Committee on Education and Child Development
RESOLUTION CALLING FOR A HEARING ON BUDGET CUTS IN CHICAGO PUBLIC SCHOOLS
WHEREAS, Chicago Public Schools are facing one of the biggest budget cuts in funds for core education in nine years; and
WHEREAS, The budget cuts are dramatic: $60,000,000 will be cut from the funds used to pay the salaries of teachers and staff, despite a contractual promise to increase salaries by 3.5%; $16,000,000 will be cut from equity grants earmarked for our smallest and most at risk schools; and
WHEREAS, The cuts are widespread as well, with about 185 of 515 noncharter schools facing reductions of more than $200,000 in the allocation that is used to pay for core instruction, with some schools potentially losing up to $500,000 in funding; and
WHEREAS, While CPS has adopted student-based budgeting, which provides schools with stipends for each student enrolled, there are concerns that this funding method could encourage competition between schools over students - thrusting the smallest and most vulnerable schools into a downward spiral of losing both students and funding; and
WHEREAS, While CPS has received $1.8 billion in federal COVID-19 relief money, the vast majority ofthe money is unspent and must be spent by 2024; and
WHEREAS, It is imperative that all Chicago schools have the resources to provide a proper education to all students; and
WHEREAS, The City Council should play a role in the oversight of Chicago Public Schools to ensure that the City's schools are providing the best education to all of Chicago's students and that the COVID-19 relief funds are allocated in an effective and equitable manner; now, therefore
BE IT RESOLVED, That we, the Mayor and members of the City Council of the City of Chicago, gathered here this twenty-seventh day of April, 2022, do hereby call upon the Committee on Education and Child Development to convene a hearing regarding budget cuts to Chicago Public Schools; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That we call upon Chicago Public Schools CEO, Pedro Martinez, and Chicago Board of Education President, Miguel Del Valle, to testify at the hearing.