Education
Meet the 21 Members of Chicago’s First-Ever Fully Elected Board of Education
For the first time ever, Chicagoans have fully elected their Board of Education.
With several new faces set to join the 21-member board in January following Chicago’s first ever citywide board elections, take a moment to learn more about who will be making critical decisions for Chicago Public Schools, its students and their families.
Hear below from each board representative — in their own words — about who they are, why they ran and what they hope to accomplish once they’re sworn in to office.
CPS Board President-elect Jessica Biggs. (Akilah Townsend for Chalkbeat)
President: Jessica Biggs
A former CPS teacher and principal, Biggs defeated Hilario Dominguez and Victor P. Henderson in the board’s lone citywide race to become the next board president. Biggs is the current District 6B representative and was the only incumbent board member who ran for president.
“I have spent 20 years in classrooms, schools, and communities, and I have seen what becomes possible for kids when the adults around them are aligned,” Biggs said in the WTTW News Voter Guide. “Right now they are not. This board has spent too much of its first two years on adult politics while student learning waited.”
Biggs campaigned on a multi-year financial plan to improve the cash-strapped school district’s finances. She voted against an amendment to the district’s latest budget, which relies on $150 million in not-yet-committed state funding, calling it a “reckless move,” but said she “want(s) that state money, and I will work to get it.”
Beyond spending, Biggs is also focused on improving student learning and said she plans to require that the board set “explicit K-2 literacy and numeracy goals, report progress publicly every quarter, and disaggregate results for students with disabilities, Black students, English learners, and students living in poverty.”
“Five years from now, every Chicagoan should be able to say they knew what this board was focused on, because the communication was clear and the results showed up in schools,” Biggs said in the Voter Guide. “Public education exists so young people can build the knowledge and skill to live a life of their choosing, shape the world around them, and participate in our democracy.”
District 1A representative Margie B. Luczak. (Akilah Townsend for Chalkbeat)
District 1A: Margie B. Luczak
A retired Chicago police officer, Luczak will join the board after defeating incumbent Ed Bannon to represent the Far Northwest Side district.
Spending 27 years in policing taught Luczak the importance of “de-escalation, listening accountability, transparency and treating people fairly,” she said.
“I want to bring the same approach to the board and be the voice for the students, teachers, working families and bring responsible financial management,” Luczak said in the WTTW News Voter Guide.
She said the top issues facing District 1A are dilapidated sports fields and families concerned with paying higher tax levies.
“I won’t ask working families for more money,” she said, adding that CPS must demonstrate it is using the resources it has responsibly.
District 1B representative Claudia Peralta. (Provided)
District 1B: Claudia Peralta
Peralta defeated Michelle N. Pierre to secure the District 1B board seat set to be vacated by incumbent Jennifer Custer, who initially ran for the board president position before dropping from the race.
The district director for U.S. Rep. Delia Ramirez, Peralta is a CPS grad, parent and former Local School Council member who said she understands the importance of neighborhood schools to Chicago families.
“I want to help ensure our schools have the educators, student supports, safe and modern facilities, and academic opportunities students need to succeed,” she said in the WTTW News Voter Guide, “while protecting critical services for students with disabilities, multilingual learners, and immigrant and newcomer families.”
She said the biggest issue facing her district is ensuring neighborhood schools have the resources necessary to deliver “high-quality, inclusive education to all students.”
“Families require fully resourced classrooms with adequate staffing, reduced class sizes, modern facilities, and robust bilingual and mental health programming,” she said. “School communities also want welcoming environments where immigrant and newcomer families feel safe, valued, and fully supported.”
District 2A representative Ebony DeBerry. (Akilah Townsend for Chalkbeat)
District 2A: Ebony DeBerry
A returning member, DeBerry secured her reelection to the board after defeating challenger Hector Morales.
DeBerry works as the manager of educational initiatives at the ONE Northside community organization and said her goal is to secure “true equality amongst our schools” and bring “teacher and parent voice to decision-making tables.”
“CPS is a tale of two cities: some schools are high-performing and others are barely functioning,” she said in the WTTW News Voter Guide. “We must improve the equity in our system. … Too many students are not currently prepared, and the achievement gap in this city is striking.”
The biggest issue facing DeBerry’s Far North Side district is language access and poverty, she said, especially in many immigrant communities.
“Their parents’ earning potential is blocked for the same reasons,” DeBerry said. “Many children have to shoulder the burden of all English communications in their family, and it’s a huge responsibility for them. We must expand ESL programming and ensure that programming with a diversity of languages is being offered in the schools that have high levels of ESL students.”
District 2B representative Deborah “Debby” Pope. (Akilah Townsend for Chalkbeat)
District 2B: Deborah “Debby” Pope
Another incumbent, Pope won another term on the board after defeating Kyna Lenhof and Daniel Basco. She was first appointed to the board in 2024 by Mayor Brandon Johnson.
A retired CPS high school teacher, Pope said her decades as an educator and CPS parent showed the wealth disparity between the under-resourced neighborhood high schools where she worked and the selective enrollment school where she sent her children.
“This added to my motivation to do what I could to fight for equity and fully funded schools,” she said in the WTTW News Voter Guide.
Pope said the issues residents in her district most often bring up include special education staffing and a lack of sufficient janitorial services, as well as school safety, class size and extracurricular activities.
She believes the district’s biggest priority should be keeping children safe, both physically and psychologically.
“This requires both policy, implementation and resources such as social workers, counselors, restorative justice coaches, English language coordinators and, for our students with disabilities, adequate special education teachers, special education classroom assistants, and other service providers,” Pope said.
District 3A representative Norma Rios-Sierra. (Provided)
District 3A: Norma Rios-Sierra
A special projects manager with the Chicago Park District, Rios-Sierra retained her District 3A board seat, defeating challenger Peter Gonzales. She was first appointed to the board in 2024 by Mayor Brandon Johnson.
She said her top three priorities for the board are increasing CPS funding, prioritizing neighborhood schools and improving student mental health.
“Every child at CPS should be able to walk to a fully resourced school,” Rios-Sierra said in the WTTW News Voter Guide. “Too many schools are over-crowded, lack adequate mental health professionals, and have a lack of arts and extracurricular programming.”
According to Rios-Sierra, the top issue facing District 3A is student mental health, which has been exacerbated by overcrowding, a lack of sufficient resources, community violence and attacks on immigrant families.
“We know that offering a high-quality education means being responsive to the emotional and mental needs of our students, and all we need to do is listen to what they are telling us directly that they need,” she said. “I believe we can expand access to mental healthcare and wellness resources for our students through partnerships with community organizations and other city departments, trauma-informed curricula and frameworks, peer mentoring programs, and more.”
District 3B representative Jason Dónes. (Akilah Townsend for Chalkbeat)
District 3B: Jason Dónes
Dónes is a newcomer to the board after defeating incumbent Carlos A. Rivas Jr. in one of the election’s tightest races.
With experience as a Local School Council chair at Moos Elementary and the Illinois State Board of Education’s Diverse and Learner Ready Teacher Network, Dónes said he hopes to “correct the bad policies that got us here, and fight for the investments we need to ensure every neighborhood school has the resources it deserves.”
“Neighbors, educators, and parents make up my campaign because they want a board member who listens, shows up, and fights alongside them,” he said in the WTTW News Voter Guide.
According to Dónes, the biggest issue facing CPS as a whole is the uneven quality and opportunity across neighborhood schools, which he said affects attendance, instruction and achievement.
Dónes said a top concern for District 3B’s majority immigrant community is protection from federal immigration authorities.
“Students are already facing instability due to cuts year after year. In some cases, our students come to school hungry and in need. Now add in the fear of abduction, harm and tear-gas on school grounds,” Dónes said. “From school sanctuary teams to legislative efforts like the Safe Schools Act, we must continue to do whatever we can for students and their families to make sure every child can come to school without fear, regardless of their immigration status.”
District 4A representative Karen Zaccor. (Akilah Townsend for Chalkbeat)
District 4A: Karen Zaccor
A retired CPS educator, Zaccor retained her District 4A seat after defeating a pair of challengers in Ellen Sherratt and Angel Alvarez. She was first appointed to the board in 2024 by Mayor Brandon Johnson.
Zaccor has been vocal about pushing for the entirety of the Illinois state funding CPS is owed, rather than relying on “austerity practices that harm low-income and Black and brown communities.”
“We are in a spiral where funding adequacy is declining and cuts are increasing,” she said in the WTTW News Voter Guide. “If we institutionalize the cuts originally made this past spring to balance the budget, next year will be even worse and that is unacceptable.”
Beyond funding, Zaccor said student performance needs to improve, while parents in District 4A have expressed a desire for after-school programming that runs until 6 p.m.
“They need their children to be in a place all day that is safe, nurturing, and focused on developing the whole child,” she said. “As cuts are made and more discretionary money goes to filling personnel needs, less is available for comprehensive after school programming.”
District 4B representative Ellen Rosenfeld. (Akilah Townsend for Chalkbeat)
District 4B: Ellen Rosenfeld
Rosenfeld ran unopposed to retain her seat, which she first won during the 2024 election cycle over Zaccor and others.
A former CPS teacher, Rosenfeld said that throughout her tenure on the board, she’s been “guided by fiscal responsibility and student-centered governance in her votes.”
“I have held district leaders accountable to my vision of a steady, responsible budget that prioritizes student needs,” she said on her campaign website. “My voting record proves this commitment: I’ve voted against high-interest loans that would saddle CPS with debt service, against maximizing the property tax levy without exhausting other options, against a ‘phantom budget’ that relied on unpromised dollars from Springfield, and consistently against wasteful central office spending.”
Rosenfeld also campaigned on improving student safety, strengthening neighborhood schools and ensuring transparent and authentic community engagement.
District 5A representative LaPamela Williams. (Akilah Townsend for Chalkbeat)
District 5A: LaPamela Williams
Williams will join the board after defeating incumbent Aaron “Jitu” Brown. She focused her campaign on three main areas: financial responsibility, addressing chronic absenteeism and providing transparent and accountable leadership.
“Our communities deserve honest communication, open decision making, and leaders who are willing to ask difficult questions, own their decisions, and be accountable for the results,” she wrote on her campaign website.
A community organizer, Williams said CPS and the board must work to fix the root causes of absenteeism and create schools where students “feel safe, supported, engaged, and motivated to show up every day.”
“Every student deserves a safe learning environment that fosters critical thinking, adapts to a changing world, and prepares them for success beyond graduation,” she wrote.
![District 5B representative Michilla "Kyla" Blaise. (Akilah Townsend for Chalkbeat)](/sites/default/files/styles/pull-left/public/article/image-non-gallery/CHI_2026_MichillaBlaise_SQR_01%20Cropped.jpg?itok=PQk11Fb6 "District 5B representative Michilla "Kyla" Blaise. (Akilah Townsend for Chalkbeat)")
District 5B representative Michilla "Kyla" Blaise. (Akilah Townsend for Chalkbeat)
District 5B: Michilla “Kyla” Blaise
Blaise defeated challenger Anthony Hargrove to retain her seat after she was first appointed to the board by Mayor Brandon Johnson in 2024.
Blaise, who works as the chief of staff for Cook County Commissioner Frank J. Aguilar, has repeatedly pushed for additional state dollars for CPS. She introduced the amendment that added $150 million in yet-to-be committed state funding to the school district’s 2027 budget in hopes of staving off possible staff layoffs.
“I have 64 schools in my district,” Blaise said on “Chicago Tonight” on Aug. 3. “I’ve never been to one of them where they said, ‘There’s way too many teachers around here.’ I feel I have a mandate from my folks to make sure that our schools have what they need.”
District 6A representative Isaiah White. (Akilah Townsend for Chalkbeat)
District 6A: Isaiah White
White, a CPS special education classroom assistant, will join the board after defeating incumbent Anusha Thotakura and Brenda Lee Anderson.
He said he decided to run because he wanted to help make CPS “as strong as it possibly can be, for this generation of students and the next.”
“Chicago’s kids deserve the best public schools in the world; they deserve a district that delivers an excellent education in every school,” he said in the WTTW News Voter Guide. “I’ll work tirelessly to make that a reality.”
White said underperforming schools is the biggest issue facing CPS and called it a “tragedy” that a majority of students at scores of schools don’t read or perform math at grade level.
“I believe in a vision of universal academic excellence,” he said, “our job as a board isn’t done until every child in every neighborhood has access to a joyous school that delivers an excellent education.”
District 6B representative Brittany B. Kimble. (Akilah Townsend for Chalkbeat)
District 6B: Brittany B. Kimble
Kimble defeated Michael L. Neal to secure the seat set to be vacated by Jessica Biggs after she was elected board president.
An attorney and CPS mother, Kimble campaigned on strengthening schools, communities, character and students’ minds.
“Building strong children requires more than classrooms and textbooks,” she said on her campaign website. “It requires a commitment from families, educators, community leaders, and policymakers to create environments where every child can thrive.”
Kimble, who appeared on the Nov. 9 episode of “Chicago Tonight,” said one of the biggest issues facing District 6B is a shortage of teachers, adding that she hopes to center the needs of all students in her community.
“Because I don’t want the highest-achieving to feel like they don’t have a representative,” she said. “And absolutely the lowest-achieving students, they have to have a seat at the table and an advocate as well.”
District 7A representative Emma Lozano. (Akilah Townsend for Chalkbeat)
District 7A: Emma Lozano
Lozano retained her board seat after defeating challenger Jesus Ayala Jr.
A community activist and retired pastor, Lozano said she ran for reelection to fight for fully funded neighborhood schools, protect immigrant families and secure racial equity for Black and Latino students.
“A fully elected Board is a historic chance to give the families most affected by school decisions a real voice in them,” she said in the WTTW News Voter Guide. “I have spent my life fighting for Chicago’s immigrant and working families, and winning.”
Pilsen and Little Village families have called for modernized school buildings with clean air, safe water and strong bilingual education, Lozano said. But the biggest issue in her district is a continued fear of immigration enforcement.
“Federal immigration enforcement has spread fear through our neighborhoods and disrupted students’ ability to learn,” she said. “CPS must defend its sanctuary school protections, train all staff on legal protocols, ensure ICE cannot enter schools without a judicial warrant, and connect families to legal and social services.”
District 7B representative Yesenia Lopez. (Provided)
District 7B: Yesenia Lopez
Lopez, a community organizer and CPS grad, was reelected to the board after defeating challenger Erika E. Diaz-Chavez.
Lopez previously worked as the Latino outreach director for Gov. JB Pritzker’s campaign and said she has worked to make sure families have a voice in the decisions shaping their schools.
“This re-election is about faith in a better tomorrow for our students, families, and school community,” she said in a social media post. "That’s what I’m carrying into the next four years. Not fear. Faith."
District 8A representative Angel Gutierrez. (Akilah Townsend for Chalkbeat)
District 8A: Angel Gutierrez
Gutierrez ran unopposed to retain his board seat.
He said his main goal in his next term is to improve the school district’s financial stability through “responsible budgeting, right-sizing, prudent fiscal decisions, and advocating for more equitable funding.”
“I will work closely with the Superintendent, finance team, and district leadership to build a credible, balanced budget based on realistic revenue and responsible spending,” Gutierrez said in the WTTW News Voter Guide.
He voted against the $150 million budget amendment approved by the board, calling it a “fiscally irresponsible” move he believes could “further weaken the district’s long-term financial stability.”
As for District 8A, Gutierrez said his top priorities are expanding full-day pre-K, strengthening services for students with disabilities, and making long-overdue capital improvements across community schools.
District 8B representative Juan Ignacio Gonzalez. (Akilah Townsend for Chalkbeat)
District 8B: Juan Ignacio Gonzalez
Gonzalez will join the board after running unopposed for the District 8B seat.
A Chicago police detective and coffee shop owner, Gonzalez said he hopes to bring “greater accountability, high-quality education, and an independent, community-first voice” to the board.
“The decisions we make today will shape the opportunities available to our children tomorrow,” he said on his campaign website. “I want my child, and every child in District 8B, to have access to schools that challenge them, support them, keep them safe, and prepare them to succeed.”
Gonzalez said he wants to help improve student achievement, implement school-specific approaches to safety and student support and ensure parent voices are included in discussions on CPS policy.
“I will work to be an independent, accessible, and accountable voice on the Board,” he said on his campaign website, “one that listens first, works collaboratively, and never loses sight of who our school system exists to serve.”
District 9A representative Brittany R. Bailey Preston. (Reema Amin / Chalkbeat)
District 9A: Brittany R. Bailey Preston
Preston won her seat after running unopposed once incumbent board member Angel Velez was removed from the ballot for failing to secure enough campaign petition signatures.
Following her victory, Preston — a mother of six and former construction company manager — told WBEZ and the Chicago Sun-Times that her main priorities include improving student reading levels and expanding opportunities for students to enroll in trade programs.
“This election is about more than politics,” she wrote in a social media post. “It’s about our families, our communities, and making sure every child has access to a quality education, regardless of their ZIP code.”
District 9B representative Therese Boyle. (Provided)
District 9B: Therese Boyle
Boyle was reelected to her District 9B seat after defeating challenger Katherine S. Dunneback.
A retired CPS teacher and psychologist, Boyle campaigned on fixing CPS’ finances, improving student outcomes and prioritizing the safety and well-being of students and staff.
“I am running for the Chicago School Board to give back to the Chicago community that has given so much to me & my family,” she wrote on her campaign website. “I raised my family in District 9B. I earned my living working in the schools across District 9B.”
Boyle told Chalkbeat Chicago that voters in her district have repeatedly flagged high property taxes as their No. 1 concern, and that her constituents want her to make sure CPS is spending its money wisely.
![District 10A representative Che "Rhymefest" Smith. (Akilah Townsend for Chalkbeat)](/sites/default/files/styles/pull-right/public/article/image-non-gallery/CHI_2026_Che_Rhymefest_Smith_SQR_01%20Cropped.jpg?itok=Q75VZQvB "District 10A representative Che "Rhymefest" Smith. (Akilah Townsend for Chalkbeat)")
District 10A representative Che "Rhymefest" Smith. (Akilah Townsend for Chalkbeat)
District 10A: Che “Rhymefest” Smith
Smith was unopposed as he retained his District 10A board seat.
A Grammy and Academy Award-winning writer and recording artist, “Rhymefest” said his priorities as he returns to the board include improving student literacy, addressing Chicago Public Schools’ dwindling enrollment and securing additional revenue for the district.
“People want the school board to govern, not fight,” he said in a video posted to social media following his election victory. “You want us to work across differences. You want us to care about math, reading literacy, comprehension and people just showing up to school.”
District 10B representative Connie Anderson. (Akilah Townsend for Chalkbeat)
District 10B: Connie Anderson
Anderson retained her seat just months after Mayor Brandon Johnson made her the last mayoral-appointed member of the board.
She told Chalkbeat Chicago that large classrooms and a lack of classroom assistance are top concerns for her district.
In addition to addressing district finances, Anderson said she wants to expand special education staffing, hands-on job training, technical education classes and art and music programming.
“The political establishment has had its chance,” she wrote on her campaign website. “Now it’s our time. It’s past time for the southside to be represented by a parent advocate who fought tirelessly for her learning disabled daughter and knows that every child is valued and deserves the very best education and life opportunities.”
