Education

"We have to make sure we vaccinate people in Chicago in high-risk communities so we can have more opportunities for people to see that it's ok to take the vaccine," said State Rep. Lashawn Ford (D-Chicago). 

A white, male University of New Hampshire chemistry professor has resigned after being accused of posing as a female immigrant of color on Twitter to make racist and sexist comments.

Ultraviolet technology is allowing Mundelein High School to zap the coronavirus with the flip of a switch. The tech is allowing the school to clean classrooms quickly and keep kids on campus.

The first group of CPS students headed back to school on Wednesday, and CPS teachers and staff are starting to become vaccinated.

One suburban school is trying to help students tackle tension amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Leaders of the Chicago Teachers Union agreed Monday to let thousands of union members vote on a proposed deal to get students back into classes.

"The assignment says ‘My dream for colored people in America is..." and the students are supposed to finish that sentence," the 2nd grader's mother said.

Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot said Sunday that a preliminary agreement has been reached the teachers’ union over COVID-19 safety protocols, potentially averting a strike in the nation’s third-largest school district.

The school had told parents the Black History Month lessons were optional. Only 3 of the school's 322 students are Black. About 70% are white.

Dr. Anthony Fauci believes that reopening schools for grades 8 and lower is a realistic target, but remains wary of returning high schools to in-person learning while coronavirus vaccines remain in short supply nationwide.

“The parties have been in discussions throughout the course of the day to determine if there is a pathway toward a final, comprehensive deal. Those discussions continue," Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot and CPS CEO Dr. Janice Jackson said in a statement. The Teachers Union says they want a "mutually agreed upon safe reopening plan."

CPS originally planned on welcoming K-8 children back for in-person learning this past Monday but has kept pushing back that date, as the union has instructed teachers to continue working remotely during negotiations. 

Leaders of a suburban school district are taking matters into their own hands as they transform a school gym into a vaccination center.

Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot demanded Thursday that the city’s teacher’s union reach agreement on COVID-19 safety protocols by the end of the day and bring students back to the classroom, but did not say what she would do if that doesn’t happen.

With bedrooms replacing classrooms for nearly one year, local students say they are struggling in so many ways.

As schools grapple with bringing kids back to the classroom while trying to stay safe, a handful of southwest suburban schools are using new technology to help make that happen.