Chicago School Board needs to listen to principals about what's best for students, schools

Principals are the backbone of Chicago’s public schools, the steady force ensuring that students and communities thrive despite the turmoil. But this stability doesn’t happen by chance; it’s something we fight for every day, with every ounce of our energy.

The Chicago Principals and Administrators Association (CPAA) represents more than 1,000 principals and assistant principals and is now officially recognized as the union and voice for these leaders. Distinct from the Chicago Teachers Union and Chicago Public Schools management, the association's goal is to secure a binding contract that solidifies the role of principals in shaping Chicago’s education system.

Importantly, we chose to include a no-strike clause in the legislation granting us bargaining rights, affirming that students’ needs come first.

While we respect other unions’ right to strike, our approach prioritizes compromise to safeguard students’ stability. We advocate for resources and protections essential for school leaders to create optimal learning environments. For us, this work is more than a job — it’s a commitment to the future of Chicago’s children.

House Bill 297 is critical in this pursuit. This legislation provides relief during negotiations should there be an impasse between the two parties. This fundamental principle is the cornerstone of labor. Without it, principals will be forced into a contract by imposition, not negotiation. This legislation would protect principals’ ability to negotiate without fear of retaliation, ensuring that principals’ voices are respected. It would give us a fair chance to speak out for our schools without fearing that our jobs could be at risk.

Principals need strong decision-making authority

There is a delicate balance that creates effective schools. It requires engaged teachers, strong school leaders, and the trust of communities. Principals are essential to maintaining this balance, ensuring that district policies are implemented in ways that work for each school’s unique context. But that balance is easily disrupted when critical decisions are made without considering the input of the principals who live those policies day in and day out.

We need the support of the new Board of Education members, those newly elected and those appointed by the mayor, who now oversee a $9.9 billion budget, employ 44,000 educators and staff, and make decisions impacting 325,000 children across 640 schools.

Principals are uniquely positioned to see the full impact of these decisions on entire communities and how these policies play out in practice.

Ultimately we all want the same things — a positive school culture and to ensure that the right educators are in place to meet students’ needs. Principals deserve to have the ability to make the best decisions possible regarding curriculum, assessment and grading that enable school leaders and teachers to ensure consistency across a school and create optimal and cohesive learning expectations and outcomes from classroom to classroom.

We respect the right of educators to collectively bargain, and the principals' association fought for years to secure this right. However, CPS must not compromise the core aspects of the principal role in the bargaining process. Principals are accountable for outcomes in their schools, and with that accountability must come the authority to lead effectively.

We ask the new board to engage in a transparent dialogue with the union that represents principals, assistant principals and administrators. The stakes are too high to make decisions without fully understanding the realities we face in our schools.

We urge the new board to actively seek the perspectives and wisdom of Chicago’s principals before making key decisions that will have lasting consequences for schools, communities and children.

Kia Banks is chief of staff to the Chicago Principals & Administrators Association. She was principal of Vanderpoel Humanities Academy from 2015 to 2024.

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