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CPS still looking to fill about 900 vacancies as new school year kicks off

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Published  August 22, 2022 9:39pm CDT
Chicago Public Schools
FOX 32 Chicago

CPS still looking to fill about 900 vacancies as new school year kicks off

City and school leaders held ceremonial bells to ring in the start of the new school year Monday morning. At Falconer Elementary and more than 630 other schools, CPS students returned to class.

CHICAGO - City and school leaders held ceremonial bells to ring in the start of the new school year Monday morning.

At Falconer Elementary, and the more than 630 other schools, CPS students returned to class.

"We've been preparing since the last day of last year," said the school principal while talking with Mayor Lori Lightfoot.

"I expect this to be one of CPS’s strongest year ever," said CEO Pedro Martinez, speaking at Excel Academy in South Shore. Martinez calls this is a recovery year, where the district will focus on equity, quality teachers plus supporting students both academically and socially-emotionally. Plus, they believe COVID-19 won't be so disruptive.

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"The vast majority of our students will be able to stay in their classrooms learning in person, and it will only be positive cases or children with symptoms that will have to isolate at home," said Martinez.

Another safety issue top of mind for many parents is protecting students from gun violence in the wake of the Uvalde school shooting.

"Obviously, we take safety and security very seriously at CPS, but we wanted to make sure we were double-checking and taking into consideration anything we could learn from those circumstances, and I think we’ve done that," said Mayor Lightfoot.

When it comes to staffing, CEO Martinez says they're in a better position than last year but hiring continues. They have a lot more teachers this year, around 22,000, and currently have about 900 vacancies.

"We’re going to keep hiring. We're hiring bus drivers. We’re still hiring custodial staff. We’re hiring crossing guards, so please know we’re going to be hiring throughout the year," said Martinez.

While school officials deal with all that, for families the first day was mostly about a return to routine and saying goodbye.

"It was a quick kiss and 'ok mom, I got to go', which kind of broke my heart," said one mother sending her little one off to school.

That heartbreak coming earlier than usual, with CPS changing the schedule to start two weeks before Labor Day to have a schedule more like suburban districts end the first semester before winter break.