CPS is the third largest public school system in the country. In June 2004, Mayor Richard Daley launched Renaissance 2010 in the city’s latest attempt to reform its schools. Before we can address the reforms instituted under Renaissance 2010, let’s look at a few basic facts about the Chicago Public School System. In a word, its big.
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Elementary Schools (483)
- 407 traditional elementary schools
- 41 magnet schools
- 18 middle schools
- 8 gifted centers
- 9 special schools
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Student Enrollment
- 21,388 Pre-School
- 27,901 kindergarten
- 246,771 elementary (1-8)
- 112,541 secondary
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High Schools (116)
- 38 general/technical
- 10 vocational/career schools
- 13 magnet schools
- 8 math & science academy
- 5 military academy
- 21 small schools
- 8 achievement academy
- 5 alternative school
- 8 special ed schools
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Student Racial Breakdown
- 46.5% African-American
- 39.1% Latino
- 8.0% White
- 3.3% Asian/Pacific Islander
- 2.9% Multi-Racial
- 0.2% Native American
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Charter Schools (56) includes all campuses
- 35 Elementary campuses
- 21 High School campuses
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Additional Student Information
- 84.9% of students from low-income families
- 18.8% of Illinois public school students attend CPS
- 14.4% are limited-English-proficient
- 94.0% attendance rate for elementary schools
- 84.3% attendance rate for high schools
- 91.3% citywide attendance rate
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Total Positions
- 39,205 (public schools)
- 47 (non-public schools)
- 3,583 (citywide
- 1,582 (central/regional)
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* Pupil/Teacher Information
- 21.1 pupils per teacher in elementary schools
- 19.6 pupils per teacher in high school
- $66,178 average teacher salary
- $117,364 average administrator salary
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588 Principals
- 54.1% African-American
- 31.3% White
- 13.4% Latino
- 1.0% Asian/Pacific Islander
- 0.2% Native American
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24,664 Teachers
- 35.8% African-American
- 47.3% White
- 13.2% Latino
- 3.1% Asian/Pacific Islander
- 0.6% Native American
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- Local sources: $2.024 billion
- State sources: $1.653 billion
- Federal sources: $0.862 billion
- Appropriated Fund Balance: $0.073 billion
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- Per pupil operating expenditures as of FY05-06
- $10,555 operating expenditure per pupil
- $9,488 per capita tuition
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Brian- I will be interested (because of my public school employment) to see where your discussion goes. I currently work in a larger district in North Carolina and am very interested in public education reform. The school I work for is considered low performing and consists of 70-80% African American students. But, it is a mix of SES. I believe school choice and rezoning has played a major role in the performance (whether for good or bad) in my district.
I have my own opinions about how we can improve the quality of our schools, but I’ll wait to see what others have to say.