Chicago Board of Education

Rule Changes

New 21-member board takes office Jan. 15, 2027; CTU-backed candidates won or led in nine seats.

Chicago's first fully elected school board remains split after the Nov. 4 election. Union-backed candidates had won or led in nine of 21 seats as of Nov. 5, and the Chicago Teachers Union says it could win as many as 10 of the 20 district seats. Four races are still too close to call.

Updated 5 days ago

Rule Changes

Some members support vacancy tax

Chicago voters approved a nonbinding referendum on Tuesday that would tax owners of long-term vacant or undeveloped commercial and investment property to fund Chicago Public Schools. Nearly 74% voted yes, with 163,655 of 624,339 voters opposed.

Updated 5 days ago

Money Moves

Approved the contract on Oct. 22, 2026

Chicago's school board voted unanimously on Oct. 22 to approve a four-year contract for the district's lunchroom workers, setting a $21-an-hour minimum for cooks, attendants and porters in Unite Here Local 1. The union says it represents about 1,500 of those workers; Chalkbeat and Hyperlocal Loop put CPS lunchroom staffing above 1,800.

Updated Oct 23