CHICAGO (WLS) — The Chicago Teachers union is pushing Chicago Public Schools to reach a contract agreement before President-elect Donald Trump takes office in January.
Some board members are calling on the district to avoid rushing into a new contract before the new full board is sworn in. One sticking point is the CTU’s demand for more academic freedom.
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In just over a month, Trump will take the oath of office for a second time. The CTU is pushing CPS to agree to a new contract before January 20. The CTU is concerned a Trump administration may withhold federal money to CPS if Black history continues to be part of the curriculum.
“Presidents that transform America, they make federal money conditional, and this what we are dealing with now,” CTU President Stacy David Gates said.
One of CPS’ contract demands is enshrining academic freedom in its new contract. CPS says it’s not necessary because state laws already protect it and academic freedom is integrated in current CPS policies. It is one of over 700 contract demands CPS is considering.
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Some newly-elected school board members, not endorsed by the union, are requesting no decisions made on the contract until they are sworn in mid-January.
“I think we can wait a couple more days to get a good contract that is not only good for our teachers but also for the taxpayers, ultimately, we are going to have pay for this,” School Board Member-Elect Angel Gutierrez said.
Davis Gates continues to push for a short-term, high-interest loan to pay for the contract, something CPS CEO Pedro Martinez refuses to do, calling it fiscally irresponsible.
“This idea that he cannot get a short-term loan is absolutely ridiculous,” Davis Gates said.
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Davis Gates insists an agreement can be done by Christmas if CPS wants to, but the Chicago Principals and Administrators Association says not so fast. Principals have many concerns about CTU’s demands, including an extra 30 minutes of teacher prep time, which is in addition to an hour and 45 minutes teachers already get.
“What this contract is asking for is 285 minutes of that school day with our children, where teachers are not in front of children. That’s almost 70% of the day,” said Kia Banks with the Chicago Principals and Administrators Association.
Contract negotiations continue five days a week. CPS doubts a deal will be done by Christmas. The district is cautiously optimistic an agreement can be reached by January 20, but CPS stresses it is not necessary by then.
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