Education

Chicago’s Chief Education Officer Set to Leave School District as CEO Also Prepares Departure

Chicago Public Schools’ second-in-command Bogdana Chkoumbova is set to leave the district, following CEO Pedro Martinez’s impending exit next month.

Chkoumbova, who was named the district’s chief education officer in 2022, has spent more than two decades at CPS, beginning as a teacher before moving on to become a principal, network chief and eventually one of the top district leaders.

“When I joined CPS in 2001, I could not have envisioned how far this journey would take me,” she said in a letter to CPS communities Thursday. “An immigrant from Bulgaria, I was new to both the country and the classroom, and my sole focus was to help students with disabilities get the most out of their education. I’d never considered becoming a school principal, let alone the top education official for the fourth largest school system in the nation. But ours is a District filled with opportunities for those who want to serve, and I’ve always been the kind of person who embraces a challenge.”

She was promoted to her current role by Martinez, who will be leaving CPS in June to take over the top education post in Massachusetts after he was fired by Mayor Brandon Johnson’s handpicked Board of Education in December.

Because he was terminated without cause, Martinez’s contract allowed him to remain with CPS for an additional six months.

Chkoumbova will remain with CPS through the end of the current school year.

According to CPS, she began her career as a special education teacher at Frederic Chopin Elementary School before being selected to open the K-8 Disney II Magnet School in 2008.

The Chicago Principals and Administrators Association — the union representing the city’s principals and assistant principals, which remains in contract negotiations with CPS — thanked Chkoumbova for her efforts, calling her a “vital partner” in strengthening the relationship between the district and the union.

“Bogdana consistently approached her role with a profound respect for those leading our schools,” CPAA President Troy LaRaviere said in a statement. “She viewed leadership not as a title, but as a responsibility to engage with integrity and move forward, even in the face of past challenges. Her commitment to public education and to equity was evident throughout her tenure.”

Chkoumbova was also one of the district’s main negotiators in its bargaining with the Chicago Teachers Union, whose new four-year labor contract was approved by the Board of Education last week.

“Transition is never easy, and this time will be no exception,” she wrote in her letter. “But I have complete confidence that you, the people at the forefront of this work, will continue providing our students and school communities with the guidance and support they need. I am departing with pride in what we’ve built together, and with confidence in where things stand for CPS today.”

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