As a potential return to in-person learning draws nearer for some Chicago Public Schools students, the Chicago Teachers Union is seeking help in negotiations with the district over classroom reopenings.

Parents and activists are calling on Chicago Public Schools to answer critical safety questions about in-person learning before some of the district’s most vulnerable students return to their classrooms.

“We all want to return to our students. We don’t want to die doing our jobs, and we don’t want to be vectors for spreading illness or death to our students and their families,” CTU Vice President Stacy Davis Gates said.

The head of the board handling the Chicago Teachers Union’s pension fund disclosed a toxic culture among trustees and claimed some union members had been pushing to hire former staffers of Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan.

“While we’re very, very conscious that people want to get their kids back in schools, we want to be back in school too,” CTU President Jesse Sharkey said Monday. “It’s also critical that people be safe. You can’t learn if you’re dead.”

Chicago Teachers Union leadership and members said CPS needs to better tailor student schedules to reduce screen time and allow clinicians to do more work from home to limit the number of people who are in school buildings on a daily basis.

Beyond first-day jitters, Chicago educators expressed concerns over stable internet connections and checking in with students about COVID-19 as classes in Chicago Public Schools resumed Tuesday for a fall unlike any other.

Three weeks before students return to a fully remote instruction plan for the fall, Chicago Public Schools released its final reopening plan and updated remote learning guidelines for students and families.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced Wednesday that Chicago Public Schools is moving to a fully remote schedule this fall. Our politics team of Amanda Vinicky, Paris Schutz and Heather Cherone digs into that story and more in this week’s roundtable.

Chicago Public Schools will start the school year on Sept. 8 the same way they ended the last academic year — with all students taking classes remotely, officials announced Wednesday.

In order for schools to move to fully remote instruction this fall, the city of Chicago must hit a rolling average of 400 new COVID-19 cases per day, according to new guidance from Chicago Public Schools.

It’s become one of the most pressing questions of the summer: Will schools reopen this fall, and if so, how will they do it safely? We speak with Chicago Public Schools CEO Janice Jackson.

CPS released its long-awaited reopening framework on Friday. But these plans are just preliminary recommendations, and a final decision on in-person instruction will not be made until late August.

Chicago Teachers Union President Jesse Sharkey said Thursday the school district must begin the 2020-21 academic year with remote learning until there are firm guidelines and protocols in place to ensure kids and staff alike are protected from COVID-19.

Nearly two years after an audit by the city’s watchdog found significant problems with allowing Chicago police officers to patrol schools, aldermen will hold a hearing on the program at the center of the debate over defunding the police department.

Teachers, parents and students across Illinois finally have an answer to the question of whether or not classrooms will reopen in the fall — and the answer is yes. But it’s not going to be business as usual.