News and Advocacy

As the custodial management contract with Aramark inside Chicago Public Schools (CPS) comes to an end, there’s a palpable mix of anticipation and reservation.The decision to bring management back unde

In the wake of the post-COVID-19 pandemic world, we are witnessing a surge in stress and anxiety among our students.

Central offices were set up more than a century ago to handle business and regulatory functions. Today’s schools require a fundamentally new approach.

The Problem

Use of telephones to coerce, in violation of policies and guidelines

Despite written guidance from CPS affirming that the district is only asking--not requiring--school administrators to report to work during the COVID-19 district shutdown, CPAA has received several reports of chiefs violating those guidelines today in their verbal communications with principals and assistant principals. Unfortunately, this behavior is not new.

The Win

Administrators asked--not required--to report

After CPAA pointed out that--contrary to CPS claims--the Governor is not requiring CPS to compel administrators to report to work, CPS sent out a new communication to principals on Sunday with the following headers:

   From: Communication, Internal
   Date: Sun, Mar 15, 2020, at 2:45 PM
   Subject: Information to Help You Prepare for ... COVID-19

The American Federation of School Administrators (AFSA), AFL-CIO, calls on all schools across the nation to close immediately.

Practically speaking, CPAA is our union because it is how we fight collectively for ideal working conditions for school leaders and ideal learning conditions for our students. Legally speaking, however, school leaders do not have the statutory rights that unions have. It's time to change that.

How School Leaders Lost the Right to Form a Union (Supervisor vs. Policymaker)

Donald Trump promised that, if he was elected, “American worker[s] will finally have a president who will protect them and fight for them.” Has he kept this promise?

Black girls are twice as likely to be suspended in every state, and it’s not because of more frequent or serious misbehavior, a bold headline in U.S. News and World Reports states.

For years, this statistic has stood out to educators, raising great concern nationwide.