School Board and Mayor Johnson Fail as City Leaders

Chicago Public Schools are no stranger to crises. Having faced numerous budget shortfalls and leadership conflicts in the district, I recognize that difficult decisions are inevitable. Financial challenges and potential school closures are nothing new for a district that has also suffered from declining enrollment.

What is new – and deeply concerning – is the lack of transparent and accountable dialogue between leaders and with the public.

On Wednesday, the current Board of Education scheduled a special meeting at 5:45 p.m. on the Friday before the holiday, which is also the Jewish Sabbath. The agenda includes naming a new board president, discussing Acero charter schools – and deciding on the future of Chicago Public Schools CEO Pedro Martinez, including the possibility of ‘a separation agreement or the dismissal of CPS’s first permanent Latino CEO.

These questions carry serious financial, cultural, ethical and legal consequences for the nation’s fourth-largest school district. Normally, decisions of this magnitude would involve open discussions, multiple briefings, media updates and community outreach efforts.

Instead, these crucial issues are being fast-tracked – and being discussed at an unusual time, without real public engagement or transparency.

The newly elected board members, who are due to take office in January, have continued to criticize this course of action.

They are right. Refusing to engage in open dialogue, scheduling last-minute special meetings during the holiday season, and bypassing opportunities for collaborative problem solving is an abdication of the duty and responsibility of these board members to serve our young people and all stakeholders of the SCP.

This reflects a failure of leadership where it matters most, and our students, our families, and all Chicagoans will bear the consequences.

Chicago’s youth deserve a united front, with the Board of Education, CPS leadership and Mayor Brandon Johnson’s administration working together to put kids first. We need leaders who confront crises with clarity and determination while respecting the democratic processes that guarantee good governance.

It’s time to put politics aside, listen to each other, and focus on what really matters: the students learning at school. Teachers, principals and families are looking to city leaders and the school board for guidance. When leaders fail to provide vision and make decisions with only their best interests in mind, it creates uncertainty and disruption in every Chicago school and across our city.

The future of our children depends on our success. I urge this lame duck School Board to step down. I am asking the new hybrid school board to take a stand and insist on the visionary leadership and responsible governance that our children and families deserve.

Jesse Ruiz served as vice president of the Chicago Board of Education and interim CEO of Chicago Public Schools. He also served as a former Illinois deputy governor for education and chairman of the Illinois State Board of Education.

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