The Internet and the news are awash with stories of how young people are dealing with the stress and anxiety of the pandemic. Educators are reporting more discipline problems, students acting out and even engaging in self harm. And the PSRPs in our school are on the frontlines dealing with these crises.
With 43 percent of classes in quarantine in late January, the Nixon Elementary Safety Committee sprang into action. After a three-hour meeting, the committee decided to flip the entire school to remote.
Earlier this year, students at dozens of CPS high schools walked out of class to protest the mayor’s unsafe reopening plan, which they said had ignored the voices and needs of students. The district-wide walkout ended with a protest at CPS headquarters.
Local School Councils (LSCS) give educators and parents a democratic tool to help shape the vision of their schools and LSC election season is in full swing. Candidate applications are due at 3 p.m., Friday, March 4.
As LSC election season kicks off, the CTU is encouraging members to run for teacher rep positions on their school’s council. Serving on your LSC is an important way to exercise power in your building and hold CPS and your administration accountable.
In 2015, the Chicago City Council passed an historic Reparations Ordinance, the first in the nation, major element of which is creation of the Reparations Won Curriculum to be taught in Chicago Public Schools. In this article, two CPS teachers discuss how the importance of the curriculum and how they teach it.
CTU budget trainings educate and empower members to challenge budget priorities and advocate for school needs.
PSRP Judy Mahoney is exactly the kind of employee CPS should value. She served as the school clerk at Whittier Elementary in Pilsen for 23 years until a drunk driver changed the course of her life one night. Now, four years later, CPS has slashed Judy’s position at the school and, had our Union not fought back, she would have been out of job at the end of June.
Our members’ willingness and courage to escalate tactics is the only thing that moves CPS to do what’s right for students and educators.
CTU/CPS agreement to reopen schools created safety committees to uphold hard-fought and hard-won mitigations and make building conditions safer for staff and students. At LPHS, staff are united to win change through the committee.
