Dear CPS Families, Colleagues, and Supporters,
Great work, everyone, on an overall strong first week of school!!
Along with fellow CPS leaders, I traveled from school to school this week, greeting students from Pre-K through 12th grade and talking with educators and families about all we have to look forward to this year. I also want to acknowledge that some of our school communities experienced challenges during this first week. District and Network teams are working alongside them to address the challenges and provide the support needed to move forward.
This is what it means to be One CPS: coming together to support our school communities, so that no school ever faces a challenge alone. Even amid the challenges, there is so much joy in the promise of a new beginning and a new school year. The photos below capture some of that joy and the energy, and sense of possibility that filled our schools this week.
Here’s a look at the joy and energy that filled our schools across the city this first week!
One of my favorite moments of the first week was greeting our Pre-k students as they prepared to step into classrooms for the very first time!
It’s amazing to see how their initial uncertainty is quickly replaced by wonder, curiosity, and joy.
I want to thank everyone across the District whose hard work and dedication helped make a strong start to the school year possible!
Our crossing guards and Safe Passage Workers, who show up every day, rain or shine, to help make sure our students can travel to and from school safely.
Our Nutrition Support Team, which makes sure our students are nourished every day, and our Facilities Team, which keeps our schools safe, warm, and dry.
At the center of it all are our incredible teachers and school leaders, who have thoughtfully prepared welcoming classrooms where students can feel inspired, engaged, and excited to learn each day.
To our families, thank you for choosing Chicago Public Schools and entrusting us with your children. The smiles, energy, and genuine excitement I saw throughout our schools this first week were inspiring, and I look forward to all that we will accomplish together in the year ahead. I look forward to watching that enthusiasm continue to build in the weeks and months ahead!
I want to close this week’s message by sharing a few encouraging highlights from the start of the school year:
- 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.
Once again, thank you to everyone across CPS who has made this first week a success!
Sincerely,
Dr. Macquline King
Chief Executive Officer
Chicago Public Schools
Share Your Good News!
We love highlighting the great things that are happening in our schools, along with the people who are making them happen! Please use the Good News Form to tell us your stories so that we can share them with the District!
- Is there a special event or celebration coming up at your school?
- Is there a school program that you’re particularly proud of?
- What about a member of your school community who deserves to be recognized?
Share your story with us today so that we can feature it through this newsletter, on CPS social media, and even in the news!
Mark Your Calendars!
Now that the school year is underway, be sure to visit cps.edu/calendar for important dates! Here are a few to keep in mind right now:
- September 3: Labor Day (no classes for CPS students)
- September 9: GoCPS application opens for the 2027–28 school year
- September 21: Student Progress Reports distributed for Quarter 1
- September 25: Professional Development Day (no classes for CPS students)
Be sure to also check your school’s website for a school-specific calendar of events!
Important Health News
We are pleased to welcome Dr. Barbara Suplit as our District’s next Chief for the CPS Office of Student Health and Wellness (OSHW). Dr. Suplit’s decades of experience include distinguished roles with Stanford Medicine Children’s Health in Palo Alto, California, and Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital here in Chicago.
We know that a child’s physical and emotional health contributes greatly to their success in school. As such, Dr. Suplit will lead our District’s efforts to expand students’ access to health and wellness resources while providing consistent support when it comes to children’s health issues.
Read more about Dr. Suplit’s extensive background here.
A reminder that all required vaccinations and physical exams for CPS students are due by October 15. Visit cps.edu/vaccines for a list of these requirements.
Throughout the fall, the Chicago Department of Public Health (CDPH) will be providing student vaccines required by CPS at no cost to families. These include the MMR (measles, mumps, and rubella) and varicella (chickenpox), as well as seasonal vaccines for the flu and COVID-19. Please visit the CDPH website for complete details on immunization clinics and upcoming vaccine events.
Keeping Schools Safe Amid Federal Activity
Over the past year, we have seen an escalation of federal activity in Chicago, and we want to remind everyone what CPS is doing to keep schools and students safe.
Please visit cps.edu/immigration for the latest information, including:
- Our procedures and protocols to ensure safety at school
- Tips for staying safe at home and in the community
- Resources available to families and staff, including “Know Your Rights” trainings and mental health supports
Celebrating New Places to Play
It was an exciting first week for two CPS communities, whose students are starting the school year with new places to play!
At Goudy Elementary in Uptown, students are now spending their recess time enjoying a brand new playground!
And at Nightingale Elementary in Gage Park, students are loving not only their new playground, but a new turf field as well!
Hope Chicago: Opening Doors for Multiple Generations
Twelfth-grade students at Farragut, Juarez, Morgan Park, Noble Johnson, and Raby high schools started the year with the amazing news that Hope Chicago is extending its two-generation economic mobility initiative to include the Class of 2027 and their families! This means that all of these high school seniors AND their parents will have the opportunity to earn a college degree or pursue a workforce opportunity at NO COST!!! We are grateful to Hope Chicago for removing barriers to college and career success for thousands of families on Chicago’s South and West Sides!
This Week’s CPS Scoreboard
High school sports are in full swing, with King High School pulling off an impressive win over St. Laurence in week one of the football season! This thrilling 15–14 victory has set the tone for what should be an exciting season for the Jaguars!
King Head Coach Abdullah Asad was also named the Chicago Bears Coach of the Week, and this honor will be recognized during the Bears home game on Sunday, December 6!
Huge congratulations to Julian from Vaughn Occupational High School, who was chosen to represent Team Illinois in the 2026 Special Olympics USA held this past summer in Minnesota. Julian took home two gold medals and one silver medal in Bowling!
CPS SCORE!, the official interscholastic league for students in grades 5–8, will kick off this September, providing skill development and competition in cross country, volleyball, and soccer. Families interested in participating should talk with your school about what programming is available, then sign your students up here.
CPS partner organization Project Love Chicago is excited to announce the launch of ‘The Love League,’ the first officially licensed Jr. NBA and Jr. WNBA league for students in grades K–8! More details can be found here!
Visit CPSAthletics.com and follow us on Instagram @cpsathletics_ for the latest program information, feature stories, season previews, photo galleries, and more!
Save on Back-to-School at Target
Target is making classroom essentials more affordable for teachers! Those educators who are part of the free Target Circle Loyalty Program can access exclusive savings, including 20% off one storewide purchase through September 12. Verify your teacher status in the Target Circle app today!
FREE Admission to Anne Frank The Exhibition
CPS staff can receive FREE tickets to Anne Frank The Exhibition with General Admission to the Griffin Museum of Science and Industry through December 31, 2026 using the promo code LEGACY.
Anne Frank The Exhibition is an immersive, full-scale recreation of the Secret Annex where Anne Frank, her family, and four others lived in hiding during World War II. Griffin MSI is the first museum in the Midwest, and only the second in the U.S., to host this extraordinary exhibition, which also features never-before-seen artifacts from Anne Frank’s life.