Mayor Brandon Johnson to reveal Chicago School Board appointees after mass resignation
Mayor Brandon Johnson today will reveal his interim appointees to the Chicago School Board , days after the entire board announced their resignations, causing upheaval in Chicago Public Schools.
The new board could carry out Johnson's wishes to fire CPS CEO Pedro Martinez and have the district take out a high-interest loan to pay for teacher raises, pay for worker pensions, and help fund a new Chicago Teachers Union contract.
The current school board is resigning this month while contract negotiations are going on with the teachers union. The CTU said Martinez has not worked hard enough to secure more state funding for schools.
Over the weekend, 41 City Council members signed an open letter, criticizing Johnson for creating chaos in CPS . They called on the mayor to hold council hearings before making these changes, but Johnson said he has seven people who are ready to replace the school board.
"For the Board of [Education] to be forced out because they're unwilling to fire the CEO, who's being fiscally responsible, it's a shocking turn of events right in the middle of a contract negotiation. I mean, this is the third-largest school district in America and we need to provide steady leadership and this throws a wrench in all of that," Ald. Bill Conway (34th) said.
Early voting opened last week in Chicago. Voters are choosing 10 elected school board members. The other 11 members will be appointed by Johnson. They will take office in mid-January, replacing the interim board that is named today.
On Saturday, State Rep. Ann Williams (D-Chicago), a progressive who led the legislative effort for an elected Chicago Board of Education, floated the notion that the state might have to intervene in the current CPS crisis.
"The level of state oversight necessary for the district will be informed by the decisions made by the Mayor and his administration in the coming weeks," Williams' statement read. "I will continue to talk with Chicago families and my colleagues to evaluate what additional guardrails may be needed to ensure policy decisions are consistent with the best interests of Chicago students and communities."
Johnson will announce his new appointments to the school board at 10:30 a.m. That news conference will be streamed in the media player at the top of this story.
