$734M Chicago Public Schools budget deficit looms as students return to class
CHICAGO (WLS) -- More than 300,000 students went back to school on Monday morning in Chicago, and that means parents and caregivers had to hustle to get back on the school schedule.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson cheered on students at the Courtenay Language Arts Center in Uptown and Austin College & Career Academy High School while loving parents said their tearful goodbyes.
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"It's kind of tough because, I mean, I've done it with my siblings, but it's different when it's your child. Yeah, it's like, that's my baby," parent Andrea Brackner said.
This is Brackner's first time dropping her own kid off at school, and she says they both felt the first-day jitters.
"She really didn't want to go because she doesn't want to leave me, but I told her she's got to be here so she can learn, so she can be smarter than mom," Brackner said.
McCutchen Elementary fourth-graders Joyce Adiboshi and Navaeh Purnell are excited to return on Tuesday to get going on their year-long goals.
"I have to do really good at math. I have to get better at math," Adiboshi said.
"I want to be learning about what high schoolers learn about," Purnell said.
Monday marked the first day of Madison Dancer's career.
The 22-year-old Kenwood High School graduate is a brand-new Chicago Public Schools teacher. Leading up to the big day, Dancer admitted that she was more nervous than excited.
"All those jitters kind of all just went away the moment I saw the kids lining up outside in the playground. Like, OK, I'm in teacher mode now," Dancer said.
Dancer is teaching third, fourth and fifth grade at Countee Cullen Elementary on the city's Far South Side. She is product of CPS' Teach Chicago Tomorrow, a four-year program the district launched to support high schools seniors in earning a bachelor's degree with a guaranteed job in CPS classrooms. The program is helping to add diversity and close a teachers vacancy gap.
Mondal also marked Countee Cullen Elementary Principal Arthurine Beaugard's last first day, as she is retiring at the end of the year.
"I'm just as excited as they are. They bring about a newness and freshness. It helps to establish a great balance," Beaugard said.
Countee Cullen Elementary has three brand-new teachers this year. Beaugard says her focus is on the staff and students rather than the outside noise concerning the CPS budget.
CPS is currently facing a significant budget deficit of $734 million for the upcoming school year, and the school board must pass a balanced budget by the end of the month.
"There's a great deal of consternation at the federal level, where dollars are being starved within our city, but we are going to work tirelessly, tirelessly to ensure that every single child has a high quality education," Johnson said.
The Chicago Teachers Union said the deficit is closer to $2 billion as they rallied parents support to push the state for more funding.
"There's money there," said CTU Recording Secretary Vicki Kruzydlo. "A budget is not a math problem. A budget is a choice."
The union representing support staff protested cuts to janitors on Monday morning outside of Jones College Prep.
As he rang the bell loudly on Monday morning outside of a North Side elementary school, Johnson stood smiling with interim CPS CEO Maqueline King.
King and her team presented a balanced budget last week, but 11 school board members, aligned with Johnson, have major problems with the budget They are pushing CPS to pay for a controversial pension payment with a short-term high-interest loan. King says the payment and loan could lead to classroom cuts.
"There are people out there that want to divide us, but we are united as a city," Johnson said on Monday.
CPS K-12 students are back in school Monday, and pre-K students will back in school on Tuesday.
The CTA is making sure students arrive on time for their first day back by offering them free rides.
That means free bus and train rides for everyone from kindergarten through senior year of high school.
The CTA says more than 50,000 rides were provided to students and their parents last year.
Metra and PACE are also offering free rides for students Monday.
