Candidate Q&A
Why are you running?
I’m running for the Chicago Board of Education because I believe in the transformative power of public education and the urgent need for responsible leadership. As a former middle school math teacher, I’ve seen how ongoing underfunding and inequity affect our students’ ability to succeed. That’s why I transitioned into policy and advocacy, where I’ve worked to address the structural barriers to every child receiving the high-quality education they deserve.
In my current role as Executive Director of Citizen Action Illinois, the state’s largest progressive policy and political coalition, I’ve worked to pass legislation that makes healthcare more affordable for working families. I’ve learned how to organize within communities, build coalitions, work productively with legislators, and navigate Springfield to deliver real results—skills that will serve me well on the Board of Education. My approach has always centered on responsible budgeting and making sure that public resources are used where they have the greatest impact. For our schools, that means equitable funding, improved early childhood education, and ensuring our students have access to high-quality after-school programs.
CPS needs leadership that can be trusted to see and hear the needs of the communities it serves. One of the most urgent issues facing CPS is the drastic cuts to after-school programs, including an 80% reduction for debate. From my experience as a volunteer debate coach and policy advocate, I know these programs are critical for developing students’ confidence, critical thinking, and leadership skills. These cuts are short-sighted and harmful, especially for students in underserved neighborhoods who rely on these programs for enrichment and opportunity. If we want to see our children thrive, we need to prioritize investing in after-school programming, not cutting it.
This election is about making sure we invest in the future of every child in Chicago. I’ve spent my career working on behalf of families and communities to ensure the systems meant to support them are accountable and effective. As a member of the Board of Education, I will bring that same focus to ensuring that our schools are funded equitably, that after-school programs are expanded, and that every decision is made with the goal of improving academic outcomes for our kids. This commitment is why I have received the endorsement of over 10 state legislators, including Rep. Kam Buckner, Rep. Kim du Buclet, Rep. Lilian Jimenez, Sen. Omar Aquino, and Sen. Lakesia Collins, as well as Illinois State Treasurer Mike Frerichs. These leaders have worked with me, know my commitment to public service, and trust me to advocate for responsible, results-oriented policies that will create a fully-funded CPS students and parents can be proud of.
Why are you the most qualified candidate?
Rising to the challenges facing CPS will require our newly-elected school board to have a mix of practical, policy, and political experience. I have all three. As a former middle school teacher and current debate team coach at a school in Brighton Park, I have seen firsthand the challenges that students and teachers face daily. I have always been passionate about education and equity, values instilled in me by my immigrant parents. This commitment led me to Teach for America, where I taught middle school mathematics at an English/Spanish bilingual school.
I now serve as Director of Citizen Action/Illinois, where I organize at the state and local level to secure policy change. I’ve worked to pass legislation that makes healthcare more affordable for working families and learned how to organize within communities, build coalitions, work productively with legislators, and navigate Springfield to deliver real results.
I hold a Master of Public Policy degree with a concentration in Social and Urban Policy from the Harvard Kennedy School and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Economics from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. During my teaching career and later during graduate school, I remained actively engaged in electoral politics, and have managed over a half-dozen wining campaigns for school board and state representative in Illinois.
What is the biggest issue facing your specific school board district?
Inequality of opportunity is our biggest issue in District 6, which stretches from Wicker Park to Hyde Park. There is no reason that a child in Chicago should get a worse education simply because of the neighborhood they grow up in—access to language classes, after school programming, and arts instruction should never be conditioned on a child’s street address.
How has your district been impacted by the shuttering of CPS schools?
District 6 was among the most impacted by the dramatic shuttering of 50 schools in 2013, the largest such closure in American history. Families across my district were affected, and this is part of the reason why I do not support more school closures, which tend to tear at the fabric of communities in need. If it is ever necessary as an absolute last resort, the input of families in the community that make up the school, budget analyses, and racial impact analyses should be critical to making these painful decisions.
How have your district’s schools been impacted by students who are new arrivals to the U.S. and how should CPS best accommodate those students and families?
CPS is now serving around 8,000 students who have arrived in our city since August 2022 as part of a manufactured humanitarian crisis created by Texas’ governor. Our response cannot be treated as a zero-sum game where different communities are pitted against each other. District 6 has shouldered its share of responsibility for new arrivals in- and outside of the school context, and it is vital that we continue to advocate for critical federal and state funding to support these efforts, including by making sure that schools have funding to support additional multi-lingual staff and social workers to help students who have just completed a difficult immigration journey. At the same time, we cannot be blind to the fact that Black families in many parts of Chicago have been asked to shoulder too much for too long, and that those who have been living here for generations deserve access to the same level of resources and support.
How do you believe the school board should handle the looming fiscal crisis at Chicago Public Schools?
I support the current Board’s planned hiring freeze and cuts for central office positions; leaning on our city's elected officials with Springfield relationships to advocate for more funding; and prioritizing using school building space efficiently to generate revenue and meet other community needs. I would also consider the possibility of new revenue sources to increase funding, provided that I do not support raising property taxes or implementing regressive taxes that primarily affect lower-income communities.
A moratorium on closing CPS schools is set to expire in January. Should CPS consolidate more schools?
Not at this time. Instead of considering closures, CPS should actively explore colocation opportunities with childcare centers. Our education system begins with early childhood education, but 84% of Chicagoans live in childcare deserts with no accessible options. Even where childcare exists, fewer than 1 in 6 Illinois centers receive a high-quality rating under the state’s QRIS. Cost is another barrier: in 2015, full-time infant care at an Illinois center averaged $14,829 per year—16% of the median income for a married couple with children—and has only gotten more expensive since the pandemic. Expanding child care centers in underutilized buildings would address multiple needs.
What is your position on closing selective enrollment schools?
I am strongly against closing selective enrollment schools.
These schools provide unique opportunities for students and have long been a source of pride and achievement in our city. Many families rely on them as pathways to academic success, and cutting back on these options would unfairly limit choices for parents and students who are seeking the best fit for their educational needs.
However, we need to close the gap between selective enrollment and neighborhood schools by investing more in neighborhood schools—not by cutting resources to magnet and selective enrollment schools, but by ensuring every neighborhood school has the funding, resources, and support to thrive. No student should feel like they need to leave their community to get a high-quality education. All schools—whether selective enrollment, magnet, or neighborhood—should be strong, well-resourced, and responsive to the needs of their students and families.
What we need is an “all of the above” approach. We can support neighborhood schools without taking opportunities away from those attending selective enrollment and magnet programs. It’s possible to expand and improve neighborhood schools without diminishing the unique options that already exist for Chicago’s students. Doing both is critical to ensuring that our education system serves every child, regardless of where they live.
What is your position on charter schools?
All types of school—neighborhood, selective enrollment, magnet, and charter—play a role in Chicago’s educational ecosystem. I support public education that is truly public and do not support increasing the role of charter schools. To the extent possible under the law, the Board should exert maximum oversight over charter schools and hold them accountable whenever they falter in providing Chicago’s kids with the high-quality education in a safe learning environment that they deserve.
Is your campaign being supported by the Chicago Teachers Union?
Yes
The Chicago Teachers Union wants the district to focus on retrofitting schools with equipment that will battle the effects of climate change. Is spending money that way right now a good idea with the massive deficit the district faces?
Certain parts of these proposals are undeniably essential. For instance, Chicago’s schools are, on average, over 80 years old, with the oldest dating back to the time of the Chicago Fire. Given this, the CTU's push to modernize schools for greater energy efficiency is as practical as any other necessary deferred capital investment.
Similarly, there’s no debate about the urgent need to replace lead water pipes, which pose a serious risk of irreversible brain damage to our students. Other proposals, however, should be considered on a case-by-case basis, weighing costs and the availability of state and federal funding.
What is your biggest priority and what do you hope to accomplish on the Chicago Board of Education?
Improving student achievement is my top priority, as it should be for anyone seeking this position. About 31% of CPS elementary students are considered proficient in reading, and only 19% are proficient in math. Those numbers are unacceptable. Our students are not being set up for future success by the current system. However, there is some progress—more elementary students are proficient in reading compared to last year, with performance now above pre-pandemic levels for the first time. This gives me hope, but we must push for much greater growth, especially when it comes to closing the achievement gap between Black and White students.