Chicago Teachers Union President Stacy Davis Gates is bringing her militant agenda to 200 more school districts as president of the Illinois Federation of Teachers.

Chicago Teachers Union President Stacy Davis Gates is bringing her militant agenda to 200 more school districts as president of the Illinois Federation of Teachers.

The scandal-plagued president of the Chicago Teachers Union will now also be leading the Illinois Federation of Teachers, which has affiliates in at least 200 districts across the state.

The Illinois Federation of Teachers has poured more than $11 million into state lawmakers’ campaigns. Lawmakers then did IFT’s bidding on more than 2-in-5 bills in 2025, with what they wanted often hurting students’ and parents’ best interests.

The Illinois Federation of Teachers, the parent union of the Chicago Teachers Union, should be worried about the three Rs, but its main R is “radicalism.” Transgender restrooms, defunding the police and getting rid of charter schools top its radical agenda.

Illinois Federation of Teachers President Dan Montgomery won’t be seeking reelection, and three other executive board members have submitted resignations. Those vacancies give the Chicago Teachers Union an opening to gain more power over the statewide union.

The Illinois Federation of Teachers represents employees in more than 200 school districts across the state, but it does a lot that defies expectations. Here are nine things you and its members likely misunderstand, most related to colluding with the Chicago Teachers Union.