This story was originally published by Chalkbeat.\u00a0Sign up for\u00a0Chalkbeat Chicago\u2019s free daily newsletter\u00a0to keep up with the latest news on Chicago Public Schools.<\/p>\n
CHICAGO \u2014 As Chicago Public Schools students return to class this week, families may feel the effects of the district\u2019s belt-tightening over the summer as it worked to\u00a0close a $734 million deficit.<\/p>\n
Even as the first day starts \u2014 Monday for K-12 students and Tuesday for those in pre-K \u2014 the district and Chicago Board of Education have not yet adopted a budget that covers this school year. The board, which\u00a0is already divided on the district\u2019s proposal,\u00a0must legally adopt a budget by Aug. 29, and is expected to vote on a plan Aug. 28.<\/p>\n
Families and kids may also feel the impact of changes related to the\u00a0new Chicago Teachers Union contract,\u00a0including smaller classes and more staff.<\/p>\n
Across the district, Chalkbeat will be watching an array of items, including potential changes to federal policy, the district\u2019s enrollment changes, and the state\u2019s focus on school quality \u2014 and how those impact student learning and the public\u2019s perceptions of schools.<\/p>\n
Here are five things we\u2019re watching this school year.<\/p>\n
After more than a decade of dipping enrollment, Chicago began seeing a slight uptick in the number of kids attending CPS schools \u2014 likely\u00a0due to the influx of thousands of migrant families\u00a0from Central and South American countries.<\/p>\n
Public schools have seen drops in enrollment across the nation for several reasons, including decreasing birth rates. Last year, a\u00a0total of 325,305 students\u00a0attended Chicago Public Schools by the 20th day of school, or the day the district officially counts how many students it\u2019s serving.<\/p>\n
But it\u2019s unclear if enrollment will increase again this year, especially as immigration to the U.S. slows as President Donald Trump\u00a0ramps up immigration enforcement.<\/p>\n
Chicago Public Schools staff are instructed by the district\u00a0not to allow immigration enforcement into their buildings\u00a0unless they have a judicial warrant.<\/p>\n
But advocates worry that Trump\u2019s aggressive deportation goals will have a chilling effect. The president\u2019s policies, they worry, could discourage newcomer kids\u00a0not to attend school\u00a0or even leave the city.<\/p>\n
The state of Illinois is set to implement changes in measuring when students are proficient in core subjects and is reconsidering how it labels schools \u2014 potentially impacting the public\u2019s understanding of how well students are doing.<\/p>\n
The Illinois State Board of Education recently\u00a0approved changes to cut scores\u00a0that determine when a student is proficient in a subject and expects to see an increase in how many students are considered to be learning core subjects well. The changes came after state leaders said the previous cut scores did not reflect the reality of what students were learning or their ability to enter college without remediation courses.<\/p>\n
The state also\u00a0worked with dozens of teachers on collecting feedback\u00a0for potentially changing its own learning standards and benchmarks for how well schools are doing. Chicago Public Schools also rolled out new school accountability dashboards this year, which are supposed to include more traditional metrics like test scores and information about students\u2019 well-being.<\/p>\n
After nearly a year of contentious negotiations, the Chicago Teachers Union\u00a0reached a deal\u00a0with Chicago Public Schools in the spring over a four-year deal that, in part, implements a series of changes that students may notice in the classroom.<\/p>\n
At the same time, CPS is planning tens of millions of dollars in cuts that could impact things like meals and how clean schools will be.<\/p>\n
Under the new teachers contract, class sizes will be lowered to 25 students in kindergarten, and the contract requires a teaching assistant for classes with more than 23 students. In grades 4-8, the class size will decrease to 30 students.<\/p>\n
The contract also adds hundreds of new positions over the next three years, including more teacher assistants, case managers for students with disabilities, and nurses. Unrelated to the contract, the district is also\u00a0restructuring its special education department\u00a0and implementing\u00a0staffing changes\u00a0related to students with disabilities.<\/p>\n
And, kids could be getting more recess or time in enrichment classes. The contract increased preparation time for elementary school teachers by 10 minutes. Schools will meet this requirement by getting an additional 10 minutes of recess where schools are not currently following a state requirement for a half-hour recess, district officials have said. But schools may also add specialty classes to give homeroom teachers more prep time.<\/p>\n
As it worked to close its $734 million deficit, the district announced more than $165 million in cuts. That included layoffs to central office and crossing guards, cutting\u00a0480 full-time custodial positions,\u00a0and\u00a0hot meals\u00a0for students.<\/p>\n
In some ways, the Trump administration has competing interests that could have sweeping impacts on Chicago\u2019s schools.<\/p>\n
Trump wants to invest fewer federal dollars in the nation\u2019s schools \u2014 which\u00a0almost resulted\u00a0in a loss of about $60 million for CPS \u2014 and any funding restrictions could impact CPS\u2019 already tight budget plan.<\/p>\n
At the same time, his administration wants a hand in what schools teach. The federal government has opened\u00a0a civil rights investigation into CPS\u2019 Black Student Success Plan,\u00a0claiming that the plan is a form of race-based discrimination that seeks more resources for \u201cfavored\u201d students. CPS has declined to comment on the matter.<\/p>\n
If the federal government decides the district has violated federal law, it could decide to punish the district by pulling funding or reaching a settlement that impacts the district\u2019s approach to serving students with the most needs.<\/p>\n
Chicago Public Schools has experienced profound leadership turnover over the past year. Since October, the\u00a0entire mayor-appointed Board of Education resigned,\u00a0the\u00a0former CEO was fired,\u00a0and a\u00a0new 21-member, partially appointed, partially elected school board was seated\u00a0for the first time in Chicago\u2019s history. That board then\u00a0hired interim CEO Macquline King\u00a0and is\u00a0searching for a permanent CEO.<\/p>\n
And King now finds herself in\u00a0the crosshairs of the city and mostly appointed members\u00a0of the board after proposing a budget that doesn\u2019t include a pension reimbursement to the city or a loan.<\/p>\n
The board hoped to find a new CEO as early as September, but it\u2019s unclear how quickly it will narrow down candidates for interviews. Some have raised questions in recent months about\u00a0who legally has the authority to hire the CEO.<\/p>\n
Whomever the board chooses will be charged with overseeing the district as it faces financial pressures. And, if that person stays in the job through 2027, they will be the first CPS CEO to oversee the district with the city\u2019s first fully elected board.<\/p>\n
Becky Vevea contributed.<\/p>\n
Reema Amin is a reporter covering Chicago Public Schools. Contact Reema at ramin@chalkbeat.org.<\/p>\n
The new school year brings many changes and challenges for Chicago Public Schools. From potential enrollment drops to changes in federal policy, there are many factors that could impact student learning and the public\u2019s perception of schools. As the district navigates its budget deficit and implements a new teachers contract, it will be important to watch how these changes affect the school day and student outcomes.<\/p>\n
Q: What is the current enrollment trend in Chicago Public Schools?
\nA: After more than a decade of dipping enrollment, Chicago began seeing a slight uptick in the number of kids attending CPS schools, but it\u2019s unclear if enrollment will increase again this year.<\/p>\n
Q: How will the new teachers contract affect the school day?
\nA: The contract implements a series of changes, including smaller class sizes, more staff, and potentially more recess or time in enrichment classes.<\/p>\n
Q: What is the impact of Trump\u2019s agenda on Chicago Public Schools?
\nA: The Trump administration has competing interests that could have sweeping impacts on Chicago\u2019s schools, including investing fewer federal dollars in schools and wanting a hand in what schools teach.<\/p>\n
Q: What\u2019s next in CPS\u2019 leadership saga?
\nA: The board is searching for a permanent CEO and will be charged with overseeing the district as it faces financial pressures.<\/p>\n
Q: How can I stay up-to-date with the latest news on Chicago Public Schools?
\nA: Sign up for Chalkbeat Chicago\u2019s free daily newsletter to keep up with the latest news on Chicago Public Schools.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Introduction to the New School Year This story was originally published by Chalkbeat.\u00a0Sign up for\u00a0Chalkbeat Chicago\u2019s free daily newsletter\u00a0to keep up with the latest news on Chicago Public Schools. CHICAGO \u2014 As Chicago Public Schools students return to class this week, families may feel the effects of the district\u2019s belt-tightening over the summer as it […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":26767,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rank_math_lock_modified_date":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[24],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-26765","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-education"},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bcc-newspack.s3.amazonaws.com\/uploads\/2025\/08\/081825-First-Day-of-School-CPS-Colin-Boyle-5185.jpg?w=1920&resize=1920,1279&ssl=1","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/chicago\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26765"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/chicago\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/chicago\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/chicago\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/chicago\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=26765"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/chicago\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26765\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":26768,"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/chicago\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26765\/revisions\/26768"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/chicago\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/26767"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/chicago\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=26765"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/chicago\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=26765"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/citystuff.com\/chicago\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=26765"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}