Chicago’s combined state and local taxpayer debt burden worst in the nation

By Justin Carlson

06/07/2022

Fiscal watchdog Truth in Accounting reports every Chicagoan is on the hook for $135,700 when combining city and state debt.

TAGS: Chicago, tax burden, Truth in Accounting

Longer public schools closed for pandemic, more students they lost

By Hannah Schmid

05/26/2022

New research shows remote learning spurred the enrollment declines plaguing public schools. Schools with more in-person instruction lost fewer students.

TAGS: COVID-19, public schools, teachers union

Chicago Teachers Union election May 20 could affect frequency of strikes

By Mailee Smith

05/17/2022

CTU has walked out on students three times in three school years. The outcome of its upcoming leadership election pits the status quo against potential change – and could alter the political trajectory of the nation’s most militant teachers union.

TAGS: CTU: Chicago Teachers Union, election, strike

Illinois voter suppression rampant thanks to few ballot choices

By Patrick Andriesen

05/11/2022

Progressive voices decry voter suppression in states such as Texas, but the very blue state of Illinois is guilty of rampant voter suppression using a system of maps and rules that defeat many challengers before they ever get on the ballot. A new effort is working to change that.

TAGS: ballot, gerrymandering, Illinois, legislative map, voter suppression

Illinois parents, teachers sue to get unconstitutional union boost off ballot

04/21/2022

Amendment 1, billed as a “Workers' Rights Amendment,” actually covers so much more that it violates the U.S. Constitution. Parents and teachers worrying about it emboldening already militant teachers unions are suing to get it off the ballot.

TAGS: Amendment 1, government unions, Illinois Constitution, lawsuit

Over 23,000 Illinois public school employees leave unions

By Hannah Schmid

04/14/2022

Membership in teachers unions has decreased nearly 10% since 2017, when public educators gained the right to stop handing their pay to unions.

TAGS: Illinois, opt out, public schools, teachers union

More than 38,000 workers have left government unions in Illinois

By Mailee Smith

04/12/2022

The unions’ own federal reports show 9% of workers have chosen to break away from unions since the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Janus v. AFSCME.

TAGS: government unions, Janus v. AFSCME, membership

Above the law: Amendment 1 would let government unions void over 350 Illinois laws

By Mailee Smith, Perry Zhao

04/05/2022

Amendment 1 would allow government unions to nullify hundreds of Illinois statutes – including laws aimed at protecting school children – simply by contradicting them in union contracts.

Illinois COVID-19 school closures hurt math, reading scores

By Hannah Schmid

03/29/2022

SAT math scores dropped nearly 15%, and reading scores dropped 9% from 2019 to 2021 among Illinois high school juniors. Low-income and minority students saw bigger losses.

TAGS: COVID-19, ISAT: Illinois Standards Achievement Test, public schools, school closures

Amendment 1 would cement strikes as go-to weapon for Chicago Teachers Union

By Hannah Schmid

03/08/2022

The Chicago Teachers Union has gone on strike five times and walked out on students at least three other times since it got the right to strike in 1984. Gaining greater power through Amendment 1 would embolden militant union tactics.

TAGS: Amendment 1, CTU: Chicago Teachers Union, strike

Chicago Public Schools

Chicago’s combined state and local taxpayer debt burden worst in the nation

Longer public schools closed for pandemic, more students they lost

Chicago Teachers Union election May 20 could affect frequency of strikes

Illinois voter suppression rampant thanks to few ballot choices

Illinois parents, teachers sue to get unconstitutional union boost off ballot

Over 23,000 Illinois public school employees leave unions

More than 38,000 workers have left government unions in Illinois

Above the law: Amendment 1 would let government unions void over 350 Illinois laws

Illinois COVID-19 school closures hurt math, reading scores

Amendment 1 would cement strikes as go-to weapon for Chicago Teachers Union

Illinois Forward 2027: How to fix Illinois’ state finances

Report Archive

Diana Graham

Process for unionizing non-state workers raises red flags

CBS Chicago: Illinois’ highest-paid superintendent receives $400K per year to oversee 1,200 students