for six years. Since moving to Chicago almost a decade ago, Pierre has held a leadership role at LEARN Charter Network and now works in a senior role at New Leaders, an organization offering professional development for education leaders.
But Pierre said her children are her primary motivation for running. She served as a parent on the Local School Council at Ogden International School of Chicago. Now, her youngest daughter is a recent graduate of the Chicago High School for the Arts.
“I fought for her every single day,” Pierre told supporters at her campaign kickoff in Portage Park. “I believe in all 300,000 kids, and I will fight for them every single day.”
Read Pierre’s full questionnaire.
Makiya Seminera is a reporter covering how the state and federal government affect education in Chicago and across Illinois. Contact Makiya at mseminera@chalkbeat.org.