After nearly a year of bargaining and ironing out a contract, the Chicago Teachers Union approved a tentative agreement with Chicago Public Schools. The tentative agreement will go to CTU’s House of Delegates this week which will decide whether or not to advance it to CTU’s 30,000 members for a ratification vote. If accepted, it will represent a major leap forward in the transformation of a district, according to the CTU. “Our union is bargaining for what every parent wants for their child in our school communities. It shouldn’t be a fight for children to get access to arts, sports, wrap around supports, and libraries. It’s what should already exist,” explains CTU Local 1 President Stacy Davis Gates. “We’re proud to have landed a transformative contract that turns away from decades of disinvesting in Black children and turns toward creating the world-class education system for every single student in CPS no matter their zip code. If the contract is ratified by our members, we will be one major leap forward toward the educational experience Chicago’s children and the mainly women workers who serve them in our schools deserve.” In 2025, some highlights of the Chicago Teachers Union contract include:

• Doubles the number of libraries and librarians for our schools.

• Enforceable and smaller class sizes for all grade levels.

• Ensuring social workers and nurses serve students in every school, every instructional day.

• Doubles the bilingual education staffing supports for students.

• Additional staffing, curricular and enrollment supports for Early Childhood education students and programs.

• Creates 215 more case manager positions district-wide to support students with disabilities.

• A cost of living adjustment of 17-20% compounded (tied to inflation) over the four years of the contract.