Thousands of kids flooded the hallways of Chicago Public Schools on Monday for the first day of school, but many of these students may become chronically absent as the school year continues — meaning they will miss 10% or more of classroom instruction.

“Chicago Tonight” anchor Brandis Friedman will moderate a panel of Jessica Biggs, Jennifer Custer, Hilario Dominguez, Victor P. Henderson and Sendhil Revuluri before a live studio audience of Chicago residents for an hourlong forum on Sept. 15.

Hundreds of thousands of Chicago Public Schools students returned to their classrooms across the city Monday on the first day of school for the 2026-27 academic year as local officials continue pushing for more state funding to help prevent staffing layoffs.

For decades, Chicago has been the only city in Illinois with its board of education handpicked by its mayor. In the November general election, for the first time ever, all 21 seats on the board will be up for grabs, ending a reign of mayoral control that dates back to 1995 under Richard M. Daley.

A federal judge this week sentenced Brian Metcalf, a former CPS network chief and principal at Gage Park High School, to a year and one day in prison after he entered a guilty plea on wire fraud charges.

Four Chicago Public Schools high schools have been ranked among the best in the country, according to a new list from U.S. News & World Report.

Mark Twain Elementary principal Matthew Moline confirmed the shooting in a letter to families Tuesday, stating that “shots were fired inside our school building,” though he added that no students were present in the building at the time.

Illinois lawmakers will have a new item on their agenda when they convene for the fall veto session in November — finding an extra $150 million for Chicago Public Schools. The Chicago Board of Education approved a budget that assumes additional state funding to avoid layoffs.

A divided Chicago Board of Education last week approved a nearly $10 billion budget that relies on an additional $150 million in state funding. The spending plan comes after weeks of debate among CPS officials, board members and labor unions over how the district should close a $732 million budget gap.

Chicago Public Schools principals and staff this week will begin training as the district is set to implement its holistic safety plan citywide — more than two years after police officers were removed from district campuses.

It remains unclear where the additional funds would come from. The $55.9 billion spending plan Pritzker signed into law in June, which relies on hundreds of millions of dollars in tax hikes to bring it into balance, leaves little wiggle room.

The Chicago Board of Education on Thursday passed an approximately $10 billion budget after hours of contentious debate, a lengthy recess, sharp questions over revenue assumptions and a last-minute amendment.

CPS CEO Macquline King joined “Chicago Tonight” to discuss her revised budget and why she thinks board members should pass it. 

With a Thursday vote looming on the next Chicago Public Schools budget, a revised proposal from the district looks to avoid furloughs to close its $732 million deficit, but still leaves 1,601 layoffs on the table — including 759 teachers.

CPS CEO Macquline King unveiled a proposed $9.88 billion budget to close the district’s funding gap. The plan calls for $200 million in TIF funding, the layoff of 760 teachers and 801 support staff, and five unpaid furlough days for CPS employees.

With a vote next week scheduled on Chicago Public Schools’ $9.88 billion budget plan, members of the city’s Board of Education on Monday shared concerns over proposed cuts, a lack of state funding and their voting timeline.