Elementary and secondary students in Illinois showed consistent improvements in their reading and math scores while the state’s high school graduation rate reached a 13-year high for the most recently concluded school year.

October marks 60 years since nearly 250,000 CPS students and their parents flooded the streets of Chicago in what’s known as Freedom Day — a massive protest of segregation in Chicago Public Schools and the superintendent at the time, Benjamin Willis.

Nearly 600 part-time faculty members at Columbia College walked off the job Monday. The faculty union and administration have been contract bargaining since May.

State Sen. Robert Martwick, a Democrat who represents parts of the city’s Northwest Side, said if Chicago wants a diverse school board, it needs to remove barriers that would prevent some residents from running for board seats.

Vowing to make Illinois the top state in the nation for child care accessibility, Gov. J.B. Pritzker unveiled a plan to consolidate all the state’s early childhood programs and funding into one new state agency. Currently, early childhood services are spread across three agencies.

The first cohort of students in Northwestern University’s Prison Education Program are set to graduate next month, and when they do they’ll be joined by one of the most renowned writers and journalists in the country.

This Sunday marks 60 years to the day nearly 250,000 Chicago Public Schools students skipped school to boycott CPS. Students and their parents flooded the streets of Chicago in what’s known as Freedom Day, a massive protest of the segregation in CPS and the superintendent at the time, Benjamin Willis.

CPS officials said the High School Admissions Test will be held for district students on either Oct. 24 or Oct. 25 for those taking the exam in English. Students testing in Spanish, Arabic, Polish, Urdu or Simplified Chinese will take the HSAT at school on Nov. 1.

The supply of education professionals continues to improve in Illinois despite strains brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, but persistent issues remain in certain regions of the state and within some teaching fields.

The average student loan debt for Illinoisans is nearly $38,000. Almost 55% of the more than 1 million borrowers in Illinois are under the age of 35, according to the Education Data Initiative.

Students at private schools across Illinois are at risk of losing their scholarships if state lawmakers don’t extend the Invest in Kids Act, which is slated to end Dec. 31.

The Daily Northwestern’s explosive interview this summer with a former football player about alleged hazing was key to the firing of head coach Pat Fitzgerald, who is suing for wrongful termination.

The district said it paused the administration of the hour-long High School Admissions Test for eighth grade CPS students seeking to enroll in a district selective enrollment high school.

Chicagoans are set to see a new office on their ballot in November 2024. For the first time, voters will elect members to the Chicago Board of Education. While election day is set, the districts that board members will run in have not been decided.

The federally mandated Early Intervention program is plagued by chronic staffing shortages nationwide, leaving thousands of desperate parents frustrated: They know their children need support, they’re aware of proven therapies that could make a difference, but they have to wait for months to get the help they need.

The escalating migrant crisis dominated political news in Chicago this week. Meanwhile, WTTW News investigated instances of Chicago Public Schools hiring fired Chicago police officers to work as security guards. Here are five stories you may have missed.