Santiago Transition to CPS

About the Transition

This transition follows a February 2025 resolution approved by the Chicago Board of Education that required CPS to transition five schools from the Acero Network to new CPS, District-managed schools by summer 2026. On this site, you'll find important updates, opportunities, and a space to share your voice as it relates to the new Santiago Elementary School opening in July 2026.

Vote for Your School's Design Committee Candidates

The voting window for each transitioning Acero school’s Design Committee has officially launched. All voting will take place electronically via the form linked below. This form serves as the electronic ballot for receiving and tabulating votes for Design Committee member candidates for each Acero school transitioning to CPS management in Summer 2026: Casas, Cisneros, Fuentes, Santiago, and Tamayo.

Submit your voting ballot

Note: If a candidate submitted a candidate interest form and is already a seated member of the Advisory Council, their name is not included on the ballot, as they will automatically be seated on the joint Advisory & Design Leadership Council on January 9, 2026.

As you complete this ballot, please note the following:

Voting opens at 5 p.m. on Thursday, December 18 2025, and closes at 5 p.m. on Wednesday, January 7, 2026.
View a full list of all candidates organized by school.
View all candidate responses to the Design Committee Candidate Interest Form that were received before you cast your ballot. All candidate responses are provided in English and Spanish.
Each voter is allowed to cast a ballot for the school community they are a part of, and should not vote for candidates from another school.
Each voter is allowed to cast ONE (1) ballot only.
Poll Results and selected Design Committee Members will be announced on Friday, January 9th.

School Information
Address	2510 W Cortez St, Chicago, IL 60622
Contact	Phone: 312-455-5410 Fax: 312-455-5411
Current Acero Principal	Melissa Sweazy
Current Acero School Website	es.aceroschools.org
CPS Network Assignment for SY26-27	Network 5 Tiffany Brown, Acting Chief of Schools

Advisory Council Members
Group	Name
Parents	Maria Barajas Josh Cauhorn Jazmin Nicole Echavarri Stephanie Gomez Reyna E. Rodriguez
Staff	Chelsea Bashore Olivia Goldstein
Vacancies (2)	2 Community Representative

Advisory Council & Design Committee Update

In January 2026, the selected members of the Design Committee will join members of the Advisory Council to form the joint Advisory & Design Leadership Council at each transitioning school. This joint group of parents, staff, and community representatives will support the successful transition and incubation process of your school community going forward.

Being led by the newly selected CPS principal, potential workstreams for this joint group include:

Advising on school culture and climate priorities
Identifying needs and concerns during the CPS transition
Reviewing and responding to key district proposals or changes
recommending course offerings, electives, enrichment, and/or other specialized programs and supports for students and families
Defining the student and family learning experiences
Meeting with CPS academic departments to understand program implementation, timeline, and limitations
Helping CPS network chiefs and principals develop and execute effective family and community engagement plans
Helping CPS network chiefs and principals make final decisions, key to school readiness for SY26-27.

The Design Committee Member Selection process launches on Friday, December 5, 2025, and concludes on Friday, January 9, 2026. Key details regarding Design Committee membership selection include:

Democratic-Oriented Process: Given that your school community shared feedback with the District earlier this year that included preferences concerning Advisory Council and Design Committee membership and team size constraints, the District will facilitate a selection process that allows key school stakeholders to decide who will serve on your school’s Design Committee. This ensures a fair, equitable process is facilitated for membership selection.

Design Committee Selection Milestones: Key milestones for the Design Committee Selection Process, including a general timeline, are as follows:

12/5 - 12/16: Design Committee Candidate Interest Form Submission Window. To be added to the ballot, completion of the Candidate Interest Form is mandatory. Please note, current members of the Advisory Council should not complete a Candidate Interest Form as they will automatically be seated on the joint Advisory & Design Leadership Council starting in January 2026.
12/18 - 1/7: Public Posting and Review of Responses from Candidate Interest Forms
12/18 - 1/7: Design Committee Voting Window. The voting window opens at 5 p.m. on December 18, 2025 and closes at 5 p.m. on January 7, 2026.
1/9/26: Poll Results Published and Design Committee Members Announced

Complete the Design Committee Candidate Interest Form.
- You can submit responses in this form in English or Spanish.
- To ensure that your responses are included in the public review ahead of and during the voting window, all candidates should complete and submit this form by 5pm on Tuesday, December 16th.
- To support your school community in making an informed decision about who serves on the Design Committee, it is mandatory that you complete a Candidate Interest Form.
- All candidate responses (both English and Spanish translations) will be posted on your school’s transitions webpage, which is linked on the CPS Acero Transitions Webpage for public review as noted.
Attend the December Community Incubation meeting for your school during the week of December 15th. Register here for the meeting.

Community Incubation Meeting Schedule

Community incubation meetings are an opportunity to learn more about your school's transition to CPS. Meetings are held monthly, in-person at Santiago at 4 p.m. View the full schedule below.

September 15, 2025 (virtual)
October 23, 2025
November 20, 2025 (Principal Candidate Forum)
December 18, 2025
January 29, 2026
February 26, 2026
March 19, 2026
April 23, 2026
May 21, 2026
June 11, 2026

Community Presentations

CPS values your partnership with us as your ideas, advocacy, and feedback will continue to guide our approach and all decision-making as we support your school’s successful transition into the District by the summer of 2026.

Welcome to Santiago’s New Chapter

About the Transition

Vote for Your School's Design Committee Candidates

Advisory Council & Design Committee Update

Community Incubation Meeting Schedule

Community Presentations

Community Incubation Meeting

Listening Forums