Parents, teachers and community members testified Sept. 10 about urgent school‑site questions tied to charter-to-district transitions and personnel concerns at two separate Chicago schools.
Speakers representing Acero campuses — including Olivia Goldstein, a teacher at Esmeralda Santiago (an Acero campus slated to transition to CPS in the 2026–27 school year) — said the Santiago building has been listed for sale by the archdiocese and parents fear losing the site and the Puerto Rican community anchor it provides. Goldstein told the board that curricular materials appeared to be withheld this year and that perceived disinvestment threatens students’ early‑literacy instruction.
Caroline Rutherford, CTU vice chair for the charter division, said the board’s spring resolution calling for Acero-to-CPS transitions must be carried out with concrete plans that maximize retention of teachers, PSRPs and students; she said CPS officials were “refusing to provide any form of job guarantees” to existing teachers and staff at the five Acero schools and that campus locations for Santiago and Cisneros remain unresolved ahead of the GoCPS cycle.
Separately, parents from Inter American Magnet School, including Louisa Cardens and retired principal Virginia Jimenez Del Toro, urged immediate action to remove Inter American Principal Juan Carlos Saez (transcripted in public comment) after allegations and multiple complaints and said families had not been notified of the results of a year‑long investigation. Testimony included allegations that substitute teachers failed to report serious student‑on‑student incidents and that a substitute implicated in earlier incidents was rehired into a kindergarten vacancy.
Why it matters: Transition plans, building sales and personnel disputes directly affect family stability, enrollment decisions for the GoCPS cycle and the continuity of instruction for students in high‑performing neighborhood schools.
CPS Chief Operating Officer Charles Mayfield said the five Acero schools (Casillas, Cisneros, Fuentes, Santiago and Tamayo) “will be included in the next GoCPS cycle, which is launching on September 23.” Mayfield also reiterated district intentions to work with charters and to continue negotiations toward implementation steps.
Board members asked for updates to be provided publicly; several members requested rapid information about Inter American’s investigation status, staffing plans for Acero transitions and any district steps to ensure teacher retention. No vote or formal personnel action was taken in open session; parents asked the board to place Inter American and Acero matters on future agendas and to publish timelines for staff protections and school locations.
Ending: Parents and teachers asked for immediate, concrete timelines for building acquisition and staff reabsorption; CPS committed to including the five Acero schools in the GoCPS cycle and to continuing discussions with Acero and community stakeholders but did not provide firm guarantees at the meeting.