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Last week, the Acero charter network announced it would close seven campuses by the end of the school year — impacting more than 2,000 students and 270 teachers. The charter school network cites declining enrollment, rising personnel and facility costs, and a $40 million deficit. But parents and teachers are fighting back, calling for Chicago Public Schools to absorb the closing schools. 

Urban Prep Englewood campus (artistmac / Flickr)

An Illinois appellate court this week ruled that Chicago Public Schools did not violate a moratorium on school closures when it voted down charter renewals for a pair of South Side high schools.

(WTTW News)

Chicago Teachers Union-backed educators at two Instituto del Progreso Latino charter schools are going on strike after they say little progress was made during the latest round of contract negotiations over the weekend.

(WTTW News)

Chicago Teachers Union-backed educators at a pair of Instituto del Progreso Latino charter schools could go on strike early next month after more than two years of bargaining.

Urban Prep Englewood campus (artistmac / Flickr)

The Chicago Board of Education is expected to renew the campus agreement for Urban Prep charter schools located in Bronzeville and Englewood after a judge ruled that CPS violated its moratorium on school closures by attempting to take control of the schools.

Urban Prep Englewood campus (artistmac / Flickr)

CPS said it has already appealed the ruling

A Cook County judge has ruled in favor of Urban Prep Academies, which had sued to maintain control of two charter campuses after Chicago Public Schools planned to take them over, amid allegations of sexual and financial misconduct by UPA leadership.

Urban Prep Englewood campus (artistmac / Flickr)

The Chicago Board of Education on Wednesday voted to revoke the charters for Urban Prep Academies campuses in Englewood and Bronzeville, with CPS itself set to step in and begin managing those schools.

Cleopatra Cowley-Pendleton appears on “Chicago Tonight” on Sept. 27, 2022. (WTTW News)
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Nine years after Hadiya Pendleton’s death, her mother, Cleopatra Cowley-Pendleton, is still fighting to end gun violence. She founded Hadiya’s Promise – a nonprofit organization dedicated to ending gun violence through education.

Chicago International Charter School educators picketed outside CW Henderson on Feb. 6, 2019. (Chicago Tonight)

Classes will resume Tuesday at four Chicago International Charter Schools following a two-week long strike that ended early Monday morning.

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A former reading specialist at a Chicago charter school claims she faced retaliation and termination last year after voicing concerns about special education students she believes were illegally denied proper supports.

Chicago International Charter School teachers strike on Tuesday, Feb. 5, 2019. (@AFTunion / Twitter)

Educators say Chicago International Charter School leadership refuses to use a $36 million surplus on staff raises or classroom improvements. Around 2,200 students are being impacted by the strike.

Educators with Acero charter schools strike outside Veterans Memorial Charter School Campus on Tuesday, Dec. 4, 2018. (Tyler LaRiviere / Chicago Sun-Times via AP)

About 500 Chicago charter school teachers and 8,000 students were back in the classroom after a historic, nearly weeklong strike came to an end Sunday.

Stacy Davis Gates, vice president of the Chicago Teachers Union, speaks during a news conference at the CTU headquarters in Chicago on Sunday, Dec. 9, 2018. (Colin Boyle / Chicago Sun-Times via AP)

The Chicago Teachers Union said more than 500 teachers will return to classes Monday at Acero’s 15 schools with 7,500 predominantly Latino students. 

Charter school teachers including Vanessa Cerf-Nikolakakis, center, of Torres Elementary School, and other supporters walk the picket line outside the Acero's Zizumbo Elementary Charter School, Tuesday, Dec. 4, 2018. (Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune via AP)

Classes were canceled for Acero’s 7,500 predominantly Latino students, and Chicago Teachers Union President Jesse Sharkey said the strike would last “until they come back with an offer that respects our students and the people who educate them.”

Kwame Nkrumah Charter School and Urban Prep West Charter School have both failed to “provide a high quality education” for their students, the district says.

Several hundred Chicago charter school teachers say they’re willing to walk off the job if they can’t reach a contract agreement with their charter operator, Acero.