Dear CPS Partners,
As part of our ongoing commitment to transparency and partnership, we want to provide you with a summary of our monthly Chicago Board of Education meeting. Our goal is to keep you informed about the key moments, decisions, and discussions that shape our district’s priorities and ensure that you have timely insight into how these conversations connect to our shared work on behalf of students.
Thank you for your continued partnership and support of Chicago Public Schools. We remain committed to keeping you informed and working together in service of our students, families, and communities.
With gratitude,
Dr. Macquline King
Superintendent/CEO
Chicago Public Schools
Summary of the August 27, 2026 Chicago Board of Education Meeting:
Summary of Remarks from Superintendent/CEO Dr. Macquline King
Back To School
Dr. King reported a positive start to the school year and recapped her visit to several CPS schools this week. Dr. King thanked crossing guards and Safe Passage Workers, the District’s transportation team, teachers, special education staff, and school leaders for supporting a successful return to school.
Here are a few key facts from her remarks:
- CPS began the school year with a 1.6 percent teacher vacancy rate on the first day — the lowest vacancy rate in recent history, down from 2.46 percent the previous year.
- CPS’ special education teacher vacancy rate is also below 2 percent, as the District added over 1,000 positions this year to support students with disabilities.
- For the first time in recent memory, every student assigned to a CPS special education cluster program had a classroom on the first day, thanks to CPS’ recent addition of 61 new cluster classrooms.
- The CPS transportation team successfully routed 12,637 students by the first day of school, a 16.76 percent increase over the previous year.
- Hub Stops were operational on day one, while CTA and Metra provided free rides on the first day, and Chicago students now pay just 75 cents per CTA ride at any time of year.
- Dr. King highlighted this week’s Chicago Tribune story featuring Edward Gardner, a former Special Education Classroom Assistant who became a certified teacher through CPS’s paid teacher residency program.
Supporting Twain and Kinzie Elementaries
Dr. King acknowledged the recent tragedy at Twain Elementary and the facilities issues at Kinzie Elementary, praising families, staff, school leaders, district leaders and partners for their work to support these school communities — an example of everyone coming together as “One CPS.”
Amended Budget and Additional State Funding
Dr. King spoke about the district’s implementation of the Board’s recent vote to amend the CPS budget to include $150 million in anticipated state revenue. Dr. King spoke about the student-centered process to restore positions, working to find alignment between principals looking to bring back positions and staff looking to return to CPS.
Dr. King also outlined CPS’ continued efforts to secure sustainable funding from the state, acknowledging that CPS is only funded at 70 percent of the state’s adequacy target, down from 73 percent last year and 79 percent the year before.
Dr. King spoke about her four visits to Springfield already this year, her recent briefing of Chicago delegation members, and spoke about the District’s ongoing partnership with other school districts, Advance Illinois, and the Illinois Association of School Boards.
Dr. King also referenced partnership at the City level around securing additional TIF surplus revenue, and working with the County to secure property tax revenue in a timely manner.
Chicago Arts High School
Dr. King also provided an update on the transition from ChiArts to Chicago Arts High School. After the ChiArts Board voted to close the school, CPS underwent what Dr. King called a “herculean task” of creating a new school in its place.
The Chicago Arts High School opened this week with 100 percent of students having complete schedules on Day 1, a major improvement from the previous model. The school now operates a nine-period day from 8:10 a.m. to 4:20 p.m., with rigorous academic offerings including 8 advanced placement courses, and preserving the previous school’s pre-professional arts instruction across five conservatories - the same as before!-: Creative Writing, Dance, Music, Theatre, and Visual Art. Staffing at the new school was also strong on Day 1, with 37 of 38 teacher positions, all 25 support positions, and 18 of 20 resident artist positions filled.
In response to limitations identified with the previous model, CPS identified more than 200 students who are off track for graduation because of insufficient core instruction. CPS is providing additional support to help grades 10-12, but especially seniors, to graduate on time.
Dr. King credited District leaders, staff, Principal Dr. Casey Fuess, in-school staff, and especially students and families for making the transition successful.
Honoring Excellence
Chief Education Officer Dr. Karime Asaf introduced Acting Chief Schools Officer Jeff Mosley to recognize our hardworking and dedicated Network Chiefs. These dedicated professionals perform so many vital roles in service of our schools and students, including:
- Leadership & Executive Coaching: Delivering strategic direction, administrative support, and coaching to build school principals' instructional leadership and school management capacities.
- Instructional & Academic Support: Allocating content experts, instructional supports, and coherent academic frameworks aligned with district goals to improve classroom teaching and learning outcomes.
- Data-Informed Decision-Making: Conducting root-cause analyses, reviewing performance data, and tracking work plans to drive continuous, measurable improvement in student achievement.
- Holistic School Needs Assessment: Monitoring academic, social-emotional learning, school climate and culture, attendance, and graduation metrics across all network schools.
- Operational & Emergency Assistance: Liaising with Central Office Support Centers to oversee operational compliance, resolve open issues, and deliver immediate ad hoc support during emergencies or escalated inquiries—freeing up principal time to focus on instruction.
- Resource & Fiscal Management: Ensuring equitable allocation of district resources and managing team operations with fiscal responsibility.
- Human Capital & Talent Development: Partnering with the Talent Office to identify, recruit, develop, and retain high-quality principal candidates and network support team members.
- District Communication & Alignment: Maintaining clear communication channels to keep school leaders informed, enhancing cross-departmental collaboration, and representing school needs on district committees.
Network Chiefs Dr. Julie McGlade (Network 1) and Devon LaRosa (Network 16) offered additional comments about the work that Network Chiefs do to support schools.
Operations Update
Chief Operating Officer Charles Mayfield recapped work performed over the summer by the operations team, including over 200 construction and facilities improvement projects, deep-cleaning of schools ahead of the new year, and dozens of paid student internships from IT to facilities to support the work of the District while giving students hands-on, real-world experience giving back to their schools and communities.
Key Leadership Appointment
The Chicago Board of Education approved the appointment of Dr. Barbara Suplit as Chief of the Office of Student Health and Wellness (OSHW), a role that strengthens Chicago Public Schools' (CPS) commitment to student health, wellness, and health equity. As the Chief of OSHW, Dr. Suplit will lead efforts to advance District-wide initiatives to ensure greater access to health and wellness measures, especially for our most vulnerable students, and provide consistent support when responding to student health issues. Dr. Suplit brings extensive clinical and administrative leadership experience, as well as a demonstrated commitment to advancing equitable outcomes for children and families across diverse communities.
Keeping Schools Safe Amid Federal Activity
As students return to school, CPS is reminding families and staff of everything CPS is doing to ensure safety amid increased federal activity, and highlighting critical resources to assist immigrant families and communities.
Please read our most recent communication to families here, and please visit cps.edu/immigration for complete information.
Keep Up With CPS
For more on everything happening at CPS, please bookmark cps.edu/media to see the latest community updates, blog posts, and press releases from CPS.
We also encourage you to follow us on social media — on Facebook at Chicago Public Schools, at @chipubschools on X and Instagram, and at youtube.com/@ChiPubSchools.