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September 6, 2023

ChiArts Educators Reach Tentative Agreement with School Management

CHICAGO — On Wednesday evening, union educators and art instructors at Chicago High School for the Arts (ChiArts) reached a tentative agreement with the school’s board of directors on a new four-year contract that will center the needs of the scholar-artists, students and their families who live at the core of the school’s mission.

September 5, 2023

Update: ChiArts strike suspended thanks to substantial breakthroughs

Strike action has been suspended for Wednesday, September 6. We have not yet reached a tentative agreement, but substantial progress gives the bargaining team strong hope of an agreement without strike action. Stand by and continue to show solidarity.

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August 29, 2023

CTU educators at ChiArts Charter set to strike

ChiArts’ founder José Ochoa, management and foundation stand in the way of an equitable agreement to provide safe, supportive and well-resourced classrooms.

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August 24, 2023

CTU President Wraps Up Back-to-School Tour with Visit to Nicholson STEM Academy

CHICAGO—With Friday marking an end to Chicago’s first week back at school, Chicago Teachers Union President Stacy Davis Gates will make her final Back-To-School tour stop at Nicholson STEM Academy, located in Chicago’s Englewood neighborhood. Utilizing technology to enhance the educational experiences for students and their families, Nicholson services a high number of students in temporary living situations.

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August 22, 2023

Chicago Teachers Union President Continues Back-To-School Tour with Visit to George Washington High School

As the city grapples with an Extreme Heat Watch, CTU President Stacy Davis Gates will visit with educators at Washington High School and uplift the solutions to aging public-school facilities.

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August 16, 2023

The Chicago Teachers Union Applauds the Appointment of Lakesia Collins to the State Senate

The Chicago Teachers Union issued this statement after West Side Democratic committeepersons selected State Representative Lakesia Collins to replace 5th District State Sen. Patricia Van Pelt, who resigned in late July.

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July 14, 2023

On Rev. Jesse Jackson Sr. decision to step down as president of Rainbow PUSH Coalition

Marching in the lead of a red-shirted mass march are (from left) CTU President Karen Lewis, Rev. Jesse L. Jackson, Sr., AFT President Randi Weingarten and IFT President Dan Montgomery.

Since Rainbow PUSH’s inception, Rev. Jesse Jackson Sr. has stood as a beacon of light for all those that seek to ensure true liberty, justice and fairness for all. Whether it be his work releasing American hostages abroad or his willingness to stand with educators on strike in Chicago for the schools our kids deserve in 2012 and 2019, Jackson has brought a sustained opposition to machine politics and has been an anchor to our multiracial, multiethnic and multigenerational coalition.

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July 11, 2023

Chicago’s Public School Educators Stand in Solidarity with UPS Teamsters

Dozens of UPS workers rally with Teamster signs that say Just practicing for a Just contract.

We stand in solidarity with the International Brotherhood of Teamsters as they work to eradicate the two tiers of jobs where wages, benefits and union rights are unfairly curtailed.

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June 30, 2023

CTU President Stacy Davis Gates on Today’s Supreme Court Rulings

CHICAGO – CTU President Stacy Davis Gates today issued the following statement regarding the Supreme Court’s decisions to upend relief for student loan borrowers and roll back rights of the LGBTQIA community: “Today, the Supreme Court’s decisions to block the Biden administration’s student debt relief plan and their move to restrict the rights of the LGBTQIA community represent yet another attack on students, the Black and Brown community and all those seeking to live out their American Dream. Today’s decision comes on the heels of the court’s move yesterday to gut Affirmative Action in higher-education admissions, and it has turned a blind eye to the compounded impact of racism and discrimination on our nation.”

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June 29, 2023

Statement: CTU President Stacy Davis Gates on today’s Affirmative Action Ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court

CHICAGO — CTU President Stacy Davis Gates issued the following statement regarding today’s Supreme Court ruling striking down affirmative action programs: “Today’s ruling opens up yet another tear in the fabric of our democracy…We refuse to stand idly by.”

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June 27, 2023

Chicago Educators, Students and Community Members Urge the CPS Board of Education to Invest in Green Schools

CHICAGO — On Wednesday, CTU members, students and community members will hold a press conference demanding that the mayoral-controlled CPS comply with the law and ensure that all the city public schools are healthy, climate-resilient and well resourced to prepare students for the 21st century. Coming on the heels of CTU’s first annual Environmental Justice (EJ) Freedom School, a program designed to equip students with the means to become agents of environmental change in their communities, the press conference will incorporate the voices of students and their campaign to make sure that their school buildings are safe, welcoming, thriving, green and sustainable, which is especially important given the current state of unhealthy air quality throughout Chicago.

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Acero educators to ratify new contract, while staff at two other charters take strike votes

CHICAGO–On Thursday, Acero Educators are expected to vote overwhelmingly to approve a tentative agreement with the Acero Charter Schools, ushering in a new era for the operator and its relationship with educators, their students and the educational community it serves. This development stands in stark contrast to the obstacles erected by CICS and Christopher House charter school as educators there pursue the same common-sense contract provisions that Acero and district educators now enjoy.

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May 31, 2023

CTU calls for ouster of CPS head of special education, details flagrant failures to protect district’s most vulnerable students

Union House of Delegates issues no confidence vote in Stephanie Jones–CPS’ Chief of the Office of Diverse Learners Supports and Services –after revelations of continued illegal use of physical restraints on students with disabilities

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May 11, 2023

Chicago Teachers Union commends lawmakers for passage of Charter Neutrality Bill

CHICAGO—The Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) Thursday commended the Illinois General Assembly for passing a bill that protects Illinois educators from intimidation, retaliation and interference when they organize to join a union in privately operated charter schools, a move that will help educators improve the teaching and learning conditions in their schools. The legislation, HB 1120, requires charter school operators taking public school funding to include a labor neutrality clause as part of its school authorization. Under such a clause, an employer agrees to refrain from opposing or taking a position on union organizing by their employees.

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May 4, 2023

CTU President Stacy Davis Gates joined by CPS CEO Pedro Martinez in Springfield today meeting with lawmakers around additional funding for Chicago’s public school students and communities

CTU President Stacy Davis Gates and CPS CEO Pedro Martinez sit together and address lawmakers gathered in Springfield.

Collaboration between union and district is a central part of Mayor-elect Brandon Johnson’s plans for delivering on the promise of fully funded neighborhood public schools

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April 18, 2023

A Statement from the Chicago Teacher Union on the CPS Budget Framework

Time and again, educators and school personnel across this city have been called to do more with less. And now is the time for that to change.

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April 17, 2023

Acero Educators Demand Fair Contract

Picket at charter school Acero Idar

On Wednesday, more than 100 educators will join forces with parents, students, and community members to demand a safe, supportive, and more sustainable educational community from the Acero Charter Schools, which are located throughout the city of Chicago in primarily Latine neighborhoods. The Wednesday rally and press conference comes on the same day as the Charter’s April board meeting.

April 11, 2023

The CTU Stands in Solidarity with the Striking Faculty and Staff of the CSU, GSU and EIU

CTU President Stacy Davis Gates stands with striking educators at Chicago State University, April 3, 2023

CHICAGO — Chicago Teachers Union President and Illinois Federation of Teachers Executive Vice President Stacy Davis Gates issued the following statement in solidarity with striking higher education faculty and staff throughout Illinois: “Every day, the hardworking faculty and staff from CSU, EIU and GSU arrive at their college campuses committed to uplifting, empowering and educating their students. While being some of the lowest-paid professionals among similar institutions in Illinois, many educators have remained in service to their students because they believe in the promise of a better tomorrow.”

April 10, 2023

ChiArts Educators Demand A Fair Contract

CHICAGO — On Tuesday, April 11, academic and arts educators will join forces with parents, students, and community members to demand a safe, welcoming, and more sustainable educational community from The Chicago High School for the Arts (ChiArts), a performing arts charter school located in the Humboldt Park neighborhood.

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April 4, 2023

Statement on Brandon Johnson’s election as Mayor of Chicago

Photo of Mayoral Candidate Brandon Johnson with CTU members at April school leaders and delegates conference.

What started with a movement in 2012 for better school conditions has blossomed into a city-wide, multi-racial, multi-ethnic, multi-generational people-powered movement that has done the impossible: elect a middle school teacher, public school parent and son of a pastor, Brandon Johnson, mayor of Chicago.

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April 3, 2023

The CTU Stands in Solidarity with the Striking Faculty and Staff of the Chicago State University

CTU President Stacy Davis Gates stands with striking educators at Chicago State University, April 3, 2023

Chicago Teachers Union President Stacy Davis Gates issued the following statement in solidarity with striking faculty and staff at Chicago State University, who walked out today after nearly a year of bargaining without results: “Inspired by their bravery, strength and willingness to sacrifice, we at the Chicago Teachers Union stand united with our union siblings on strike today at Chicago State University.

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March 24, 2023

Statement on Arne Duncan’s Endorsement of Paul Vallas

CHICAGO — Former CEO of Chicago Public Schools, Arne Duncan, never had the juice to run for Mayor of this great city. Yet, he clearly thinks he can influence how voters in the city vote in the upcoming election. As Vallas’s former partner-in-crime in destabilizing New Orleans’ public schools — through policies, actions, words and deeds — today’s endorsement of Vallas by former Education Secretary Duncan should not be a surprise. Arne Duncan called Hurricane Katrina in 2005 “the best thing that happened to the education system in New Orleans.”

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March 22, 2023

SEIU Local 73 and the Chicago Teachers Union Support Striking LAUSD Workers

Huge crowd wearing red in Los Angeles.

The fight against unfair labor practices in the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) began in earnest on Tuesday, March 21, with 30,000 school workers walking off the job. These workers, represented by Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 99, encompass the support staff across the entire school district. LAUSD’s continued disrespect, and their inability to care properly for the workers who make their mission possible, has also led to a solidarity strike by the 35,000 teachers represented by United Teachers Los Angeles (UTLA). SEIU Local 73 and the Chicago Teachers Union are therefore proud to share our message of solidarity with SEIU Local 99 and UTLA.

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Administrative Transfer Window

Teachers will be able to transfer schools for Fall 2023 without principal permission from Friday, March 24, 2023 to Monday, May 8, 2023.

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