The Chicago Public Education Fund

06/15/2026

Each week, we lift up a Malott Educator Fellow who is making a meaningful difference for students.

This week, we’re proud to spotlight Rashad Talley, principal at Wendell Phillips High School and a member of our 2025–26 Malott Educator Fellowship cohort.

As a Malott Fellow, Talley has focused on leveraging his systems mindset and distributive leadership strategy to ensure his team is efficient, coordinated, and well-informed, thereby meeting student needs.

This year, Wendell Phillips High School is on track to reduce chronic absenteeism by eight percentage points, showing that Talley’s approach to shared ownership is moving student outcomes in the right direction.

Principal Talley has framed this progress as a collaborative accomplishment. He has consistently credited the hard work of students, the commitment of staff, and the trust of families in helping drive the school’s success.

By openly celebrating the school’s progress and grounding it in strong instruction and community partnership, principal Talley is helping build a culture of belief, pride, and shared momentum at Phillips.

06/15/2026

Seven CPS charter operators with a total of 16 campuses received contract approvals from the Chicago Board of Education (CBOE) in late May and early June, ensuring solid foundations for over 8,000 students and their families.

Congratulations to all of the schools, teachers, parents, and community members involved in the renewal process!

06/08/2026

Each week, we lift up a Malott leader who is making a meaningful difference for students.

This week, we’re proud to spotlight Dr. Heidy Moran, principal at Carl Schurz High School and a member of our 2025–26 Malott Educator Fellowship cohort.

Dr. Moran and her team recently earned an award at each of the four tiers presented at The Fund’s 2026 Design Challenge Showcase event, including the Grand Prize, the Inclusive and Supportive Environment Award, the Community Choice Award, and the Finalist Award. Their winning initiative, Schurz Shoulder to Shoulder, is a peer mentorship and parent support program designed to support the school’s large population of transfer students.

This recognition reflects the intentional work happening at Schurz to ensure students and families feel connected and supported from the moment they arrive. This school year alone, Schurz welcomed 626 transfer students, many of whom were navigating significant transitions and challenges outside of school.

Through peer connection, family engagement, and a deep commitment to belonging, Dr. Moran and her team are building a school culture where students feel seen, supported, and valued. Beyond the awards themselves, this work has opened new opportunities for partnerships, community support, and continued investment in the Schurz community.

06/03/2026

Over the past few weeks, our CEO Heather Anichini has walked through several major drivers shaping CPS school budgets in FY27.

In May, CPS announced a $732M deficit for FY27, up from the $520M projected in the FY26 Budget Book.

School-level budgets absorb nearly $100M of that gap. How CPS closes the rest is still an open question.

Today's budget update: The Opportunity Index (OI)

The OI is CPS's equity-based formula for directing resources to schools with greater student and community needs. Each school receives a score based on 11 metrics tied to student demographics, community characteristics, and historical funding levels.

In FY26, scores ranged from 11 to 47. Higher scores indicate greater relative need and generally lead to more resources.
Higher need = more teaching positions.

OI scores are relative and shift year to year. For schools near a threshold, even a small change can trigger significant budget impact.

Principals have until June 9 to appeal allocations, work with their Local School Councils, and finalize budgets. The district has until August 29 to pass a budget for FY27.

Follow Heather on LinkedIn for more insight on the OI, enrollment shifts, revised staffing ratios, and more.

Today's budget update: The Opportunity Index (OI) Over the past few weeks, I have walked through several major drivers shaping CPS school budgets in FY27: enrollment shifts, revised staffing ratios, and lower payouts for liquidated positions. One piece remains: the Opportunity Index. → What is the...

06/01/2026

Each week, we lift up a Malott leader who is making a meaningful difference for students.

This week, we’re proud to spotlight Jamie Militello, principal at Chase Elementary School and a member of our 2025–26 Malott Educator Fellowship cohort.

Principal Militello has demonstrated a deep commitment to reflective leadership and distributed decision-making at Chase. She has intentionally created more space for staff voice and leadership by implementing strategies from Liz Wiseman’s Multipliers in Instructional Leadership Team meetings, facilitating a voluntary Continuous Improvement Work Plan centered on equity, and restructuring professional development so teacher leaders and coaches facilitate learning alongside staff.

That intentional shift in leadership culture is reflected in the school’s growth:

➡️Chase’s Illinois Assessment of Readiness (IAR) proficiency has increased from 30.7% in 2021 to 56% in 2024,
➡️Cultivate survey student response rates have risen from 70.7% in 2021 to 99.3% in 2025,
➡️Chronic absenteeism declined from 27.4% in 2024 to 24.3% in 2025.

By leading with transparency about her own growth as a leader, principal Militello has helped foster a culture where staff feel empowered to contribute, collaborate, and lead alongside administration. For students, that means more adults across the building are making strong instructional decisions in support of their learning and success.

05/29/2026

Nine CPS principals received contract approvals from their Local School Councils this May, with confirmation from the Chicago Board of Education.

LSC approvals are more than paperwork — they’re a meaningful milestone for their schools and communities. They reflect the trust that parents, teachers, and community members place in their school's leader—and the real, visible impact the principal has had. These nine leaders have earned that trust.

Here's to strong principals and the communities that recognize them. Congratulations!

05/28/2026

Tuesday was a full day for Dr. Macquline King. Even with a four-hour city council committee hearing and prepping for congressional testimony, she showed up for our Malott Fellows as we closed out the first year of our second cohort.

Her message to the fellows: "No one size fits all. And times are always changing. But the one constant in Chicago is that principals show up for their school communities."

This is exactly why she didn't want to miss showing up for them.
"Your work fuels the vision of this district. You make it happen. Thank you for your commitment to growth."

The Malott Educator Fellowship supports school leaders facing unique staffing and absenteeism challenges. The Fellowship provides a balance of Learning Labs and one-on-one coaching over two years. We are proud to provide this support alongside our partners at Wise Leadership Consulting and The Center for Urban Education Leadership at University of Illinois Chicago.

Thank you to every Malott leader, and to Dr. King for her wisdom and continuous effort to show up for school leaders.

05/25/2026

Each week, we lift up a Malott leader who is making a meaningful difference for students.

This week, we’re proud to spotlight Talisa Martin, principal at Madison Elementary School and a member of our 2025–26 Malott Educator Fellowship cohort.

Principal Martin has created a joyful, engaging tradition at Madison through a weekly sight-word parade that celebrates student achievement in literacy. Students who meet their sight-word goals are recognized and celebrated by the entire school community, turning academic achievement into a schoolwide celebration of learning. The impact of this work has been significant. Having begun at a baseline of 25% sight word mastery and parade participation, 95% of students now meet this goal.

Preliminary data for the year also shows the school has seen daily attendance increase from 86% to 89%. High-attendance homerooms are also recognized through a traveling attendance trophy, helping reinforce a school culture where students feel encouraged to show up and succeed.

By making literacy success visible and cheerful, principal Martin is helping students build confidence and excitement around learning!

05/20/2026

Budget season moves fast. The Fund’s Budget Office Hours exist to help principals keep that pace. Tomorrow’s session, led by tenured principal Lisa Epstein, will provide this support from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m.

This time will allow school leaders to focus on priorities and next steps with peers who are navigating similar budgetary decisions.

RSVP for Thursday’s session: https://tinyurl.com/budgetofficehours

Follow Heather Y. Anichini's LinkedIn for ongoing CPS budget insights.

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/heatheranichini_budget-overview-ugcPost-7462187861274972160-Tibi?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAADL48dsBLUYQntR-XF3E-E-S5yDzVG4YivQ

Last week, CPS announced a $732M deficit for FY27, up from the $520M projected in the FY26 Budget Book. School-level budgets absorb nearly $100M of that gap. How CPS closes the rest is still an open question. → The most concrete revenue lever right now is TIF surplus. CPS is assuming $100M, about ...

05/15/2026

Design Challenge Showcase - what an era! And these schools deserve their flowers. 💐

Each of the six finalists showcased how Chicago’s school leaders go deep with their communities before reaching for a solution. The Design Challenge looks to ensure their ideas don't stop at the presentation.

Here's a deeper look at the innovations:

Schurz High School built peer mentorship and family onboarding programs so that the hundreds of transfer students who arrive each year feel connected with their community from day one.
🏆High School Winner
🎖️Inclusive and Supportive Learning Environment Recipient
🎖️Community Choice Award

Skinner West Elementary listened to Black male students in grades 4–8, then redesigned how staff show up for them. By spending 2 minutes a day for 10 days connecting with students on non-school-related topics, school leaders built a simple yet powerful bond with their students.
🏆Elementary School Winner

Sayre Language Academy turned a quiet observation — multilingual students light up in small groups — into the Conversation Café, a low-stakes space to encourage English practice while valuing native languages.
🏆Runner-Up Finalist
🎖️Inclusive and Supportive Learning Environment Recipient

Earle STEM Elementary went after math stigma directly. Learning labs, community buy-in, and real performance data — shifting the narrative from fear to resilience.
🏆Runner-Up Finalist
🎖️Partnerships and Engagement Recipient

Hibbard Elementary reframed chronic absenteeism with one question: What if every student knew they'd be missed? Through direct outreach to families and a focus on strengthening individual teacher-student relationships, Hibbard created an atmosphere shift from a data-focused culture to a human-centered one.
🏆Runner-Up Finalist

Chicago Vocational School replaced punishment for tardiness with student ownership. KATSKAN gives teachers real-time data and students a reason to show up on time.
🏆Runner-Up Finalist

Six schools. Six communities. This is what it looks like to keep students at the center.

Congratulations again to all of our finalists. Thank you to our schools, teams, and leaders who made this event unforgettable 👏