Dear Families, 

I am excited to share the news that CPS and the Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) have reached an agreement to bring staff and students back into schools for in-person learning. All staff will be reporting to schools tomorrow, Tuesday, January 11, and in-person classes will resume for all CPS students on Wednesday, January 12. 

Please do not plan to send your children to school tomorrow - Tuesday, January 11 - unless your principal has confirmed that in-person activities will take place. We will share more information on the agreement soon. 

In addition to children returning to school on Wednesday, the following services will also be available:

• Food Service
• Athletics
• After-School Activities
• Before and After-Care (for those schools that offer this service)
• Transportation
• COVID-19 Testing and Vaccination Events 

As always, students should not come to school if they are not feeling well or are showing any symptoms of COVID-19. And those children who are still in quarantine due to testing positive or being a close contact should not return to school until their quarantine time is complete.

We are profoundly grateful for your patience and partnership throughout this challenging time and look forward to welcoming all of your children safely back to class on Wednesday, January 12. Our goal moving forward will be to focus all of our attention on providing students with the rigorous, high-quality education they deserve while continuing to help them navigate safely through the pandemic. 

Sincerely,

Pedro Martinez
Chief Executive Officer
Chicago Public Schools

Dear Families,

Out of fairness and consideration for families who need to prepare, we are writing to inform you that, at this time, classes will remain canceled for all CPS students on Monday, January 10. Although we have been negotiating hard throughout the day, there has not been sufficient progress for us to predict a return to class tomorrow. We will continue to negotiate through the night and will provide an update if we have made substantial progress.

Offering In-Person Activities to Students Safely

A small number of schools are planning to offer in-person activities for students on Monday, this depends on several factors, including the number of staff that each school has reporting to work and what steps must be taken to ensure student safety.

CPS has set guidelines on when it may be appropriate for individual schools to offer in-person activities based on staffing levels at the school. While staffing levels at this time are outside of the control of each school, principals can consider in-person opportunities if they meet minimum staffing levels, and receive approval from their Network Chief. Our commitment to all families is that current health and safety protocols, including universal masking, social distancing, and good hand hygiene, will continue to be implemented as part of any in-person activities being offered at schools.  

Please do not plan to send your child to school on Monday unless their principal tells you that students can come to school for in-person activities. That said, all scheduled COVID-19 testing will continue in our schools. 

We appreciate your patience and will continue providing you with updates as soon as they become available. Again, classes are canceled for all students on Monday, January 10. Please do not plan to send your child to school UNLESS their principal tells you that there will be in-person learning or activities.

Sincerely,

Pedro Martinez
Chief Executive Officer
Chicago Public Schools

Dear Parents and Members of our CPS Community,

As we continue to work hard to get a deal with the Chicago Teachers Union that will allow our children to return to in-person learning as soon as possible, we wanted to share with you some key facts to keep in mind:

Schools Are Safe

Why do we keep saying schools are safe?  Because of these key facts:

In Chicago, research has shown that students learning in person and staff teaching in person were less likely to get COVID than the community at-large. That’s because the investments and protocols in our schools provide more protection than can be found in the community.

There has not been evidence of widespread in-school spread of COVID.  Among the nearly 370,000 students and staff in our 600-plus schools, there were only 53 instances of outbreaks in the fall, and the average number of people involved in each outbreak was 2.5.  And out of thousands of students who were quarantined because they were a close contact, less than 5% were found to have COVID.

Principals already have the ability to convert a classroom or the whole school to remote learning in response to safety concerns, and have done so when appropriate.  Our proposal to CTU makes these guidelines more explicit to give more certainty to parents, staff, and students.

CPS has invested over $100 million in school and classroom-based mitigations to fight COVID, including:

• New ventilation systems in schools
• Air filters in every classroom where we can check the air quality of every classroom on a weekly basis
• Distribution of thousands of free high-quality masks so that every staff member and student can be masked up; going forward, we will be providing KN95 masks to staff and students who want them 
• Plastic partitions to keep individuals safe
• Constant deep cleaning of schools
• Additional staffing for care rooms
• Additional staffing for contact tracing
• The ability to have a school safety team composed of all parts of the school community so that if any COVID-related issue arises, it can be addressed quickly.

CPS Has a Highly Vaccinated Workforce

Over 92 percent of teachers and staff are vaccinated.  We continue to strongly encourage those who are vaccinated to get their booster shots, which we know provide an excellent defense against severe outcomes from virus-related infections.  For those teachers and staff who simply cannot take the vaccine, CPS has consistently made ADA-compliant accommodations stretching back to last school year.

Weekly Testing Is Available At CPS Schools

CPS offers COVID testing at every school in the system, every week. Teachers have always been able to get tested at our school sites. We will continue to prioritize testing for all students and staff who want it.

Despite the nationwide shortage of tests, the Chicago Department of Public Health (CDPH) has secured additional tests which we will immediately put to use in school-based testing.  And we are grateful that the governor has made available 350,000 additional rapid tests for CPS to purchase. These tests, once received, will support the testing of students or staff who are in the building and may be symptomatic.

In addition to a nationwide shortage of tests, there is also a shortage of staff to administer the tests. CPS is working to add staffing capacity to administer tests. 

There are over 500 nursing-related staff in CPS.  All of them are CTU members.  Currently, only about 60 of these nursing staff are involved in the COVID mitigation work.  That is not nearly enough.  We are asking the CTU to be part of the solution and agree to the participation of nursing and other staff in our efforts to expand testing, garner parental consent for student testing, and increase awareness of the program.

What You Can Do To Make Schools Safer

While we have made good progress on student and family vaccinations, much more needs to be done, especially in this current surge.  Vaccines remain completely free, readily available, safe, and the most important thing you can do to protect both children and adults from serious COVID illness.  To schedule a vaccine appointment or find out more information about vaccines in children and teens, visit cps.edu/vaccinations. CPS runs dozens of vaccine events at schools across the city every week for you to get yourself and your children vaccinated and boosted.

In addition to ongoing vaccination opportunities at CPS schools, you and your children ages 5 and older can be vaccinated at hundreds of locations all over the city.  Check chi.gov/covidvax or vaccines.gov for locations and to make appointments, or call 312-746-4835 for help finding a vaccine or booster, or with questions. At that same number, you can even schedule a free at-home appointment through Protect Chicago At Home, bringing the vaccine to you and your family at a time that is convenient, 7 days a week into the early evening.  

CPS and CDPH are committed to a safe in-person learning environment for all students and staff. Below this message you will find our latest proposal to the CTU. We thank you for your ongoing patience and support as we work through these unprecedented challenges to get students and staff back in the classroom as soon as possible.

Sincerely,

Pedro Martinez
Chief Executive Officer
Chicago Public Schools

Dr. Allison Arwady
Commissioner
Chicago Department of Public Health

Dear Families, 

Classes will remain canceled for all CPS students tomorrow, Friday, January 7, as we continue working to get CTU staff back in our buildings. However, a small number of schools MAY be able to offer in-person activities for students if enough staff are reporting to work. 

You SHOULD NOT plan to send your child to school, unless your child’s principal tells you that students can come to school for in-person activities. 

Our schools are the best, safest place for students to be during this pandemic, and we are working tirelessly to get everyone back in class every day. We will continue working with CTU to resolve this situation and will provide you with ongoing updates as the week continues. 

Again, classes are canceled for all students on Friday, January 7. Please do not plan to send your child to school tomorrow UNLESS your child’s principal tells you that there will be in-person learning or activities.

Sincerely,

Pedro Martinez
Chief Executive Officer
Chicago Public Schools

Dear CPS Families, 

We are writing to you with an important update on in-person learning. Because many Chicago Teachers’ Union (CTU) members have chosen not to report to school buildings, we have made the difficult decision to cancel classes for a second consecutive day. There will be no in-person or remote instruction tomorrow, Thursday, January 6, and parents and caregivers should not plan to send their children to school. All after-school programs, athletic practices, and other school events are also canceled. We apologize for the disruption that the union’s illegal work stoppage is causing for your family. 

CPS is committed to returning students to in-person instruction as soon as possible. In-person instruction is critical for students’ academic, social, and emotional progress, and critical for working families who rely on CPS to care for and educate their children day in and day out. By contrast, we know that remote learning not only places a burden on families, but causes students to suffer academically, socially, and emotionally.

The good news is that many staff members, including many teachers, chose to report to work today for in-person instruction. We have spent the day connecting with CPS principals to determine the level of instruction each school can offer CPS families. Some schools have enough staff reporting to work to return to in-person instruction as soon as Friday, January 7. Other schools have more limited capacity, and may provide learning packets and other materials for students to use during this illegal work stoppage. Your school’s principal will be reaching out to your individual school community regarding what level of instruction they can provide your family. In the meantime, CPS will be working around the clock with principals, staff, and families to return to in-person learning as soon as possible.

As a reminder, take-home breakfasts and lunches will be available at schools from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. for any community member under the age of 18 who is in need of a meal. 

Additionally, families who need childcare options can explore the following resources:

• The Safe Haven Sites listed here are available for childcare. Sites will be open from 8 a.m.–3 p.m. Registration is available on site and a parent or guardian must be present with the child at the time of registration. 
• Chicago Park District field houses will be open during normal operating hours. These facilities will be available to CPS students ages six and older. All Chicago Park District programs will take place as scheduled. For more information on park locations and hours of operation, visit chicagoparkdistrict.com. 
• Chicago Public Library locations are open during normal hours (children must be accompanied by an adult and can’t be left at the library unattended). CPL has grab-and-go kits with activities for children to do in the library or to take home.
• Community Based Organizations throughout the city are offering daytime programs for students.  A list of programs can be found here. This list will be updated as new programs are identified. For more information about programs and how to register, please reach out to the contact - or visit the website - listed.

Thank you for your continued patience and understanding. We will continue to keep you updated throughout the week.

Sincerely, 

Pedro Martinez
Chief Executive Officer
Chicago Public Schools

Dear Families, 

The Chicago Teachers’ Union (CTU) has voted not to report to work tomorrow, therefore classes will be canceled for all CPS students on Wednesday, January 5. We apologize for the late nature of this message given the CTU’s technical difficulties during their vote. There will be no in-person OR remote instruction tomorrow, and parents should not plan to send children to school.

Take-home breakfasts and lunches will be available at schools from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. for any community member under the age of 18 who is in need of a meal. 

Families who need childcare options can explore the following resources:

• The Safe Haven Sites listed here are available for childcare. Sites will be open from 8am - 3pm. Registration is available on site and a parent or guardian must be present with the child at the time of registration. 
• The Chicago Park District fieldhouses will be open during normal operating hours.  These facilities will be available to CPS students ages 6 and older who are in need of accommodations on Wednesday. All Chicago Park District programs will take place as scheduled. For more information on park locations and hours of operation, visit chicagoparkdistrict.com. 

I understand your frustration and deeply regret this interruption to your child’s learning. I also understand that you need certainty about what the coming days will look like for your students. My team and I are working on a plan and will share details with you by the end of the day tomorrow. 

We want our children back in their classrooms as soon as possible and will continue working with the CTU to reach an agreement that addresses their concerns and that is in the best interest of all in our CPS community, especially our children. 

I thank you for your patience and will continue providing you with updates throughout the day tomorrow.

Sincerely,

Pedro Martinez
Chief Executive Officer
Chicago Public Schools