“What we’ve heard from the families is that we should not close these schools,” CPS Chief Portfolio Officer Alfonso Carmona told the Chicago Board of Education during its Thursday meeting.

CPS CEO Pedro Martinez said the district enacted a “comprehensive response” to protect its students, families and staff when President-elect Donald Trump’s first term began in 2017, and CPS officials are planning to take similar steps before Trump’s inauguration next month.

Sean Harden — who previously worked as Chicago Public Schools’ deputy CEO of community affairs and as an executive assistant to former Mayor Richard M. Daley — took his oath of office and was sworn in as the board’s seventh member Thursday.

The Merriam-Webster entry for “polarization” reflects scientific and metaphorical definitions. It’s most commonly used to mean “causing strong disagreement between opposing factions or groupings.” Merriam-Webster, which logs 100 million pageviews a month on its site, chooses its word of the year based on data, tracking a rise in search and usage.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s views on health and his stated policy initiatives could have far-reaching effects on public health, including on policies in Illinois. Kennedy has often encouraged healthier food consumption for Americans — a goal Illinois Democrats could support. But Kennedy holds other views at odds with science.

Despite the attorney general’s declaration that Illinois schools should stop using police to discipline students, officers statewide continue to ticket kids with costly fines. One lawmaker will again pursue legislation to end the practice.

That new plan, called Vision 2030, was announced Friday and is built around three main pillars: future-focused learning, shared accountability, and predictable funding.

CPS Chief Education Officer Bogdana Chkoumbova, the district’s second highest ranking leader, told reporters Thursday that the two sides remain “significantly” far apart at a time when CPS is facing a financial crisis.

The Chicago Board of Education is in the midst of massive change. Residents just voted in 10 members of the city’s first elected school board.

Illinois lawmakers previously approved $50 million for after-school and summer programs, but that funding hasn’t reached schools yet. This delay leaves Chicago Public Schools and local organizations facing difficult budget cuts.

The six-member board on Thursday unanimously approved a measure demanding Acero return any unspent public funding if it moves ahead with the closures at the end of the current school year.

The board is set to meet outside of its typical monthly schedule Thursday in a special meeting where it will take up only a small handful of matters, including a resolution to maintain the seven charter schools Acero plans to close.

Therese Boyle and Che “Rhymefest” Smith won their races for the Chicago Board of Education, according to the Associated Press.

School districts currently work with processing companies to offer cashless payment systems for families. But the companies can charge “processing fees” for each transaction.

The results of the hard-fought and expensive races will usher in a new era for the 325,000 students who attend Chicago Public Schools — and serve as a referendum on the leadership of Mayor Brandon Johnson, a former teacher, and the Chicago Teachers Union.

Barbara Taylor Bowman is known not only for her lifelong work in the field and for co-founding the Erikson Institute, but also as the mother of Valerie Jarrett, an advisor to former President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama.